We propose a novel Rayleigh quotient based sparse quadratic dimension reduction methodnamed QUADRO (Qua dratic D imension R eduction via Rayleigh O ptimization)for analyzing high-dimensional data. Unlike in the linear setting where Rayleigh quotient optimization coincides with classification, these two problems are very different under nonlinear settings. In this paper, we clarify this difference and show that Rayleigh quotient optimization may be of independent scientific interests. One major challenge of Rayleigh quotient optimization is that the variance of quadratic statistics involves all fourth cross-moments of predictors, which are infeasible to compute for high-dimensional applications and may accumulate too many stochastic errors. This issue is resolved by considering a family of elliptical models. Moreover, for heavy-tail distributions, robust estimates of mean vectors and covariance matrices are

Errors-in-variables regression is the study of the association between covariates and responses where covariates are observed with errors. In this paper, we consider the estimation of multivariate regression functions for dependent data with errors in covariates. Nonparametric deconvolution technique is used to account for errors-in-variables. The asymptotic behavior of regression estimators depends on the smoothness of the error distributions, which are characterized as either ordinarily smooth or super smooth. Asymptotic normality is established for both strongly mixing and -mixing processes, when the error distribution function is either ordinarily smooth or super smooth.

This paper studies model selection consistency for high dimensional sparse regression when data exhibits both cross-sectional and serial dependency. Most commonly-used model selection methods fail to consistently recover the true model when the covariates are highly correlated. Motivated by econometric studies, we consider the case where covariate dependence can be reduced through factor model, and propose a consistent strategy named Factor-Adjusted Regularized Model Selection (FarmSelect). By separating the latent factors from idiosyncratic components, we transform the problem from model selection with highly correlated covariates to that with weakly correlated variables. Model selection consistency as well as optimal rates of convergence are obtained under mild conditions. Numerical studies demonstrate the nice finite sample performance in terms of both model selection and out-of-sample prediction. Moreover, our method is flexible in a sense that it pays no price for weakly correlated and uncorrelated cases. Our method is applicable to a wide range of high dimensional sparse regression problems. An R-package FarmSelect is also provided for implementation.

Heterogeneity is an unwanted variation when analyzing aggregated datasets from multiple sources. Though different methods have been proposed for heterogeneity adjustment, no systematic theory exists to justify these methods. In this work, we propose a generic framework named ALPHA (short for Adaptive Low-rank Principal Heterogeneity Adjustment) to model, estimate, and adjust heterogeneity from the original data. Once the heterogeneity is adjusted, we are able to remove the batch effects and to enhance the inferential power by aggregating the homogeneous residuals from multiple sources. Under a pervasive assumption that the latent heterogeneity factors simultaneously affect a fraction of observed variables, we provide a rigorous theory to justify the proposed framework. Our framework also allows the incorporation of informative covariates and appeals to the Bless of Dimensionality. As an illustrative

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1. Introduction. 1.1. Background. Covariance matrix estimation is fundamental for almost all areas of multivariate analysis and many other applied problems. In particular, covariance matrices and their inverses play a central role in risk management and portfolio allocation. For example, the smallest and largest eigenvalues are related to the minimum and maximum variances of the selected portfolio, respectively, and the eigenvectors are related to portfolio allocation. Therefore, we need a good covariance matrix estimator that is well-conditioned, ie inverting it does not excessively amplify the estimation error. See Goldfarb and Iyengar (2003) for applications of covariance matrices to portfolio selections and Johnstone (2001) for their statistical implications. Estimating large dimensional covariance matrices is intrinsically challenging. For example, in portfolio allocation and risk management, the number p of stocks can

In this paper, we propose a penalised pseudo-partial likelihood method for variable selection with multivariate failure time data with a growing number of regression coefficients. Under certain regularity conditions, we show the consistency and asymptotic normality of the penalised likelihood estimators. We further demonstrate that, for certain penalty functions with proper choices of regularisation parameters, the resulting estimator can correctly identify the true model, as if it were known in advance. Based on a simple approximation of the penalty function, the proposed method can be easily carried out with the NewtonRaphson algorithm. We conduct extensive Monte Carlo simulation studies to assess the finite sample performance of the proposed procedures. We illustrate the proposed method by analysing a dataset from the Framingham Heart Study.

In statistics and machine learning, people are often interested in the eigenvectors (or singular vectors) of certain matrices (eg covariance matrices, data matrices, etc). However, those matrices are usually perturbed by noises or statistical errors, either from random sampling or structural patterns. One usually employs Davis-Kahan \sin theorem to bound the difference between the eigenvectors of a matrix \sin and those of a perturbed matrix \sin , in terms of \sin norm. In this paper, we prove that when \sin is a low-rank and incoherent matrix, the \sin norm perturbation bound of singular vectors (or eigenvectors in the symmetric case) is smaller by a factor of \sin or \sin for left and right vectors, where \sin and \sin are the matrix dimensions. The power of this new perturbation result is shown in robust covariance estimation, particularly when random variables have heavy tails. There, we propose new robust covariance estimators and establish their asymptotic properties using the newly developed perturbation bound. Our theoretical results are verified through extensive numerical experiments.

