In this paper, we propose an alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM)-based optimization algorithm to achieve better undersampling rate for multiple measurement vector (MMV) problem. The core is to introduce the $\ell_{2,0}$-norm sparsity constraint to describe the joint-sparsity of the MMV problem, which is different from the widely used $\ell_{2,1}$-norm constraint in the existing research. In order to illustrate the better performance of $\ell_{2,0}$-norm, first this paper proves the equivalence of the sparsity of the row support set of a matrix and its $\ell_{2,0}$-norm. Afterward, the MMV problem based on $\ell_{2,0}$-norm is proposed. Moreover, building on the Kurdyka-Lojasiewicz property, this paper establishes that the sequence generated by ADMM globally converges to the optimal point of the MMV problem. Finally, the performance of our algorithm and comparison with other algorithms under different conditions is studied by simulated examples.
We propose policy gradient algorithms for solving a risk-sensitive reinforcement learning problem in on-policy as well as off-policy settings. We consider episodic Markov decision processes, and model the risk using the broad class of smooth risk measures of the cumulative discounted reward. We propose two template policy gradient algorithms that optimize a smooth risk measure in on-policy and off-policy RL settings, respectively. We derive non-asymptotic bounds that quantify the rate of convergence to our proposed algorithms to a stationary point of the smooth risk measure. As special cases, we establish that our algorithms apply to the optimization of mean-variance and distortion risk measures, respectively.
Motivated by applications to noncoherent network coding, we study subspace codes defined by sets of linear cellular automata (CA). As a first remark, we show that a family of linear CA where the local rules have the same diameter -- and thus the associated polynomials have the same degree -- induces a Grassmannian code. Then, we prove that the minimum distance of such a code is determined by the maximum degree occurring among the pairwise greatest common divisors (GCD) of the polynomials in the family. Finally, we consider the setting where all such polynomials have the same GCD, and determine the cardinality of the corresponding Grassmannian code. As a particular case, we show that if all polynomials in the family are pairwise coprime, the resulting Grassmannian code has the highest minimum distance possible.
Forecast reconciliation is the post-forecasting process aimed to revise a set of incoherent base forecasts into coherent forecasts in line with given data structures. Most of the point and probabilistic regression-based forecast reconciliation results ground on the so called "structural representation" and on the related unconstrained generalized least squares reconciliation formula. However, the structural representation naturally applies to genuine hierarchical/grouped time series, where the top- and bottom-level variables are uniquely identified. When a general linearly constrained multiple time series is considered, the forecast reconciliation is naturally expressed according to a projection approach. While it is well known that the classic structural reconciliation formula is equivalent to its projection approach counterpart, so far it is not completely understood if and how a structural-like reconciliation formula may be derived for a general linearly constrained multiple time series. Such an expression would permit to extend reconciliation definitions, theorems and results in a straightforward manner. In this paper, we show that for general linearly constrained multiple time series it is possible to express the reconciliation formula according to a "structural-like" approach that keeps distinct free and constrained, instead of bottom and upper (aggregated), variables, establish the probabilistic forecast reconciliation framework, and apply these findings to obtain fully reconciled point and probabilistic forecasts for the aggregates of the Australian GDP from income and expenditure sides, and for the European Area GDP disaggregated by income, expenditure and output sides and by 19 countries.
We introduce a priori Sobolev-space error estimates for the solution of nonlinear, and possibly parametric, PDEs using Gaussian process and kernel based methods. The primary assumptions are: (1) a continuous embedding of the reproducing kernel Hilbert space of the kernel into a Sobolev space of sufficient regularity; and (2) the stability of the differential operator and the solution map of the PDE between corresponding Sobolev spaces. The proof is articulated around Sobolev norm error estimates for kernel interpolants and relies on the minimizing norm property of the solution. The error estimates demonstrate dimension-benign convergence rates if the solution space of the PDE is smooth enough. We illustrate these points with applications to high-dimensional nonlinear elliptic PDEs and parametric PDEs. Although some recent machine learning methods have been presented as breaking the curse of dimensionality in solving high-dimensional PDEs, our analysis suggests a more nuanced picture: there is a trade-off between the regularity of the solution and the presence of the curse of dimensionality. Therefore, our results are in line with the understanding that the curse is absent when the solution is regular enough.
