15 Interview

Questions on
Convolutional
Neural Network
1. What do you mean by Convolutional Neural
Network?

A Convolutional neural network (CNN, or ConvNet) is

another type of neural network that can be used to
enable machines to visualize things.

CNN’s are used to perform analysis on images and

visuals. These classes of neural networks can input a
multi-channel image and work on it easily with minimal
preprocessing required.

A Convolutional neural network (CNN, or ConvNet) is

another type of neural network that can be used to
enable machines to visualize things.

CNN’s are used to perform analysis on images and

visuals. These classes of neural networks can input a
multi-channel image and work on it easily with minimal
preprocessing required.

These neural networks are widely used in:

Image recognition and Image classification
Object detection
Recognition of faces, etc.
2. Why do we prefer Convolutional Neural
networks (CNN) over Artificial Neural
networks (ANN) for image data as input?
1. Feedforward neural networks can learn a single
feature representation of the image but in the case of
complex images, ANN will fail to give better predictions,
this is because it cannot learn pixel dependencies
present in the images.

2. CNN can learn multiple layers of feature

representations of an image by applying filters, or
transformations.

3. In CNN, the number of parameters for the network to

learn is significantly lower than the multilayer neural
networks since the number of units in the network
decreases, therefore reducing the chance of overfitting.

4. Also, CNN considers the context information in the

small neighborhood and due to this feature, these are
very important to achieve a better prediction in data like
images. Since digital images are a bunch of pixels with
high values, it makes sense to use CNN to analyze them.
CNN decreases their values, which is better for the
training phase with less computational power and less
information loss.
3. Explain the different layers in CNN.

The different layers involved in the architecture of CNN

are as follows:

1. Input Layer: The input layer in CNN should contain

image data. Image data is represented by a three-
dimensional matrix. We have to reshape the image into a
single column.

For Example, Suppose we have an MNIST dataset and

you have an image of dimension 28 x 28 =784, you need
to convert it into 784 x 1 before feeding it into the input.
If we have “k” training examples in the dataset, then the
dimension of input will be (784, k).

2. Convolutional Layer: To perform the convolution

operation, this layer is used which creates several
smaller picture windows to go over the data.

3. ReLU Layer: This layer introduces the non-linearity to

the network and converts all the negative pixels to zero.
The final output is a rectified feature map.

4. Pooling Layer: Pooling is a down-sampling operation

that reduces the dimensionality of the feature map.
6. Softmax / Logistic Layer: The softmax or Logistic layer
is the last layer of CNN. It resides at the end of the FC
layer. Logistic is used for binary classification problem
statement and softmax is for multi-classification problem
statement.

7. Output Layer: This layer contains the label in the form

of a one-hot encoded vector
4. Explain the significance of the RELU
Activation function in Convolution Neural
Network
RELU Layer – After each convolution operation, the RELU
operation is used. Moreover, RELU is a non-linear
activation function. This operation is applied to each
pixel and replaces all the negative pixel values in the
feature map with zero.

Usually, the image is highly non-linear, which means

varied pixel values. This is a scenario that is very difficult
for an algorithm to make correct predictions. RELU
activation function is applied in these cases to decrease
the non-linearity and make the job easier.

Therefore this layer helps in the detection of features,

decreasing the non-linearity of the image, converting
negative pixels to zero which also allows detecting the
variations of features.
5. Why do we use a Pooling Layer in a CNN?
CNN uses pooling layers to reduce the size of the input
image so that it speeds up the computation of the
network.

Pooling or spatial pooling layers: Also called subsampling

or downsampling.

It is applied after convolution and RELU operations.

It reduces the dimensionality of each feature map by
retaining the most important information.
Since the number of hidden layers required to learn
the complex relations present in the image would be
large.

As a result of pooling, even if the picture were a little

tilted, the largest number in a certain region of the
feature map would have been recorded and hence, the
feature would have been preserved. Also as another
benefit, reducing the size by a very significant amount
will use less computational power. So, it is also useful for
extracting dominant features.
5. Why do we use a Pooling Layer in a CNN?
CNN uses pooling layers to reduce the size of the input
image so that it speeds up the computation of the
network.

Pooling or spatial pooling layers: Also called subsampling

or downsampling.

It is applied after convolution and RELU operations.

It reduces the dimensionality of each feature map by
retaining the most important information.
Since the number of hidden layers required to learn
the complex relations present in the image would be
large.

As a result of pooling, even if the picture were a little

tilted, the largest number in a certain region of the
feature map would have been recorded and hence, the
feature would have been preserved. Also as another
benefit, reducing the size by a very significant amount
will use less computational power. So, it is also useful for
extracting dominant features.
6. What is the size of the feature map for a
given input size image, Filter Size, Stride, and
Padding amount?
Stride tells us about the number of pixels we will jump
when we are convolving filters.