Multiple hypothesis testing is a fundamental problem in high-dimensional inference, with wide applications in many scientific fields. In genome-wide association studies, tens of thousands of tests are performed simultaneously to find if any single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are associated with some traits and those tests are correlated. When test statistics are correlated, false discovery control becomes very challenging under arbitrary dependence. In this article, we propose a novel method—based on principal factor approximation—that successfully subtracts the common dependence and weakens significantly the correlation structure, to deal with an arbitrary dependence structure.We derive an approximate expression for false discovery proportion (FDP) in large-scale multiple testing when a common threshold is used and provide a consistent estimate of realized FDP. This result has important applications in controlling false discovery rate and FDP. Our estimate of realized FDP compares favorably with Efron’s approach, as demonstrated in the simulated examples. Our approach is further illustrated by some real data applications. We also propose a dependence-adjusted procedure that is more powerful than the fixed-threshold procedure. Supplementary material for this article is available online.

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This article studies estimation of partially linear hazard regression models for multivariate survival data. A profile pseudopartial likelihood estimation method is proposed under the marginal hazard model framework. The estimation on the parameters for the linear part is accomplished by maximization of a pseudopartial likelihood profiled over the nonparametric part. This enables us to obtain-consistent estimators of the parametric component. Asymptotic normality is obtained for the estimates of both the linear and nonlinear parts. The new technical challenge is that the nonparametric component is indirectly estimated through its integrated derivative function from a local polynomial fit. An algorithm of fast implementation of our proposed method is presented. Consistent standard error estimates using sandwich-type ideas are also developed, which facilitates inferences for the model. It is shown that the

In event studies of capital market efficiency, an earnings surprise has historically been measured by the consensus error, defined as earnings minus the consensus or average of professional forecasts. The rationale is that the consensus is an accurate measure of the markets expectation of earnings. But since forecasts can be biased due to conflicts of interest and some investors can see through these conflicts, this rationale is flawed and the consensus error a biased measure of an earnings surprise. We show that the fraction of forecasts that miss on the same side (FOM), by ignoring the size of the misses, is less sensitive to such bias and a better measure of an earnings surprise. As a result, FOM out-performs the consensus error and its related robust statistics in explaining stock price movements around and subsequent to the announcement date.

Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) has recently emerged as a powerful tool for obtaining three-dimensional (3D) structures of biological macromolecules in native states. A minimum cryo-EM image data set for deriving a meaningful reconstruction is comprised of thousands of randomly orientated projections of identical particles photographed with a small number of electrons. The computation of 3D structure from 2D projections requires clustering, which aims to enhance the signal to noise ratio in each view by grouping similarly oriented images. Nevertheless, the prevailing clustering techniques are often compromised by three characteristics of cryo-EM data: high noise content, high dimensionality and large number of clusters. Moreover, since clustering requires registering images of similar orientation into the same pixel coordinates by 2D alignment, it is desired that the clustering algorithm can label misaligned images as outliers. Herein, we introduce a clustering algorithm γ-SUP to model the data with a q-Gaussian mixture and adopt the minimum γ-divergence for estimation, and then use a self-updating procedure to obtain the numerical solution. We apply γ-SUP to the cryo-EM images of two benchmark macromolecules, RNA polymerase II and ribosome. In the former case, simulated images were chosen to decouple clustering from alignment to demonstrate γ-SUP is more robust to misalignment outliers than the existing clustering methods used in the cryo-EM community. In the latter case, the clustering of real cryo-EM data by our γ-SUP method eliminates noise in many views to reveal true structure features of ribosome at the projection level.

A practical and accessible introduction to the bootstrap methodnewly revised and updated Over the past decade, the application of bootstrap methods to new areas of study has expanded, resulting in theoretical and applied advances across various fields. Bootstrap Methods, Second Edition is a highly approachable guide to the multidisciplinary, real-world uses of bootstrapping and is ideal for readers who have a professional interest in its methods, but are without an advanced background in mathematics. Updated to reflect current techniques and the most up-to-date work on the topic, the Second Edition features: The addition of a second, extended bibliography devoted solely to publications from 19992007, which is a valuable collection of references on the latest research in the field A discussion of the new areas of applicability for bootstrap methods, including use in the pharmaceutical industry for estimating individual and population bioequivalence in clinical trials A revised chapter on when and why bootstrap fails and remedies for overcoming these drawbacks Added coverage on regression, censored data applications, P-value adjustment, ratio estimators, and missing data New examples and illustrations as well as extensive historical notes at the end of each chapter With a strong focus on application, detailed explanations of methodology, and complete coverage of modern developments in the field, Bootstrap Methods, Second Edition is an indispensable reference for applied statisticians, engineers, scientists, clinicians, and other practitioners who regularly use statistical methods in research. It is also suitable as a supplementary text