The trade algorithm, which includes the curveball and fastball implementations, is the state-of-the-art for uniformly sampling r x c binary matrices with fixed row and column sums. The mixing time of the trade algorithm is currently unknown, although 5r is currently used as a heuristic. We propose a distribution-based approach to estimating the mixing time, but which also can return a sample of matrices that are nearly guaranteed to be uniformly randomly sampled. In numerical experiments on matrices that vary by size, fill, and row and column sum distributions, we find that the upper bound on mixing time is at least 10r, and that it increases as a function of both c and the fraction of cells containing a 1.
The ParaOpt algorithm was recently introduced as a time-parallel solver for optimal-control problems with a terminal-cost objective, and convergence results have been presented for the linear diffusive case with implicit-Euler time integrators. We reformulate ParaOpt for tracking problems and provide generalized convergence analyses for both objectives. We focus on linear diffusive equations and prove convergence bounds that are generic in the time integrators used. For large problem dimensions, ParaOpt's performance depends crucially on having a good preconditioner to solve the arising linear systems. For the case where ParaOpt's cheap, coarse-grained propagator is linear, we introduce diagonalization-based preconditioners inspired by recent advances in the ParaDiag family of methods. These preconditioners not only lead to a weakly-scalable ParaOpt version, but are themselves invertible in parallel, making maximal use of available concurrency. They have proven convergence properties in the linear diffusive case that are generic in the time discretization used, similarly to our ParaOpt results. Numerical results confirm that the iteration count of the iterative solvers used for ParaOpt's linear systems becomes constant in the limit of an increasing processor count. The paper is accompanied by a sequential MATLAB implementation.
A growing body of literature in fairness-aware ML (fairML) aspires to mitigate machine learning (ML)-related unfairness in automated decision making (ADM) by defining metrics that measure fairness of an ML model and by proposing methods that ensure that trained ML models achieve low values in those measures. However, the underlying concept of fairness, i.e., the question of what fairness is, is rarely discussed, leaving a considerable gap between centuries of philosophical discussion and recent adoption of the concept in the ML community. In this work, we try to bridge this gap by formalizing a consistent concept of fairness and by translating the philosophical considerations into a formal framework for the training and evaluation of ML models in ADM systems. We derive that fairness problems can already arise without the presence of protected attributes, pointing out that fairness and predictive performance are not irreconcilable counterparts, but rather that the latter is necessary to achieve the former. Moreover, we argue why and how causal considerations are necessary when assessing fairness in the presence of protected attributes. We achieve greater linguistic clarity for the discussion of fairML and propose general algorithms for practical applications.
By the MAXSAT problem, we are given a set $V$ of $m$ variables and a collection $C$ of $n$ clauses over $V$. We will seek a truth assignment to maximize the number of satisfied clauses. This problem is $\textit{NP}$-hard even for its restricted version, the 2-MAXSAT problem by which every clause contains at most 2 literals. In this paper, we discuss a polynomial time algorithm to solve this problem. Its time complexity is bounded by O($n^2m^3$). Hence, we provide a proof of $P$ = $\textit{NP}$.
We study multi-item profit maximization when there is an underlying distribution over buyers' values. In practice, a full description of the distribution is typically unavailable, so we study the setting where the mechanism designer only has samples from the distribution. If the designer uses the samples to optimize over a complex mechanism class -- such as the set of all multi-item, multi-buyer mechanisms -- a mechanism may have high average profit over the samples but low expected profit. This raises the central question of this paper: how many samples are sufficient to ensure that a mechanism's average profit is close to its expected profit? To answer this question, we uncover structure shared by many pricing, auction, and lottery mechanisms: for any set of buyers' values, profit is piecewise linear in the mechanism's parameters. Using this structure, we prove new bounds for mechanism classes not yet studied in the sample-based mechanism design literature and match or improve over the best-known guarantees for many classes.
We present an arbitrary order discontinuous Galerkin finite element method for solving the biharmonic interface problem on the unfitted mesh. The approximation space is constructed by a patch reconstruction process with at most one degree freedom per element. The discrete problem is based on the symmetric interior penalty method and the jump conditions are weakly imposed by the Nitsche's technique. The C^2-smooth interface is allowed to intersect elements in a very general fashion and the stability near the interface is naturally ensured by the patch reconstruction. We prove the optimal a priori error estimate under the energy norm and the L^2 norm. Numerical results are provided to verify the theoretical analysis.