The inference-tools package

Introduction

This package aims to provide a set of python-based tools for Bayesian data analysis which are simple to use, allowing them to be applied quickly and easily.

Inference tools is not a framework for building Bayesian/probabilistic models - instead it provides tools to characterise arbitrary posterior distributions (given a function which maps model parameters to a log-probability) via MCMC sampling.

This type of ‘black-box’ functionality allows for inference without the requirement of first implementing the problem within a modelling framework.

Additionally, the package provides tools for analysing and plotting sampling results, as well as implementations of some useful applications of Gaussian processes.

Features

  • Implementations of MCMC algorithms like Gibbs sampling and Hamiltonian Monte-Carlo for sampling from user-defined posterior distributions.

  • Density estimation and plotting tools for analysing and visualising inference results.

  • Gaussian-process regression and optimisation.

Installation

inference-tools is available from PyPI, and can be installed using pip:

pip install inference-tools

See Getting started for a worked example of using the package.

Getting involved

Requests for features/improvements can be made via the issue tracker. If you have questions or are interested in getting involved with the development of this package, please contact me at chris.bowman.physics@gmail.com.