Confidence Regions on Variance Components in an Extended ANOVA Model for Combining Information

In this paper we consider a general variance components model for combining experiments that allows for a possible interaction of responses with groups. The variance estimate from each experiment cannot take into account this interaction which can additionally be different from experiment to experiment. The interaction term can be interpreted as an additional variance component so that we consider an extended ANOVA model. We derive confidence regions and test of hypotheses on the variance components which – at least approximately – hold the nominal significance level.     

Efficient estimation in conditional single-index regression

Semiparametric single-index regression involves an unknown finite-dimensional parameter and an unknown (link) function. We consider estimation of the parameter via the pseudo-maximum likelihood method. For this purpose we estimate the conditional density of the response given a candidate index and maximize the obtained likelihood. We show that this technique of adaptation yields an asymptotically efficient estimator: it has minimal variance among all estimators.     

Population Monte Carlo Algorithm in High Dimensions

The population Monte Carlo algorithm is an iterative importance sampling scheme for solving static problems. We examine the population Monte Carlo algorithm in a simplified setting, a single step of the general algorithm, and study a fundamental problem that occurs in applying importance sampling to high-dimensional problem. The precision of the computed estimate from the simplified setting is measured by the asymptotic variance of estimate under conditions on the importance function. We demonstrate the exponential growth of the asymptotic variance with the dimension and show that the optimal covariance matrix for the importance function can be estimated in special cases.     

Minimizing a general loss function in off‐line quality control

We consider in the present paper the analysis of parameter designs in off‐line quality control. The main objective is to seek levels of the production factors that would minimize the expected loss. Unlike classical analyses which focus on the analysis of the mean and variance in minimizing a quadratic loss function, the proposed method is applicable to a general loss function. An appropriate transformation is first sought to eliminate the dependency of the variance on the mean (to achieve ‘separation’ in the terminology of Box). This is accomplished through a preliminary analysis using a recently proposed parametric heteroscedastic regression model. With the dependency of the variance on the mean eliminated, methods with established properties can be applied to estimate simultaneously the mean and the variance functions in the new metric. The expected loss function is then estimated and minimized based on a distributional free procedure using the empirical distribution of the standardized residuals. This alleviates the need for a full parametric model, which, if incorrectly specified, may lead to biased results. Although a transformation is employed as an intermediate step of analysis, the loss function is minimized in its original metric. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of enrichment functions on GFEM solutions of time-dependent conduction heat transfer problems

This article investigates the effect of the selection of enrichment functions on the formulation of the Generalized Finite Element Method (GFEM) for the solutions of transient heat conduction problems. We present the study of an a-posteriori error estimate with the aim to show it as a reliable tool for the selection of enrichment functions to efficiently capture the sharp thermal gradients of the solutions. Problems in two- and three-dimensional domains are considered to demonstrate the robustness of the proposed error estimate. Numerical experiments consider two different types of enrichment functions that mimic the solution behaviour and capture the time-varying thermal gradients. The presented study shows that the error estimate is independent of the heuristically selected enrichment functions and can be used for any type of enrichment functions. It is concluded that the proposed error estimate efficiently reflects the errors in the GFEM solutions for both types of enrichment functions and can be used as an effective tool for the selection of more suitable enrichment functions that produce lower errors under the considered thermal conditions.     

Honest Importance Sampling With Multiple Markov Chains

Importance sampling is a classical Monte Carlo technique in which a random sample from one probability density, π₁, is used to estimate an expectation with respect to another, π. The importance sampling estimator is strongly consistent and, as long as two simple moment conditions are satisfied, it obeys a central limit theorem (CLT). Moreover, there is a simple consistent estimator for the asymptotic variance in the CLT, which makes for routine computation of standard errors. Importance sampling can also be used in the Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) context. Indeed, if the random sample from π₁ is replaced by a Harris ergodic Markov chain with invariant density π₁, then the resulting estimator remains strongly consistent. There is a price to be paid, however, as the computation of standard errors becomes more complicated. First, the two simple moment conditions that guarantee a CLT in the iid case are not enough in the MCMC context. Second, even when a CLT does hold, the asymptotic variance has a complex form and is difficult to estimate consistently. In this article, we explain how to use regenerative simulation to overcome these problems. Actually, we consider a more general setup, where we assume that Markov chain samples from several probability densities, π₁, …, π_k, are available. We construct multiple-chain importance sampling estimators for which we obtain a CLT based on regeneration. We show that if the Markov chains converge to their respective target distributions at a geometric rate, then under moment conditions similar to those required in the iid case, the MCMC-based importance sampling estimator obeys a CLT. Furthermore, because the CLT is based on a regenerative process, there is a simple consistent estimator of the asymptotic variance. We illustrate the method with two applications in Bayesian sensitivity analysis. The first concerns one-way random effect models under different priors. The second involves Bayesian variable selection in linear regression, and for this application, importance sampling based on multiple chains enables an empirical Bayes approach to variable selection.     