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Suppose we lhave n observationis ftom Y= X+ c, where e is nieasuremiienit error with kiowin distributioni, and the denesity f of X is uniknowii withi thte nloln-paraniietric conistrainit

Variance estimation is a fundamental problem in statistical modelling. In ultrahigh dimensional linear regression where the dimensionality is much larger than the sample size, traditional variance estimation techniques are not applicable. Recent advances in variable selection in ultrahigh dimensional linear regression make this problem accessible. One of the major problems in ultrahigh dimensional regression is the high spurious correlation between the unobserved realized noise and some of the predictors. As a result, the realized noises are actually predicted when extra irrelevant variables are selected, leading to a serious underestimate of the level of noise. We propose a twostage refitted procedure via a data splitting technique, called refitted crossvalidation, to attenuate the influence of irrelevant variables with high spurious correlations. Our asymptotic results show that the resulting procedure performs as

Nonparametric deconvolution problems require one to recover an unknown density when the data are contaminated with errors. Optimal global rates of convergence are found under the weighted <i>L</i>_<i>p</i>loss (1 <i>p</i> ). It appears that the optimal rates of convergence are extremely low for supersmooth error distributions. To resolve this difficulty, we examine how high the noise level can be for deconvolution to be feasible, and for the deconvolution estimate to be as good as the ordinary density estimate. It is shown that if the noise level is not too high, nonparametric Gaussian deconvolution can still be practical. Several simulation studies are also presented.

Data subject to heavytailed errors are commonly encountered in various scientific fields. To address this problem, procedures based on quantile regression and least absolute deviation regression have been developed in recent years. These methods essentially estimate the conditional median (or quantile) function. They can be very different from the conditional mean functions, especially when distributions are asymmetric and heteroscedastic. How can we efficiently estimate the mean regression functions in ultrahigh dimensional settings with existence of only the second moment? To solve this problem, we propose a penalized Huber loss with diverging parameter to reduce biases created by the traditional Huber loss. Such a penalized robust approximate (RA) quadratic loss will be called the RA lasso. In the ultrahigh dimensional setting, where the dimensionality can grow exponentially with the sample size

In this paper, we study, in some new ways, the estimation of unimodal densities. Several methods for estimating unimodal densities are proposed: plug-in MLE, pregrouping techniques, linear spline MLE. Based on the maximum likelihood method, an automatic procedure for estimating a unimodal density as well as its mode is proposed. We also give asymptotic theory for the proposed estimators. An important consequence of this study is that having to estimate the location of a mode does not affect the limiting behavior of the proposed unimodal density estimate. Simulation studies illustrate the proposed methods.

We propose a bootstrap-based robust high-confidence level upper bound (Robust H-CLUB) for assessing the risks of large portfolios. The proposed approach exploits rank-based and quantile-based estimators, and can be viewed as a robust extension of the H-CLUB procedure (Fan etal., 2015). Such an extension allows us to handle possibly misspecified models and heavy-tailed data, which are stylized features in financial returns. Under mixing conditions, we analyze the proposed approach and demonstrate its advantage over H-CLUB. We further provide thorough numerical results to back up the developed theory, and also apply the proposed method to analyze a stock market dataset.

We propose a novel technique to boost the power of testing a highdimensional vector <i>H</i>:<i><b></b></i>=<b>0</b> against sparse alternatives where the null hypothesis is violated by only a few components. Existing tests based on quadratic forms such as the Wald statistic often suffer from low powers due to the accumulation of errors in estimating highdimensional parameters. More powerful tests for sparse alternatives such as thresholding and extreme value tests, on the other hand, require either stringent conditions or bootstrap to derive the null distribution and often suffer from size distortions due to the slow convergence. Based on a screening technique, we introduce a power enhancement component, which is zero under the null hypothesis with high probability, but diverges quickly under sparse alternatives. The proposed test statistic combines the power enhancement component with an asymptotically pivotal statistic, and

In this paper, we provide the O() corrections to the hydrodynamic model derived by Degond and Motsch from a kinetic version of the model by Vicsek and co-authors describing flocking biological agents. The parameter stands for the ratio of the microscopic to the macroscopic scales. The O() corrected model involves diffusion terms in both the mass and velocity equations as well as terms which are quadratic functions of the first-order derivatives of the density and velocity. The derivation method is based on the standard ChapmanEnskog theory, but is significantly more complex than usual due to both the non-isotropy of the fluid and the lack of momentum conservation.

Estimation of longitudinal data covariance structure poses significant challenges because the data usually are collected at irregular time points. A viable semiparametric model for covariance matrixes has been proposed that allows one to estimate the variance function nonparametrically and to estimate the correlation function parametrically by aggregating information from irregular and sparse data points within each subject. But the asymptotic properties of the quasi-maximum likelihood estimator (QMLE) of parameters in the covariance model are largely unknown. We address this problem in the context of more general models for the conditional mean function, including parametric, nonparametric, or semiparametric. We also consider the possibility of rough mean regression function and introduce the difference-based method to reduce biases in the context of varying-coefficient partially linear mean regression