Recent Advances of Neural Network Optimization and Algorithms in Deep Learning

A special issue of Mathematics (ISSN 2227-7390). This special issue belongs to the section "E: Applied Mathematics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2026 | Viewed by 2768

Special Issue Editor


E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
The School of Telecommunications Engineering, Xidian University, Xi’an 710071, China
Interests: machine learning; computer vision; data mining; optimization; deep learning
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, neural networks, as one of the hottest artificial intelligence technologies, have made breakthroughs and driven the rapid development of science and technology. However, due to the complexity of neural network structures and algorithm optimization, their future development still faces many challenges. The optimization of neural networks is a key factor in improving their performance. This Special Issue aims to demonstrate (1) weight initialization, optimization and regularization of neural network algorithms; and (2) adaptive learning, distributed learning and reinforcement learning in neural networks. The editors hope to collect a number of research studies reporting the recent developments in the related research topics. In addition, researchers can promote their innovative ideas on the topic of recent advances in neural network optimization in the field of deep learning by submitting manuscripts to this Special Issue.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

  1. Weight initialization, optimization and regularization in neural network algorithms;
  2. Adaptive learning, distributed learning and reinforcement learning in neural networks;
  3. A review of recent advances of neural network optimization and algorithms.

I look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Yang Liu
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Mathematics is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • neural networks
  • optimizer
  • regularization
  • distributed learning
  • reinforcement learning

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

24 pages, 739 KiB  
Article
CPEL: A Causality-Aware, Parameter-Efficient Learning Framework for Adaptation of Large Language Models with Case Studies in Geriatric Care and Beyond
by Jinzhong Xu, Junyi Gao, Xiaoming Liu, Guan Yang, Jie Liu, Yang Long, Ziyue Huang and Kai Yang
Mathematics 2025, 13(15), 2460; https://doi.org/10.3390/math13152460 - 30 Jul 2025
Viewed by 378
Abstract
Adapting Large Language Models (LLMs) to specialized domains like geriatric care remains a significant challenge due to the limited availability of domain-specific data and the difficulty of achieving efficient yet effective fine-tuning. Current methods often fail to effectively harness domain-specific causal insights, which [...] Read more.
Adapting Large Language Models (LLMs) to specialized domains like geriatric care remains a significant challenge due to the limited availability of domain-specific data and the difficulty of achieving efficient yet effective fine-tuning. Current methods often fail to effectively harness domain-specific causal insights, which are crucial for understanding and solving complex problems in low-resource domains.To address these challenges, we propose Causality-Aware, Parameter-Efficient Learning (CPEL), a novel framework that leverages domain-specific causal relationships to guide a multi-layer, parameter-efficient fine-tuning process for more effective domain adaptation. By embedding causal reasoning into the model’s adaptation pipeline, CPEL enables efficient specialization in the target domain while maintaining strong task-specific performance. Specifically, the Causal Prompt Generator of CPEL extracts and applies domain-specific causal structures, generating adaptive prompts that effectively guide the model’s learning process. Complementing this, the MPEFT module employs a dual-adapter mechanism to balance domain-level adaptation with downstream task optimization. This cohesive design ensures that CPEL achieves resource efficiency while capturing domain knowledge in a structured and interpretable manner. Based on this framework, we delved into its application in the field of geriatric care and trained a specialized large language model (Geriatric Care LLaMA) tailored for the aged-care domain, leveraging its capacity to efficiently integrate domain expertise. Experimental results from question-answering tasks demonstrate that CPEL improves ROUGE scores by 9–14% compared to mainstream LLMs and outperforms frontier models by 1–2 points in auto-scoring tasks. In summary, CPEL demonstrates robust generalization and cross-domain adaptability, highlighting its scalability and effectiveness as a transformative solution for domain adaptation in specialized, resource-constrained fields. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

29 pages, 647 KiB  
Review
Recent Advances in Optimization Methods for Machine Learning: A Systematic Review
by Xiaodong Liu, Huaizhou Qi, Suisui Jia, Yongjing Guo and Yang Liu
Mathematics 2025, 13(13), 2210; https://doi.org/10.3390/math13132210 - 7 Jul 2025
Viewed by 1560
Abstract
This systematic review explores modern optimization methods for machine learning, distinguishing between gradient-based techniques using derivative information and population-based approaches employing stochastic search. Key innovations focus on enhanced regularization, adaptive control mechanisms, and biologically inspired strategies to address challenges like scaling to large [...] Read more.
This systematic review explores modern optimization methods for machine learning, distinguishing between gradient-based techniques using derivative information and population-based approaches employing stochastic search. Key innovations focus on enhanced regularization, adaptive control mechanisms, and biologically inspired strategies to address challenges like scaling to large models, navigating complex non-convex landscapes, and adapting to dynamic constraints. These methods underpin core ML tasks including model training, hyperparameter tuning, and feature selection. While significant progress is evident, limitations in scalability and theoretical guarantees persist, directing future work toward more robust and adaptive frameworks to advance AI applications in areas like autonomous systems and scientific discovery. Full article
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop