arXiv research

In this article, we provide an introduction to an algorithm for constructing Weinstein handlebodies for complements of certain smoothed toric divisors using explicit coordinates and a simple example. This article also serves to welcome newcomers to Weinstein handlebody diagrams and Weinstein Kirby calculus. Finally, we…

Survey of universal portfolio techniques for minimizing investment regret.

Introduces machine learning basics and algorithms.

NAS helps find best neural network designs.

Proposes CLRS benchmark to evaluate algorithmic reasoning.

This monograph aims at providing an introduction to key concepts, algorithms, and theoretical results in machine learning. The treatment concentrates on probabilistic models for supervised and unsupervised learning problems. It introduces fundamental concepts and algorithms by building on first principles, while also e…

This paper is an introduction to the subject of virtual knot theory, combined with a discussion of some specific new theorems about virtual knots. The new results are as follows: We prove, using a 3-dimensional topology approach that if a connected sum of two virtual knots $K_{1}$ and $K_{2}$ is trivial, then so are bo…

A brief introduction to exterior differential systems for graduate students familiar with manifolds and differential forms. For complete files, see https://github.com/Ben-McKay/introduction-to-exterior-differential-systems

Deep reinforcement learning is the combination of reinforcement learning (RL) and deep learning. This field of research has been able to solve a wide range of complex decision-making tasks that were previously out of reach for a machine. Thus, deep RL opens up many new applications in domains such as healthcare, roboti…

We discuss the basic properties of Lie groupoids, Lie algebroids and Lie pseudo-groups in view of applying these techniques to the analysis of Jordan-Hölder resolutions and, subsequently, to the integration of partial differential equations. The present introduction is an extension to Lie groupoids, as far as possible,…

MM (majorization--minimization) algorithms are an increasingly popular tool for solving optimization problems in machine learning and statistical estimation. This article introduces the MM algorithm framework in general and via three popular example applications: Gaussian mixture regressions, multinomial logistic regre…

In this paper, we will provide an introduction to the derivative-free optimization algorithms which can be potentially applied to train deep learning models. Existing deep learning model training is mostly based on the back propagation algorithm, which updates the model variables layers by layers with the gradient desc…

In this survey, we discuss several different types of gradient boosting algorithms and illustrate their mathematical frameworks in detail: 1. introduction of gradient boosting leads to 2. objective function optimization, 3. loss function estimations, and 4. model constructions. 5. application of boosting in ranking.

This paper is an introduction to the use of the cobordism of chain complexes with Poincaré duality in surgery theory. It is a companion to the author's paper "An introduction to algebraic surgery" math.AT/0008071 (to appear in Volume 2 of Surveys in Surgery Theory, Ann. of Maths. Studies, Princeton, 2001) which is an i…

This guide introduces machine learning for medical data analysis.

This paper investigates the effects of the launch of Bitcoin futures on the intraday volatility of Bitcoin. Based on one-minute price data collected from four cryptocurrency exchanges, we first examine the change in realized volatility after the introduction of Bitcoin futures to investigate their aggregate effects on …

Introduces new gradient-based methods for machine learning problems.

This paper bridges statistical and machine learning approaches to variational inference.

This note presents in a technical though hopefully pedagogical way the three most common forms of neural network architectures: Feedforward, Convolutional and Recurrent. For each network, their fundamental building blocks are detailed. The forward pass and the update rules for the backpropagation algorithm are then der…

Unified view of clustering algorithms presented.

Variational autoencoders provide a principled framework for learning deep latent-variable models and corresponding inference models. In this work, we provide an introduction to variational autoencoders and some important extensions.

Introduces Kundt spaces using geometric language.

This contains a list of (mostly very minor) corrections to the book Introduction to Symplectic Topology, Clarendon Press, Oxford, (1995), together with rewritten versions of two lemmas and some additional comments.

An introduction to the theory of bundle gerbes and their relationship to Hitchin-Chatterjee gerbes is presented. Topics covered are connective structures, triviality and stable isomorphism as well as examples and applications.

These are the very unpretentious lecture notes for the minicourse "Introduction to evolution equations in Geometry," a part of the Brazilian Colloquium of Mathematics held at IMPA, in July of 2009.

