Progress in the application of machine learning (ML) to the physical and life sciences has been rapid. A decade ago, the method was mainly of interest to those in computer science departments, but more recently ML tools have been developed that show significant potential across wide areas of science. There is a growing consensus that ML software, and related areas of artificial intelligence, may, in due course, become as fundamental to scientific research as computers themselves.

Yet a perception remains that ML is obscure or esoteric, that only computer scientists can really understand it, and that few meaningful applications in scientific research exist. This book challenges that view.

With contributions from leading research groups, it presents in-depth examples to illustrate how ML can be applied to real chemical problems. Through these examples, the reader can both gain a feel for what ML can and cannot (so far) achieve, and also identify characteristics that might make a problem in physical science amenable to a ML approach.

This text is a valuable resource for scientists who are intrigued by the power of machine learning and want to learn more about how it can be applied in their own field.