English

Reciprocal symmetry breaking in Pareto sampling

Probability 2022-02-11 v1 Populations and Evolution

Abstract

Let W1,,WNW_1,\ldots,W_N be a sample of Pareto(α)\mathrm{Pareto}(\alpha) random variables normalized by their sum, such that iWi=1\sum_i W_i=1. The WiW_i may represent the weights of valleys in a spin glass (if 0<α<10<\alpha<1), or the frequency of different lineages (families) in a genealogy. This paper considers a population in which there are NN individuals reproducing with Pareto(α)\mathrm{Pareto}(\alpha) offspring-number distribution (1<α<21<\alpha<2). The probability of two randomly-chosen individuals being siblings, Y2=iWi2Y_2=\sum_i W_i^2, gives the sample mean of the normalized size of families, and its reciprocal gives the effective number of families (or reproducing lineages) in the population, Ne=1/Y2N_{\mathrm{e}}=1/Y_2. The typical sample mean is very different from the average over all possible samples, i.e. Y2Y_2 is not a self-averaging quantity. The typical Y2Y_2 and its reciprocal do not vary with NN in opposite ways. Non-self-averaging effects are crucial in understanding genetic diversity in mass spawning species such as marine fishes.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2202.04865,
  title  = {Reciprocal symmetry breaking in Pareto sampling},
  author = {Hiro-Sato Niwa},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2202.04865},
  year   = {2022}
}

Comments

14 pages, 2 figures

R2 v1 2026-06-24T09:29:33.513Z