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ages 9 - 11

Using AI to solve problems

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• brought to you by Barefoot and Code for Life

Recommended for

Lesson objectives

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• I can define the term machine learning
• I know that AI models are trained using data
• I can identify real life uses of machine learning helping to solve problems

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Artificial Intelligence

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Artificial Intelligence

• Have you come across this word before?
• Do you know what it means?
• Do you have any examples of where Artificial Intelligence (or AI) is used?

Artificial Intelligence makes it possible for machines to perform tasks that typically require human intelligence, such as problem solving, learning from experience, and making decisions.

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Machine Learning

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What is Machine Learning?

When we train AI programs to learn new things, it is called machine learning.

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It is a process written by humans, which takes a data input, and makes a prediction based on it.

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What inputs do you know?

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What is a data input?

Input devices enable information from the outside world to get into a computer.

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An input could be from a device such as a keyboard, mouse, microphone, camera or physical sensor.

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In this lesson, you will be finding out how computers can help us to solve real world problems.

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Using robots in a warehouse

Watch this video

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Discuss:

• What problem did the people in the warehouse have?
• How did using technology help to solve it?

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Alternatively, use the Vimeo link here

How can robots solve problems?

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The computer in the warehouse was trained to recognise different features of objects, and work out whether to use the robot to pick them or not.

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Q. How did the robot decide whether to pick up the object or not?

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How can robots solve problems?

A. The robot used image detection to make a decision about how or if it picked something up, depending on what it had been taught about the object (e.g. size / shape / weight etc.)

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Image detection systems

How is the machine learning system using image detection in each of these examples?

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Can you think of any other times that computers have been trained to detect things using cameras?

Activity - Race to recycle

The people working in the recycling centre have a problem. They are spending too much time sorting and separating the different types of recycling in the sacks.

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Can you design a robotic system which uses machine learning to separate the different types of rubbish?

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Race to recycle

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Work in small groups to design your system, sketching and labelling how it works.

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Think about:

• What physical features the robotic system would need
• The process the system would go through
• What data the system would need to be able to make decisions on how to separate the rubbish (how would it tell the difference between paper and glass, for example?)

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Activity - training the system

Imagine you are the machine learning model and you have to train a driverless car to detect objects.

Look at this road scene and circle all the things which a car should avoid. Then ‘label’ the data you circle, e.g. ‘person’.

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Activity - training the system

New data is often introduced to machine learning models in real time, meaning that it is constantly learning and adapting based on the new information.

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The more data the machine learning model receives, the more accurate and consistent decisions it can make.

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Reflection

Use the following words in a sentence to describe the features that a machine learning system needs to be effective.

• Machine Learning
• practice
• train
• data
• decisions

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Lesson objectives

• I can define the term machine learning
• I know that AI models are trained using data
• I can identify real life uses of machine learning helping to solve problems

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