基底ないしパターンの数mは、5.3.3項で説明した方法を使ってデータごとに求めるべきパラメータです
I am unable to understand the use of "ないし" phrase in the head of the above sentence after the "基底". This phrase is a form of the adjective "ない", meaning no/is not, which is mainly used when the speaker wants to continue after the negation. So why is this being used in the head of the sentence ?
If necessary, this sentence is speaking about a machine learning algorithm and its tuning.
Please help.