Personal Advice/Request: Can I be your apprentice?

post by aysajan · 2021-05-12T16:01:08.903Z · LW · GW · 1 comment

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It has not been very long since I joined LessWrong but I have been truly enjoying the intelligent conversations/debates going on here, whether it is about general rationality, ML/AI, or investment. In the meantime, I find myself thinking Albert Einstein’s famous quote about learning quite frequently. He famously said “The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don’t know.” While being truly amazed by all the fascinating work LessWrong community members have been doing, I realize that I couldn’t do much due to my limited domain knowledge and limited hands on experience. I am inspired and I want to contribute, especially in the fields of ML research. But in reality, as an outlier in my current network (business academia), I am greatly struggling due to lack of guidance and lack of hands on experience. 

After much thinking I decided to mimic Warren Buffett’s move in 1954. So, my question is: Can I be your free apprentice? Becoming an apprentice of the best is exactly how I want to learn ML skills: learn from the best and do original research. If you think I need to know X, Y, Z in order to be your apprentice, please list them. I will learn and show you that I am qualified in the shortest time possible.

My background: I have a master’s degree in Statistics and PhD in Operations Research from the United States. I earned my PhD in 2018 and have been working as a business school faculty member in Canada since then. Due to the nature of my job, I have the luxury to dedicate majority of my time throughout the year to research projects I find interesting and inspiring.

Within the business academia community, ML research is somewhat an unconventional territory with lack of originality. That’s why I expanded my horizon to beyond academia. Additionally, recent great advancements in ML/AI research have been from outside academia. 

When Warren Buffett wanted to be Benjamin Graham’s free apprentice, Graham said, “Actually, you’re overpriced, free is overpriced.” But I believe this is a positive-sum game for two parties involved. I have strong desire to contribute to the community by conducting original research. But before that I want to be your apprentice. Message me if you need an apprentice and I can learn from you.

Specific topics/areas I am particularly interested (without order): deep/reinforcement learning, AI safety, AI alignment, ML/AI applications in healthcare/finance

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