Optimal multi-period mean–variance policy under no-shorting constraint

We consider in this paper the mean–variance formulation in multi-period portfolio selection under no-shorting constraint. Recognizing the structure of a piecewise quadratic value function, we prove that the optimal portfolio policy is piecewise linear with respect to the current wealth level, and derive the semi-analytical expression of the piecewise quadratic value function. One prominent feature of our findings is the identification of a deterministic time-varying threshold for the wealth process and its implications for market settings. We also generalize our results in the mean–variance formulation to utility maximization with no-shorting constraint.     

Kernel quantile estimator with ICI adaptive bandwidth selection technique

In this article, we consider a class of kernel quantile estimators which is the linear combi- nation of order statistics. This class of kernel quantile estimators can be regarded as an extension of some existing estimators. The exact mean square error expression for this class of estimators will be provided when data are uniformly distributed. The implementation of these estimators depends mostly on the bandwidth selection. We then develop an adaptive method for bandwidth selection based on the intersection confidence intervals （ICI） principle. Monte Carlo studies demonstrate that our proposed approach is comparatively remarkable. We illustrate our method with a real data set.     

The impact of sampling methods on bias and variance in stochastic linear programs

Stochastic linear programs can be solved approximately by drawing a subset of all possible random scenarios and solving the problem based on this subset, an approach known as sample average approximation (SAA). The value of the objective function at the optimal solution obtained via SAA provides an estimate of the true optimal objective function value. This estimator is known to be optimistically biased; the expected optimal objective function value for the sampled problem is lower (for minimization problems) than the optimal objective function value for the true problem. We investigate how two alternative sampling methods, antithetic variates (AV) and Latin Hypercube (LH) sampling, affect both the bias and variance, and thus the mean squared error (MSE), of this estimator. For a simple example, we analytically express the reductions in bias and variance obtained by these two alternative sampling methods. For eight test problems from the literature, we computationally investigate the impact of these sampling methods on bias and variance. We find that both sampling methods are effective at reducing mean squared error, with Latin Hypercube sampling outperforming antithetic variates. For our analytic example and the eight test problems we derive or estimate the condition number as defined in Shapiro et al. (Math. Program. 94:1–19, 2002). We find that for ill-conditioned problems, bias plays a larger role in MSE, and AV and LH sampling methods are more likely to reduce bias.     

Asymptotic properties of sample quantiles from a finite population

In this paper we consider the problem of estimating quantiles of a finite population of size N on the basis of a finite sample of size n selected without replacement. We prove the asymptotic normality of the sample quantile and show that the scaled variance of the sample quantile converges to the asymptotic variance under a slight moment condition. We also consider the performance of the bootstrap in this case, and find that the usual (Efron’s) bootstrap method fails to be consistent, but a suitably modified version of the bootstrapped quantile converges to the same asymptotic distribution as the sample quantile. Consistency of the modified bootstrap variance estimate is also proved under the same moment conditions.     

Variable selection for the partial linear single-index model

In this paper, we consider the issue of variable selection in partial linear single-index models under the assumption that the vector of regression coefficients is sparse. We apply penalized spline to estimate the nonparametric function and SCAD penalty to achieve sparse estimates of regression parameters in both the linear and single-index parts of the model. Under some mild conditions, it is shown that the penalized estimators have oracle property, in the sense that it is asymptotically normal with the same mean and covariance that they would have if zero coefficients are known in advance. Our model owns a least square representation, therefore standard least square programming algorithms can be implemented without extra programming efforts. In the meantime, parametric estimation, variable selection and nonparametric estimation can be realized in one step, which incredibly increases computational stability. The finite sample performance of the penalized estimators is evaluated through Monte Carlo studies and illustrated with a real data set.     

On the estimation of a monotone conditional variance in nonparametric regression

A monotone estimate of the conditional variance function in a heteroscedastic, nonparametric regression model is proposed. The method is based on the application of a kernel density estimate to an unconstrained estimate of the variance function and yields an estimate of the inverse variance function. The final monotone estimate of the variance function is obtained by an inversion of this function. The method is applicable to a broad class of nonparametric estimates of the conditional variance and particularly attractive to users of conventional kernel methods, because it does not require constrained optimization techniques. The approach is also illustrated by means of a simulation study.     

