The formal definition of reference priors under a general class of divergence

"May 2014."Dissertation Supervisor: Dr. Dongchu Sun.Includes vita.Bayesian analysis is widely used recently in both theory and application of statistics. The choice of priors plays a key role in any Bayesian analysis. There are two types of priors: subjective priors and objective priors. In practice, however, the difficulties of subjective elicitation and time restrictions frequently limit us to use the objective priors constructed by some formal rules. In this dissertation, our methodology is using reference analysis to derive objective priors. Objective Bayesian inference makes inference depending only on the assumed model and the available data. The prior distribution used to make an inference is least informative in a certain information-theoretic sense. Recently, Berger, Bernardo and Sun (2009) derived reference priors rigorously in the contexts under Kullback-Leibler divergence. In special cases with common support and other regularity conditions, Ghosh, Mergel and Liu (2011) derived a general f-divergence criterion for prior selection. We generalize Ghosh, Mergel and Liu's (2011) results to the case without common support and show how an explicit expression for the reference prior can be obtained under posterior consistency. The explicit expression can be used to derive new reference priors both analytically and numerically.Includes bibliographical references (pages 126-127)

Metric compatibility and determination in complete metric spaces

It was established in [8] that Lipschitz inf-compact functions are uniquely determined by their local slope and critical values. Compactness played a paramount role in this result, ensuring in particular the existence of critical points. We hereby emancipate from this restriction and establish a determination result for merely bounded from below functions, by adding an assumption controlling the asymptotic behavior. This assumption is trivially fulfilled if $f$ is inf-compact. In addition, our result is not only valid for the (De Giorgi) local slope, but also for the main paradigms of average descent operators as well as for the global slope, case in which the asymptotic assumption becomes superfluous. Therefore, the present work extends simultaneously the metric determination results of [8] and [18]

Serendipity

Serendipity is defined as the ability to recognize and evaluate unexpected information and generate unintended value from it. The concept has been discussed for centuries. Still, it has only caught the attention of academia quite recently due to its strategic advantage in all aspects of life, such as daily life activities, science and technology, business and entrepreneurship, politics and economics, education administration, career choice and development, etc

Ecomindsponge theory: positioning humans in the ecosphere

We propose the theory of ecomindsponge to focus on examining the human information processing system in relation to the Earth’s ecosphere. This can help in the quest of knowing where we stand in this Universe and the basic mechanisms of how we interact with the natural environment

Suicidal ideation mechanism

Suicidal ideation mechanism is the psychological process of how thoughts of killing oneself emerge and persist in the mind. From the Mindsponge-based suicidal ideation mechanism perspective, there are two conditions for suicidal ideation to happen: (1) the existence of accessible suicide-related information in the environment, and (2) the subjective perception that suicide being a beneficial option. Psychosocial factors (e.g. social connectedness or burdensomeness) can affect these two conditions and, in turn, influence the probability of suicidal ideation

Justicia social en Vietnam: Perspectiva y práctica

El tema de la justicia social es un tema fundamental de cada época y tiene un gran significado de actualidad porque se plantea junto a la existencia humana, asociada a los sueños y aspiraciones hacia una vida bonita y feliz. Después de todo, el objetivo del crecimiento económico es servir a las personas, el sujeto del desarrollo, de manera justa y progresiva. Porque "los humanos, al dominar en última instancia su existencia social, también están dominando la naturaleza, dominándose a sí mismos y convirtiéndose en hombres libres" (Marx & Engels, 1995, p. 333). Se confirma además en el Informe sobre Desarrollo Humano de las Naciones Unidas (1995) cuando dice: “¿qué significa desarrollo sin tener en cuenta la vida humana?”. Después de todo, el propósito del desarrollo económico es sólo un medio para servir al desarrollo humano. Son las personas las que crean las condiciones, aprovechan las oportunidades y las convierten en una fuerza impulsora para alcanzar sus objetivos de desarrollo, lo que a su vez promoverá el desarrollo socioeconómico. En el proceso de integración internacional, Vietnam ha implementado activamente políticas para lograr la justicia social y ha logrado ciertos resultados, contribuyendo a mejorar el nivel de vida de todas las personas. Hay ciertas limitaciones que deben abordarse para lograr la justicia social en toda la vida social. El artículo analiza los puntos de vista y las prácticas de implementación de la justicia social en Vietnam, proponiendo así soluciones para implementar efectivamente la justicia social en Vietnam hoy

Serendipity

Serendipity is defined as an ability to notice, evaluate, and take advantage of unexpected information for survival purposes (both natural and social). The concept has been discussed for centuries. Still, it has only caught the attention of academia quite recently due to its strategic advantage in all aspects of life, such as daily life activities, science and technology, business and entrepreneurship, politics and economics, education administration, career choice and development, etc

Factors influencing the trust of young customers while using e-commerce websites

Internet shopping is now enjoying its prevalence and rapid development in Vietnam. One of factors could be high barrier for this development is consumers’ trust. Lack of trust on websites is a primary reason why many web users do not shop online. This quantitative study is to identify the factors influencing consumers’ trust on websites from the perspective of youths. The proposed model, in this study, is empirically tested using a questionnaire-based field study. A survey of 325 online shoppers has been conducted. Regression analysis is used to test the hypothesis derived from the framework. The result indicates that consumers’ trust on Internet shopping is built on the high level of customers’ perception about the store and company reputation; system quality, and service quality of the website; as well as the effectiveness of third party recognition. Implications and suggestions for further studies were also provided in this study

The Difficulty and Significance of Using Subjective Interpretation in Conjunction with Bayesian Network Analysis in Arts and Cultures

Art and Culture are very important aspects of humanity. However, due to their abstract nature, attempts to quantify the value of such fields have been the challenges for the scientific community. Recently, a new work of Vuong et al. (2019) presents an approach that sheds light on the possibility of applying Bayesian networks analysis to clarify the connection between architecture, for example, the design of the house façade and cultural evolution in Vietnamese city in the early 20th century