If our input image has a size of n x n and filters size f x f

and p is the Padding amount and s is the Stride, then the
dimension of the feature map is given by:

Dimension = floor[ ((n-f+2p)/s)+1] x floor[ ((n-f+2p)/s)+1]

7. An input image has been converted into a

matrix of size 12 X 12 along with a filter of size
3 X 3 with a Stride of 1. Determine the size of
the convoluted matrix.

To calculate the size of the convoluted matrix, we use

the generalized equation, given by:

C = ((n-f+2p)/s)+1

Here n = 12, f = 3, p = 0, s = 1
Therefore the size of the convoluted matrix is 10 X 10.
8. Explain the terms “Valid Padding” and
“Same Padding” in CNN.
Valid Padding: This type is used when there is no
requirement for Padding. The output matrix after
convolution will have the dimension of (n – f + 1) X (n – f
+ 1).

Same Padding: Here, we added the Padding elements all

around the output matrix. After this type of padding, we
will get the dimensions of the input matrix the same as
that of the convolved matrix.
After Same padding, if we apply a filter of dimension f x f
to (n+2p) x (n+2p) input matrix, then we will get output
matrix dimension (n+2p-f+1) x (n+2p-f+1).

As we know that after applying Padding we will get the

same dimension as the original input dimension (n x n).

Hence we have,

(n+2p-f+1)x(n+2p-f+1) equivalent to nxn

n+2p-f+1 = n

p = (f-1)/2

So, by using Padding in this way we don’t lose a lot of

information and the image also does not shrink.
9. What are the different types of Pooling?
Explain their characteristics.
Spatial Pooling can be of different types – max pooling,
average pooling, and Sum pooling.

Max pooling: Once we obtain the feature map of the

input, we will apply a filter of determined shapes
across the feature map to get the maximum value
from that portion of the feature map. It is also known
as subsampling because from the entire portion of
the feature map covered by filter or kernel we are
sampling one single maximum value.

Average pooling: Computes the average value of the

feature map covered by kernel or filter, and takes the
floor value of the result.

Sum pooling: Computes the sum of all elements in

that window.
Max pooling returns the maximum value of the portion
covered by the kernel and suppresses the Noise, while
Average pooling only returns the measure of that
portion.

The most widely used pooling technique is max pooling

since it captures the features of maximum importance
with it.

10. Does the size of the feature map always

reduce upon applying the filters? Explain why
or why not.
No, the convolution operation shrinks the matrix of
pixels(input image) only if the size of the filter is greater
than 1 i.e, f > 1.

When we apply a filter of 1×1, then there is no reduction in

the size of the image and hence there is no loss of
information.
11. What is Stride? What is the effect of high
Stride on the feature map?
Stride refers to the number of pixels by which we slide
over the filter matrix over the input matrix. For instance –

If Stride =1, then move the filter one pixel at a time.

If Stride=2, then move the filter two-pixel at a time.

Moreover, larger Strides will produce a smaller feature

map

12. Explain the role of the flattening layer in

CNN.
After a series of convolution and pooling operations on
the feature representation of the image, we then flatten
the output of the final pooling layers into a single long
continuous linear array or a vector.

The process of converting all the resultant 2-d arrays

into a vector is called Flattening.Flatten output is fed as
input to the fully connected neural network having
varying numbers of hidden layers to learn the non-linear
complexities present with the feature representation
13. List down the hyperparameters of a
Pooling Layer.
The hyperparameters for a pooling layer are:

Filter size
Stride
Max or average pooling

If the input of the pooling layer is nh x nw x nc, then the

output will be –
Dimension = [ {(nh – f) / s + 1}* {(nw – f) / s + 1}* nc’ ]

14. What is the role of the Fully Connected

(FC) Layer in CNN?
The aim of the Fully connected layer is to use the high-
level feature of the input image produced by
convolutional and pooling layers for classifying the input
image into various classes based on the training dataset.
Fully connected means that every neuron in the previous
layer is connected to each and every neuron in the next
layer. The Sum of output probabilities from the Fully
connected layer is 1, fully connected using a softmax
activation function in the output layer.
15. Briefly explain the two major steps of CNN
i.e, Feature Learning and Classification.
Feature Learning deals with the algorithm by learning
about the dataset. Components like Convolution, ReLU,
and Pooling work for that, with numerous iterations
between them. Once the features are known, then
classification happens using the Flattening and Full
Connection components.