Algebraic Statistics May 2018

Course Announcement - May 25-27, 2018

Introduction to Algebraic Statistics

Instructor:   Bernd Sturmfels    (MPI Leipzig, TU Berlin, UC Berkeley)

Time:   Friday, May 25 at 9:30h   until   Sunday, May 27 at 16:30h
Place:   Harnack-Haus, Meitner-Saal;   morning lectures at FU Berlin

Description: This intense weekend course is held in cooperation with BMS Berlin and IMPRS Leipzig.
It is aimed at advanced students, doctoral students, and postdocs from the mathematical sciences.
Everyone is welcome. Students wishing to receive credits (Schein) should enroll through TU Berlin.

Contact: Antje Schulz (TU Berlin): for everyone who is based in Berlin
Saskia Gutzschebauch (MPI Leipzig): for everyone from outside Berlin

Prerequisites: Mathematical maturity of an advanced graduate student. Interest in statistics.
Willingness to work hard on a weekend, especially when it comes to teamwork and computing.

Study Group: Click here for the e-discussion group, hosted by Milena Wrobel. Join today!!

Logistics: The morning lectures take place at FU Berlin, in Room 031 at Arnimallee 6.
At noon we all walk to the Harnack-Haus for lunch. We'll stay there for the rest of the day.
The afternoon sessions will be held in the Meitner-Saal at the Harnack-Haus.
Lunch, afternoon coffee and a BBQ dinner on Friday are provided.
Participants from outside Berlin can book accomodation at the Harnack-Haus.

Grading: Students who wish to receive credits are expected to solve a representative sample of exercises
from the textbook. The precise scope will be discussed on May 25. Everyone is asked to present one of their
solutions to the class during the weekend. The others are to be submitted in writing before June 30, 2018.

Credits: TU Berlin will grant TU-students who successfully complete the course with a portfolio-Prüfung 6 ECTS.
It is recommended that before the course starts you go to your examination office or to your chairman of the
examining board to clarify if (or under which conditions) your university will also give you 6 ECTS.

Course text: Introduction to Algebraic Statistics, by Seth Sullivant.

DAILY SCHEDULE:

Friday, May 25:
9:30-10:40: Probability Primer (Chapter 2) and Conditional Independence (Chapter 4)
10:50-12:00 Statistics Primer (Chapter 5) and Exponential Families (Chapter 6)
12:00-12:30 Discussion
12:30-13:30 Lunch
13:30-14:30 Carlos Améndola: Likelihood Inference (Chapter 7)
14:30-15:00 Coffee
15:00-16:30 Exercises
16:30-17:30 Rainer Sinn: The Cone of Sufficient Statistics (Chapter 8)
BBQ
Evening activity: Short talks by participants

Saturday, May 26:
9:00-9:50 Fischer's Exact Test (Chapter 9)
10:00-10:50 Bounds on Cell Entries (Chapter 10)
11:00-11:50 Design of Experiments (Chapter 12)
11:50-12:30 Discussion
12:30-13:30 Lunch
13:30-14:30 Orlando Marigliano: Graphical Models (Chapter 13)
14:30-15:00 Coffee
15:00-16:30 Exercises
16:30-17:30 Eliana Duarte: Hidden Variables (Chapter 14)

Sunday, May 27:
9:00-9:50 Phylogenetic Models (Chapter 15)
10:00-10:50 Identifiability (Chapter 16)
11:00-11:50 Model Selection and Bayesian Integrals (Chapter 17)
11:50-12:30 Discussion
12:30-13:30 Lunch
13:30-14:30 MAP Estimation and Parametric Inference (Chapter 18)
14:30-15:00 Coffee
15:00-16:30 Exercises and Wrap-Up