Paper develops a minimax optimal test for goodness-of-fit using kernel Stein discrepancy.
problem Developing a robust goodness-of-fit test for general domains.
method Kernel Stein Discrepancy (KSD) with spectral regularization and adaptive testing.
result Proposed regularized test achieves minimax optimality up to a logarithmic factor.
A new test for comparing distributions is proposed, balancing optimality and efficiency.
problem Comparing distributions defined over non-Euclidean domains.
method Spectral-regularized two-sample test based on random Fourier features.
result The proposed test is minimax optimal under certain conditions.
A permutation-based SW test achieves minimax-optimal power for two-sample testing.
problem Nonparametric two-sample testing using the sliced Wasserstein distance.
method Proposes a permutation-based SW test and analyzes its performance.
result Achieves minimax separation rate n−1/2 over multinomial and bounded-support alternatives. Cheap permutation tests speed up distribution testing without sacrificing accuracy.
problem Efficiently testing distribution differences and independence.
method Group datapoints into bins and permute only these bins, using stored sufficient statistics.
result Cheap permutation tests maintain the accuracy and optimality of standard tests but are significantly faster.
Optimizes two-sample tests for non-Euclidean domains using spectral regularization.
problem Optimizing two-sample tests for non-Euclidean domains.
method Spectral regularization of MMD test to achieve minimax optimality.
result Proposes a spectral regularization method that improves test optimality.
Study binary hypothesis testing with privacy and communication constraints.
problem Binary hypothesis testing under local differential privacy and communication constraints.
method Qualifies results as minimax or instance optimal, develops instance-optimal algorithms.
result Achieves minimum possible sample complexity under both privacy and communication constraints.
Early stopping of iterative algorithms is an algorithmic regularization method to avoid over-fitting in estimation and classification. In this paper, we show that early stopping can also be applied to obtain the minimax optimal testing in a general non-parametric setup. Specifically, a Wald-type test statistic is obtai…
Robust tests control type I error under data corruption.
problem Effective hypothesis testing under data corruption.
method General permutation tests using kernel MMD and HSIC metrics.
result Robust tests are minimax optimal and outperform private tests.
Estimates and tests treatment effects on entire outcome distributions.
problem Treatment effects on entire outcome distributions, not just averages.
method Proposes a novel estimand and doubly robust estimator, develops a test.
result First test with provably valid type 1 error guarantees in this setting.
This work optimizes identifying good arms in nonparametric multi-armed bandits.
problem Efficiently identifying arms with high means in nonparametric settings.
method Combining reward-maximizing sampling with a nonparametric sequential test for anytime-valid labeling.
result Achieves minimax optimal stopping times for identifying arms above a threshold.
Paper studies minimax optimal regression using Laplacian smoothing over graphs.
problem Minimax optimal regression over Sobolev spaces.
method Laplacian smoothing on neighborhood graphs.
result Upper bounds match minimax optimal rates for first-order Sobolev class.
Finding anonymization mechanisms to protect personal data is at the heart of recent machine learning research. Here, we consider the consequences of local differential privacy constraints on goodness-of-fit testing, i.e. the statistical problem assessing whether sample points are generated from a fixed density f0, o…
Detecting a planted submatrix in random matrices with non-asymptotic methods.
problem Detecting a planted submatrix in random matrices with non-zero entries.
method Established minimax lower bounds and derived optimal tests for distinguishing the null and alternative hypotheses.
result Non-asymptotic upper and lower bounds match for any configuration of matrix dimensions.
Randomization is minimax-optimal for variance in experimental design, even with structure.
problem Designing optimal randomized experiments for variance minimization.
method Analyzing permutation symmetric and non-symmetric sets of outcomes, proposing inference-constrained MSOD.
result Randomization is minimax-optimal for variance, even with structure, and requires uniformity constraints for Fisher's exact test.
The paper studies inference in hypergraph β-models with multiple layers.
problem Estimating and testing in hypergraph β-models with degree heterogeneity.
method Maximum likelihood estimation and likelihood ratio test for hypergraph β-models with multiple layers.
result The ML estimate and LR test are optimally powerful under the null hypothesis.
Undersampling often outperforms other methods in nonparametric classification.
problem Distribution shift challenges in nonparametric binary classification.
method Proved undersampling is minimax optimal in worst-case scenarios.
result Undersampling is a robustness intervention with theoretical guarantees.