After a self-contained introduction to Lie algebra cohomology, we present some recent applications in mathematics and in physics. Contents: 1. Preliminaries: L_X, i_X, d 2. Elementary differential geometry on Lie groups 3. Lie algebra cohomology: a brief introduction 4. Symmetric polynomials and higher order cocycles 5…

This article contains the lecture notes for the short course ``Introduction to Econophysics,'' delivered at the II Brazilian School on Statistical Mechanics, held in Sao Carlos, Brazil, in February 2004. The main goal of the present notes is twofold: i) to provide a brief introduction to the problem of pricing financia…

Survey of Bayesian learning for neural networks.

Book introduces deep learning methods with math, theory, and applications.

Spiking neural networks (SNNs) are distributed trainable systems whose computing elements, or neurons, are characterized by internal analog dynamics and by digital and sparse synaptic communications. The sparsity of the synaptic spiking inputs and the corresponding event-driven nature of neural processing can be levera…

This article intends to provide an introduction to the construction of small exotic 4-manifolds. Some of the necessary background is covered. An exposition is given of J. Park's construction in arXiv:math.GT/0311395 of an exotic CP^2#7(-CP^2). This article does not intend to present any new results. It was originally a…

This is the introduction to a series of four papers that develop a decomposition theory for subgroups of Out(F_n) which generalizes the theory for elements of Out(F_n) found in the work of Bestvina, Feighn, and Handel on the Tits alternative, and which is analogous to the decomposition theory for subgroups of mapping c…

Illustrates Ricci flow for a general audience.

This brief manuscript provides an introduction to Lévy processes and their applications in finance as the random process that drives asset models. Characteristic functions and random variable generators of popular Lévy processes are presented in R.

This paper offers a mathematical introduction to GANs.

This is an introduction to a provisional mathematical definition of Coulomb branches of $3$-dimensional $\mathcal N=4$ supersymmetric gauge theories, studied in arXiv:1503.03676, arXiv:1601.03586

Introduction to contact invariant in bordered Floer homology.

Geometric group theory explores groups through their geometric properties.

This paper is a gentle introduction to some recent results involving the theory of gerbes over orbifolds for topologists, geometers and physicists. We introduce gerbes on manifolds, orbifolds, the Dixmier-Douady class, Beilinson-Deligne orbifold cohomology, Cheeger-Simons orbifold cohomology and string connections.

This is an expository introduction to simplicial sets and simplicial homotopy theory with particular focus on relating the combinatorial aspects of the theory to their geometric/topological origins. It is intended to be accessible to students familiar with just the fundamentals of algebraic topology.

This paper provides an introduction to the basics of Heegaard Floer homology with some emphasis on the hat theory and to the contact geometric invariants in the theory. The exposition is designed to be comprehensible to people without any prior knowledge of the subject.

One of the main practical applications of quasi-Monte Carlo (QMC) methods is the valuation of financial derivatives. We aim to give a short introduction into option pricing and show how it is facilitated using QMC. We give some practical examples for illustration.

Introduces non-regular spacetime geometry without smooth calculus.

This note, in a rather expository manner, serves as a conceptional introduction to the certain underlying mathematical structures encoding the geometric quantization formalism and the construction of Witten's quantum invariants, which is in fact organized in the language topological quantum field theory.

This report provides an introduction to some Machine Learning tools within the most common development environments. It mainly focuses on practical problems, skipping any theoretical introduction. It is oriented to both students trying to approach Machine Learning and experts looking for new frameworks.

Browder-Novikov-Sullivan-Wall surgery theory investigates the homotopy types of manifolds, using a combination of algebra and topology. It is the aim of these notes to provide an introduction to the more algebraic aspects of the theory (such as the Wall surgery obstruction groups), without losing sight of the geometric…

Short introduction to discrete flat fronts in hyperbolic space with a Weierstrass representation proof.

This paper is a short introduction to the combinatorial version of tangle Floer homology defined in "Combinatorial tangle Floer homology". There are two equivalent definitions---one in terms of strand diagrams, and one in terms of bordered grid diagrams. We present both, discuss the correspondence, and carry out some e…