17,835 research outputs found
Where do we stand on maximal entropy?
Edwin Jaynes’ principle of maximum entropy holds that one should use the probability distribution with maximum entropy, from all those that fit the evidence, to draw inferences, because that is the distribution that is maximally non-committal with respect to propositions that are underdetermined by the evidence. The principle was widely applied in the years following its introduction in 1957, and in 1978 Jaynes took stock, writing the paper ‘Where do we stand on maximum entropy?’ to present his view of the state of the art. Jaynes’ principle needs to be generalised to a principle of maximal entropy if it is to be
applied to first-order inductive logic, where there may be no unique maximum entropy function. The development of this objective Bayesian inductive logic has also been very fertile and it is the task of this chapter to take stock. The chapter provides an introduction to the logic and its motivation, explaining how it overcomes some problems with Carnap’s approach to inductive logic and with the subjective Bayesian approach. It also describes a range of recent
results that shed light on features of the logic, its robustness and its decidability, as well as methods for performing inference in the logic
Generalised exponential families and associated entropy functions
A generalised notion of exponential families is introduced. It is based on
the variational principle, borrowed from statistical physics. It is shown that
inequivalent generalised entropy functions lead to distinct generalised
exponential families. The well-known result that the inequality of Cramer and
Rao becomes an equality in the case of an exponential family can be
generalised. However, this requires the introduction of escort probabilities.Comment: 20 page
The q-exponential family in statistical physics
The notion of generalised exponential family is considered in the restricted
context of nonextensive statistical physics. Examples are given of models
belonging to this family. In particular, the q-Gaussians are discussed and it
is shown that the configurational probability distributions of the
microcanonical ensemble belong to the q-exponential family.Comment: 18 pages, 4 figures, proceedings of SigmaPhi 200
Statistical equilibrium of tetrahedra from maximum entropy principle
Discrete formulations of (quantum) gravity in four spacetime dimensions build
space out of tetrahedra. We investigate a statistical mechanical system of
tetrahedra from a many-body point of view based on non-local, combinatorial
gluing constraints that are modelled as multi-particle interactions. We focus
on Gibbs equilibrium states, constructed using Jaynes' principle of constrained
maximisation of entropy, which has been shown recently to play an important
role in characterising equilibrium in background independent systems. We apply
this principle first to classical systems of many tetrahedra using different
examples of geometrically motivated constraints. Then for a system of quantum
tetrahedra, we show that the quantum statistical partition function of a Gibbs
state with respect to some constraint operator can be reinterpreted as a
partition function for a quantum field theory of tetrahedra, taking the form of
a group field theory.Comment: v3 published version; v2 18 pages, 4 figures, improved text in
sections IIIC & IVB, minor changes elsewher
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