An introduction to the essentials on transparent machine learning for learners of diverse backgrounds to understand and apply transparent machine learning in real-world applications with confidence and trust. Learners should have a knowledge of basic maths and Python for machine learning.

While ECG data is crucial for diagnosing and monitoring heart conditions, it also contains unique biometric information that poses significant privacy risks. Existing ECG re-identification studies rely on exhaustive analysis of numerous deep learning features, confining to ad-hoc explainability towards clinicians decision making. In this work, we delve into explainability of ECG re-identification risks using transparent machine learning models. We use SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) analysis to identify and explain the key features contributing to re-identification risks. We conduct an empirical analysis of identity re-identification risks using ECG data from five diverse real-world datasets, encompassing 223 participants. By employing transparent machine learning models, we reveal the diversity among different ECG features in contributing towards re-identification of individuals with an accuracy of 0.76 for gender, 0.67 for age group, and 0.82 for participant ID re-identification. Our approach provides valuable insights for clinical experts and guides the development of effective privacy-preserving mechanisms. Further, our findings emphasize the necessity for robust privacy measures in real-world health applications and offer detailed, actionable insights for enhancing data anonymization techniques.

Background: Accurate survival time estimates aid end-of-life medical decision-making. Objectives: Develop an interpretable survival model for elderly residential aged care residents using advanced machine learning. Setting: A major Australasian residential aged care provider. Participants: Residents aged 65+ admitted for long-term care from July 2017 to August 2023. Sample size: 11,944 residents across 40 facilities. Predictors: Factors include age, gender, health status, co-morbidities, cognitive function, mood, nutrition, mobility, smoking, sleep, skin integrity, and continence. Outcome: Probability of survival post-admission, specifically calibrated for 6-month survival estimates. Statistical Analysis: Tested CoxPH, EN, RR, Lasso, GB, XGB, and RF models in 20 experiments with a 90/10 train/test split. Evaluated accuracy using C-index, Harrell's C-index, dynamic AUROC, IBS, and calibrated ROC. Chose XGB for its performance and calibrated it for 1, 3, 6, and 12-month predictions using Platt scaling. Employed SHAP values to analyze predictor impacts. Results: GB, XGB, and RF models showed the highest C-Index values (0.714, 0.712, 0.712). The optimal XGB model demonstrated a 6-month survival prediction AUROC of 0.746 (95% CI 0.744-0.749). Key mortality predictors include age, male gender, mobility, health status, pressure ulcer risk, and appetite. Conclusions: The study successfully applies machine learning to create a survival model for aged care, aligning with clinical insights on mortality risk factors and enhancing model interpretability and clinical utility through explainable AI.

The next big thing in AI may not be getting a machine to perform a task--it might be requiring the machine to communicate why it took that action. For instance, if a robot decides to take a certain route across a warehouse, or a driverless car turns left instead of right, how do we know why it made that decision? According to Manuela Veloso, professor of computer science at Carnegie Mellon University, explainable AI is essential to building trust in our systems. Veloso, who works with co-bots (collaborative robots), programs the machines to verbalize their decision process. "We need to be able to question why programs are doing what they do," Veloso said.

The next big thing in AI may not be getting a machine to perform a task--it might be requiring the machine to communicate why it took that action. For instance, if a robot decides to take a certain route across a warehouse, or a driverless car turns left instead of right, how do we know why it made that decision? According to Manuela Veloso, professor of computer science at Carnegie Mellon University, explainable AI is essential to building trust in our systems. Veloso, who works with co-bots (collaborative robots), programs the machines to verbalize their decision process. "We need to be able to question why programs are doing what they do," Veloso said.