diff --git a/start_here.ipynb b/start_here.ipynb index 81ea3022..fbea5e70 100644 --- a/start_here.ipynb +++ b/start_here.ipynb @@ -594,10 +594,20 @@ "this is a more advanced feature and it is recommended you first get to grips with the core API.\n", "\n", "\n", - "__Other:__\n", + "__Graphical Models__\n", "\n", - "- Automated pipelines / database tools.\n", - "- Graphical models." + "The examples above fit each galaxy dataset one-by-one. However, many galaxy properties are shared across a\n", + "sample (e.g. the population's distribution of Sersic indices or sizes), and fitting galaxies independently does\n", + "not exploit this shared structure.\n", + "\n", + "Graphical models fit multiple datasets simultaneously, explicitly defining which parameters are unique to each\n", + "galaxy and which are shared across the sample. Hierarchical extensions assume parameters are drawn from a parent\n", + "distribution, whose properties are inferred from the full sample, extracting significantly more information\n", + "than one-by-one fitting. This is a powerful tool for galaxy evolution studies of large samples, for example\n", + "measuring how the galaxy population's structural properties vary with mass or redshift.\n", + "\n", + "Checkout `autofit_workspace/*/features/graphical_models.py` to learn how to compose and fit a graphical model;\n", + "the API applies directly to the galaxy fits shown throughout this workspace." ] } ], diff --git a/start_here.py b/start_here.py index 3b5b136b..bb9ee633 100644 --- a/start_here.py +++ b/start_here.py @@ -479,8 +479,18 @@ this is a more advanced feature and it is recommended you first get to grips with the core API. -__Other:__ +__Graphical Models__ -- Automated pipelines / database tools. -- Graphical models. +The examples above fit each galaxy dataset one-by-one. However, many galaxy properties are shared across a +sample (e.g. the population's distribution of Sersic indices or sizes), and fitting galaxies independently does +not exploit this shared structure. + +Graphical models fit multiple datasets simultaneously, explicitly defining which parameters are unique to each +galaxy and which are shared across the sample. Hierarchical extensions assume parameters are drawn from a parent +distribution, whose properties are inferred from the full sample, extracting significantly more information +than one-by-one fitting. This is a powerful tool for galaxy evolution studies of large samples, for example +measuring how the galaxy population's structural properties vary with mass or redshift. + +Checkout `autofit_workspace/*/features/graphical_models.py` to learn how to compose and fit a graphical model; +the API applies directly to the galaxy fits shown throughout this workspace. """