# MNIST ![](https://2327526407-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-legacy-files/o/assets%2F-LvBP1svpACTB1R1x_U4%2F-LvfmZN0SXrvBs3ndsqG%2F-Lvg7Fj0FIdVfziJHILk%2Fimage.png?alt=media\&token=4d01624c-8ec3-4498-8f39-6105256307e1) Short for “Modified National Institute of Standards and Technology," MNIST is the canonical database of labeled images of handwritten digits from 0 through 9. MNIST is often used in sample projects as a sort of "hello world" for machine learning. It is also used frequently as a performance benchmark. The dataset has a training set of 60,000 examples, and a test set of 10,000 examples which are available from this [page](http://yann.lecun.com/exdb/mnist/). ## MNIST + Gradient MNIST is available in the [Public Datasets Repository](https://docs.paperspace.com/gradient/data/public-datasets-repository) which is provided for free in Gradient. These datasets are automatically mounted to every Notebook and Experiment. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://machine-learning.paperspace.com/wiki/mnist.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.