KSDAgg combines multiple KSD tests to improve goodness-of-fit testing without splitting data.
problem Improving goodness-of-fit testing without data splitting.
method KSDAgg aggregates multiple KSD tests with different kernels to maximize power.
result KSDAgg achieves the smallest uniform separation rate of the collection, up to a logarithmic term.
Paper proposes a differentially private test for joint dependence among random vectors.
problem Detecting joint dependence among sensitive data while maintaining privacy.
method Differentially private permutation methodology for dHSIC test.
result Proposed test attains minimax optimal power across privacy regimes.
New minimax optimal learner for robust predictors against adversarial examples.
problem Learning robust predictors against adversarial examples.
method Global perspective and new algorithmic ideas.
result Characterizes classes of predictors that are robustly learnable.
Unified framework for optimal kernel tests across MMD, HSIC, and KSD.
problem Optimal testing in kernel-based hypothesis testing frameworks.
method Unified derivation of minimax rates, adaptive kernel selection methods.
result Unified power results across MMD, HSIC, and KSD.
New tests detect communities in dense bipartite graphs with high accuracy.
problem Detecting communities in dense bipartite graphs with high accuracy.
method Non-asymptotic upper and lower bounds, novel minimax-optimal tests, hard-thresholded nonlinear statistics.
result Non-asymptotic upper and lower bounds match for any configuration of graph sizes.
This paper surveys some recent developments in fundamental limits and optimal algorithms for network analysis. We focus on minimax optimal rates in three fundamental problems of network analysis: graphon estimation, community detection, and hypothesis testing. For each problem, we review state-of-the-art results in the…
FAIRM learns fair and generalizable models by enforcing invariance across different data distributions.
problem Addressing fairness and domain generalization in machine learning models under heterogeneous data.
method FAIRM is a training environment-based oracle that enforces invariance across different data distributions, providing theoretical guarantees and efficient algorithms for linear models.
result FAIRM achieves minimax optimal performance and outperforms existing methods in synthetic and MNIST data evaluations.
We consider the problem of comparing probability densities between two groups. A new probabilistic tensor product smoothing spline framework is developed to model the joint density of two variables. Under such a framework, the probability density comparison is equivalent to testing the presence/absence of interactions.…
MOSAIC detects change points in dynamic networks with low-rank and sparse changes.
problem Detecting change points in dynamic networks with specific structural properties.
method Eigen-decomposition-based test with screened signals and residual-based adjustment.
result MOSAIC achieves minimax-optimal detection and testing rates.
T-Cal tests model calibration with a minimax optimal test.
problem Detecting mis-calibration of predictive models using a finite validation dataset.
method T-Cal is a minimax optimal test for calibration based on a debiased plug-in estimator of the ℓ2-Expected Calibration Error (ECE). result T-Cal is a practical tool for testing the calibration of probabilistic classification methods.
Improved machine learning models outperform their simpler counterparts by using imperfect labels.
problem Improving model performance using imperfect labels.
method Random feature ridge regression (RFRR) with a deterministic equivalent for excess test error.
result The student model can outperform the teacher model regardless of the teacher's scaling law, achieving the minimax optimal rate.
Unified framework for structure learning via conditional independence testing.
problem Optimal structure learning and conditional independence testing.
method Established a fundamental connection and reduction between structure learning and conditional independence testing.
result Optimal rates for structure learning are determined by conditional independence testing rates.
We perform a finite sample analysis of the detection levels for sparse principal components of a high-dimensional covariance matrix. Our minimax optimal test is based on a sparse eigenvalue statistic. Alas, computing this test is known to be NP-complete in general, and we describe a computationally efficient alternativ…
MOPI optimizes flexible set-valued mappings to achieve superior shape adaptivity in conformal prediction.
problem Challenges in achieving valid conditional coverage in conformal prediction.
method Minimax Optimization Predictive Inference (MOPI) framework that optimizes over a flexible class of set-valued mappings.
result MOPI achieves superior shape adaptivity and maintains a principled connection to mean squared coverage error.
Paper tackles moment estimation under covariate shift with a two-stage algorithm.
problem Estimating moments under covariate shift when source and target distributions differ.
method Proposes a two-stage algorithm: first, an optimal estimator for the source distribution; second, likelihood ratio reweighting for calibration.
result Achieves minimax optimal bound for moment estimation.
