Lower bounds for invariant statistical models with applications to principal component analysis

This paper develops nonasymptotic information inequalities for the estimation of the eigenspaces of a covariance operator. These results generalize previous lower bounds for the spiked covariance model, and they show that recent upper bounds for models with decaying eigenvalues are sharp. The proof relies on lower bound techniques based on group invariance arguments which can also deal with a variety of other statistical models.Comment: 42 pages, to appear in Annales de l'Institut Henri Poincar\'e Probabilit\'es et Statistique

From mapping class groups to automorphism groups of free groups

We show that the natural map from the mapping class groups of surfaces to the automorphism groups of free groups, induces an infinite loop map on the classifying spaces of the stable groups after plus construction. The proof uses automorphisms of free groups with boundaries which play the role of mapping class groups of surfaces with several boundary components.Comment: to appear in J. Lond. Math. So

Higher rho-invariants and the surgery structure set

We study noncommutative eta- and rho-forms for homotopy equivalences. We prove a product formula for them and show that the rho-forms are well-defined on the structure set. We also define an index theoretic map from L-theory to C*-algebraic K-theory and show that it is compatible with the rho-forms. Our approach, which is based on methods of Hilsum-Skandalis and Piazza-Schick, also yields a unified analytic proof of the homotopy invariance of the higher signature class and of the L^2-signature for manifolds with boundary.Comment: 42 pages; exposition improved; version accepted by Journal of Topolog

Homological stability for the mapping class groups of non-orientable surfaces

We prove that the homology of the mapping class groups of non-orientable surfaces stabilizes with the genus of the surface. Combining our result with recent work of Madsen and Weiss, we obtain that the classifying space of the stable mapping class group of non-orientable surfaces, up to homology isomorphism, is the infinite loop space of a Thom spectrum build from the canonical bundle over the Grassmannians of 2-planes in R^{n+2}. In particular, we show that the stable rational cohomology is a polynomial algebra on generators in degrees 4i--this is the non-oriented analogue of the Mumford conjecture

All the Names Between by Julia McCarthy and The Girls with Stone Faces by Arleen Paré

Review of Arleen Paré\u27s The Girls with Stone Faces and Julia McCarthy\u27s All the Names Between