投资组合模型的改进研究:基于企业社会责任视角的实证分析

在尊重和借鉴前人对企业社会责任研究,尤其是在企业社会责任评价研究基础之上,本文从投资者的角度在投资组合过程中研究企业社会责任。在Markowitz(均值—方差)理论模型上添加企业社会责任的三个一级指标期望作为目标函数,由此将传统的投资组合模型扩展为五个目标函数的投资组合选择模型,而且我们根据经济学中经典的效用函数理论证明了此模型的正确性。本文引入主流的企业社会责任评价标准,并对一些典型公司进行打分量化。在此基础之上建立了以期望回报率、回报率的方差、核心利益相关者期望、蛰伏利益相关者期望和边缘利益相关者期望为目标函数的投资组合选择模型,在最小方差曲面上选取10个点构造投资组合,并以样本外的数据验证了模型的有效性。研究发现:根据此模型计算出来的部分投资组合回报率显著高于同期的市场指数。研究结果表明,这种关注企业社会责任的多目标投资组合选择模型,不仅让投资者可以直接控制企业社会责任,而且实际数据证明了此模型的优势之处,从而为关注企业社会责任的投资者提供一种投资的方法和思路。     

D-optimal design of a monitoring network for parameter estimation of distributed systems

This paper addresses the design of a network of observation locations in a spatial domain that will be used to estimate unknown parameters of a distributed parameter system. We consider a setting where we are given a finite number of possible sites at which to locate a sensor, but cost constraints allow only some proper subset of them to be selected. We formulate this problem as the selection of the gauged sites so as to maximize the log-determinant of the Fisher information matrix associated with the estimated parameters. The search for the optimal solution is performed using the branch-and-bound method in which an extremely simple and efficient technique is employed to produce an upper bound to the maximum objective function. Its idea consists in solving a relaxed problem through the application of a simplicial decomposition algorithm in which the restricted master problem is solved using a multiplicative algorithm for optimal design. The use of the proposed approach is illustrated by a numerical example involving sensor selection for a two-dimensional convective diffusion process.     

Bayesian portfolio selection with multi-variate random variance models

We consider multi-period portfolio selection problems for a decision maker with a specified utility function when the variance of security returns is described by a discrete time stochastic model. The solution of these problems involves a dynamic programming formulation and backward induction. We present a simulation-based method to solve these problems adopting an approach which replaces the preposterior analysis by a surface fitting based optimization approach. We provide examples to illustrate the implementation of our approach.     

Minimax adjustment technique in a parameter restricted linear model

We consider an approach yielding a minimax estimator in the linear regression model with a priori information on the parameter vector, e.g., ellipsoidal restrictions. This estimator is computed directly from the loss function and can be motivated by the general Pitman nearness criterion. It turns out that this approach coincides with the projection estimator which is obtained by projecting an initial arbitrary estimate on the subset defined by the restrictions.     

Model Selection for Variable Length Markov Chains and Tuning the Context Algorithm

We consider the model selection problem in the class of stationary variable length Markov chains (VLMC) on a finite space. The processes in this class are still Markovian of high order, but with memory of variable length. Various aims in selecting a VLMC can be formalized with different non-equivalent risks, such as final prediction error or expected Kullback-Leibler information. We consider the asymptotic behavior of different risk functions and show how they can be generally estimated with the same resampling strategy. Such estimated risks then yield new model selection criteria. In particular, we obtain a data-driven tuning of Rissanen's tree structured context algorithm which is a computationally feasible procedure for selection and estimation of a VLMC.     

Approximating zero-variance importance sampling in a reliability setting

We consider a class of Markov chain models that includes the highly reliable Markovian systems (HRMS) often used to represent the evolution of multicomponent systems in reliability settings. We are interested in the design of efficient importance sampling (IS) schemes to estimate the reliability of such systems by simulation. For these models, there is in fact a zero-variance IS scheme that can be written exactly in terms of a value function that gives the expected cost-to-go (the exact reliability, in our case) from any state of the chain. This IS scheme is impractical to implement exactly, but it can be approximated by approximating this value function. We examine how this can be effectively used to estimate the reliability of a highly-reliable multicomponent system with Markovian behavior. In our implementation, we start with a simple crude approximation of the value function, we use it in a first-order IS scheme to obtain a better approximation at a few selected states, then we interpolate in between and use this interpolation in our final (second-order) IS scheme. In numerical illustrations, our approach outperforms the popular IS heuristics previously proposed for this class of problems. We also perform an asymptotic analysis in which the HRMS model is parameterized in a standard way by a rarity parameter ε, so that the relative error (or relative variance) of the crude Monte Carlo estimator is unbounded when ε→0. We show that with our approximation, the IS estimator has bounded relative error (BRE) under very mild conditions, and vanishing relative error (VRE), which means that the relative error converges to 0 when ε→0, under slightly stronger conditions.     

Estimates, decay properties, and computation of the dual function for Gabor frames

We present a simple proof of Ron and Shen's frame bounds estimates for Gabor frames. The proof is based on the Heil and Walnut's representation of the frame operator and shows that it can be decomposed into a continuous family of infinite matrices. The estimates then follow from a simple application of Gershgorin's theorem to each matrix. Next, we show that, if the window function has exponential decay, also the dual function has some exponential decay. Then, we describe a numerical method to compute the dual function and give an estimate of the error. Finally, we consider the spline of order 2; we investigate numerically the region of the time-frequency plane where it generates a frame and we compute the dual function for some values of the parameters.