[mlpack] [GSoC] RL using mlpack's codebase

[Nanubala Gnana Sai]

Hi Suryansh

Glad to see you're interested in the project. Just so we are on the same
page, this project is on creating an RL Environment for simulation rather
than implementing an algorithm. There has been previous work
<https://summerofcode.withgoogle.com/archive/2020/projects/6549718496182272>on
the Rainbow algorithm. From the paper, I gather "integrated agent"
describes the rainbow algorithm itself. If you're looking for adding RL
algorithms and benchmarking against existing ones, the correct project
would be Reinforcement Learning.
<https://github.com/mlpack/mlpack/wiki/SummerOfCodeIdeas#reinforcement-learning>
Note
that it is different from Procedural RL Environment creation
<https://github.com/mlpack/mlpack/wiki/SummerOfCodeIdeas#reinforcement-learning>.
It's important that the distinction is acknowledged.

If you plan to do both: implement an RL algorithm (benchmark + test + docs)
and create a separate Procedural generated RL Environment, that's good!
That means you'd be combining two separate ideas which is fine, we allow
flexibility. However, be wary of the size of the project. Personally, I
would pick only one. Please take some time to choose which course of action
you want to take. All of the above ideas are acceptable to me, provided the
timeline and scope is reasonable and you have sufficient background
knowledge.

Finally, as Fauz mentioned, be sure to link your open-source contributions,
relevant courses, projects etc. to help us gauge the success of the
project. A good track record of open source contributions and a demo is a
major plus (although not strictly necessary).

Eager to hear from you
S



On Wed, Apr 13, 2022 at 12:54 PM Mohd Fauz <fauz.2.1.21.26 at gmail.com> wrote:

> Hi Suryansh,
>
> Glad to see you are interested in the project. I observe that you
> mentioned some proficiency stats in your mail. They seem to align well with
> the requirements. I require you to draft a doc where you can provide :
>
>    -  Links to your projects that utilize these skills/technologies.
>    - Any courses that you took related to them.
>
> These points are just for giving you a direction. You can add any
> additional info that you think can help us understand your skills better
> concerning this project. We'll have further discussion in the doc itself.
>
> Eager to hear from you.
>
> On Wed, Apr 13, 2022 at 12:32 PM Suryansh Shrivastava <
> me.suryansh22 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hi,
>>
>> I am sorry for being late in starting a conversation regarding my GSoC
>> contribution application.
>> I am a 2nd year undergraduate in the field of Electronics and Electrical
>> Engineering. I have been venturing into the field of RL for the last few
>> months. I have also been going through the MLPack codebase since last week
>> and made myself comfortable with it to the great extent.
>>
>> I have planned to implement the Integrated agent presented in the
>> Rainbow: Combining Improvements in Deep Reinforcement Learning, with this I
>> will also be benchmarking the algorithm against the other RL algorithms
>> already implemented using the mlpack codebase. Can you please suggest me or
>> give some guidance for the same.
>>
>> Also, looking at the new project idea recently uploaded, I consider
>> myself somewhat adept in working on it as I have intermediate know-how of
>> Unity game engine and also a basic understanding of PRNG algorithms. I
>> would like to know more about what is required and what other skills I may
>> be requiring.
>>
>> Thanks a lot.
>>
>
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