Speed and sparsity of regularized boosting

Abstract Boosting algorithms with l 1 -regularization are of interest because l 1 regularization leads to sparser composite classifiers. Moreover, Rosset et al. have shown that for separable data, standard l pregularized loss minimization results in a margin maximizing classifier in the limit as regularization is relaxed. For the case p = 1, we extend these results by obtaining explicit convergence bounds on the regularization required to yield a margin within prescribed accuracy of the maximum achievable margin. We derive similar rates of convergence for the ε-AdaBoost algorithm, in the process providing a new proof that ε-AdaBoost is margin maximizing as ε converges to 0. Because both of these known algorithms are computationally expensive, we introduce a new hybrid algorithm, AdaBoost+L 1 , that combines the virtues of AdaBoost with the sparsity of l 1 -regularization in a computationally efficient fashion. We prove that the algorithm is margin maximizing and empirically examine its performance on five datasets

An update on statistical boosting in biomedicine

Statistical boosting algorithms have triggered a lot of research during the last decade. They combine a powerful machine-learning approach with classical statistical modelling, offering various practical advantages like automated variable selection and implicit regularization of effect estimates. They are extremely flexible, as the underlying base-learners (regression functions defining the type of effect for the explanatory variables) can be combined with any kind of loss function (target function to be optimized, defining the type of regression setting). In this review article, we highlight the most recent methodological developments on statistical boosting regarding variable selection, functional regression and advanced time-to-event modelling. Additionally, we provide a short overview on relevant applications of statistical boosting in biomedicine