We consider a two-sample hypothesis testing problem, where the distributions are defined on the space of undirected graphs, and one has access to only one observation from each model. A motivating example for this problem is comparing the friendship networks on Facebook and LinkedIn. The practical approach to such prob…
Nonparametric tests via kernel embedding of distributions have witnessed a great deal of practical successes in recent years. However, statistical properties of these tests are largely unknown beyond consistency against a fixed alternative. To fill in this void, we study here the asymptotic properties of goodness-of-fi…
We consider using an ensemble of binary classifiers for transductive prediction, when unlabeled test data are known in advance. We derive minimax optimal rules for confidence-rated prediction in this setting. By using PAC-Bayes analysis on these rules, we obtain data-dependent performance guarantees without distributio…
Efficiently tests two distributions using Nyström approximation of MMD.
problem Testing whether two sets of data are from the same distribution in large-scale scenarios.
method Nyström approximation of maximum mean discrepancy (MMD) for scalable testing.
result Finite-sample bound on power of the test for sufficiently separated distributions.
Develops a fast, accurate method for comparing networks.
problem Comparing networks with repeated observations and varying sizes/sparsity.
method A novel two-sample hypothesis testing method with theoretical guarantees.
result Outperforms existing tools in speed and accuracy, power-optimal.
Adapts RKHS methods to estimate density ratios with optimal error.
problem Estimating density ratios from limited data.
method Minimizes regularized Bregman divergence in RKHS, with Lepskii type parameter choice.
result Adaptive minimax optimal error rate for quadratic loss.
A novel decentralized algorithm improves minimax optimization in federated learning.
problem Minimax optimization in federated learning with data heterogeneity.
method Decentralized Gradient Tracking (K-GT-Minimax) for nonconvex-strongly-concave optimization.
result Demonstrates superior convergence rate for NC-SC minimax optimization.
We study the problem of independence testing given independent and identically distributed pairs taking values in a σ-finite, separable measure space. Defining a natural measure of dependence D(f) as the squared L2-distance between a joint density f and the product of its marginals, we first show that there is…
Paper explores generalization of minimax learners, proposing a new metric.
problem Understanding how minimax learners perform on unseen data.
method Proposes a new metric, the primal gap, to study generalization of minimax learners.
result Derives generalization error bounds for the primal gap in nonconvex-concave settings.
Improved MMD test for non-Euclidean data with spectral regularization.
problem Inefficient and impractical MMD goodness-of-fit tests for non-Euclidean data.
method Spectral regularization of MMD test, extending results to general cases.
result Minimax optimal test for non-Euclidean data with appropriate regularization.
New algorithm solves federated minimax optimization problems.
problem Federated minimax optimization challenges.
method Federated Stochastic Smoothed Gradient Descent Ascent (FESS-GDA).
result FESS-GDA uniformly solves federated minimax problems.
New algorithm improves on static methods in Active Simple Hypothesis Testing.
problem Optimizing Active Simple Hypothesis Testing with active sampling.
method Game-theoretic formulation, differential games, PDEs, Blackwell Approachability.
result Proposes an efficient algorithm that outperforms static methods in ASHT.
Private two-sample tests under LDP achieve minimax rates for multinomial and continuous data.
problem Achieving statistical utility while maintaining privacy in two-sample testing.
method Private permutation tests for multinomial data and adaptive tests for continuous data.
result Minimax optimal tests for private two-sample testing under LDP.
Study minimax optimal RL in factored MDPs with bonus exploration.
problem Optimal reinforcement learning in episodic factored MDPs.
method Proposes two model-based algorithms with bonus exploration for minimax optimal regret.
result Achieves minimax optimal regret guarantees for rich factored structures.
Risk-averse model uncertainty framework for safe reinforcement learning.
problem Safe decision making in uncertain environments.
method Risk-averse perspective towards model uncertainty using coherent distortion risk measures; equivalent to distributionally robust safe reinforcement learning problems; efficient, model-free implementation.
result Demonstrates robust performance and safety across perturbed test environments.
Deep neural network is a state-of-art method in modern science and technology. Much statistical literature have been devoted to understanding its performance in nonparametric estimation, whereas the results are suboptimal due to a redundant logarithmic sacrifice. In this paper, we show that such log-factors are not nec…
This paper introduces differentially private permutation tests for hypothesis testing.
problem Privacy concerns in sensitive data analysis.
method Differentially private permutation tests for kernel methods.
result Proposes dpMMD and dpHSIC for two-sample and independence testing, achieving optimal power.