Related papers: A new method for computing the expected hitting ti…

We study first passage statistics of the Polya urn model. In this random process, the urn contains two types of balls. In each step, one ball is drawn randomly from the urn, and subsequently placed back into the urn together with an…

Consider the multicolored urn model where, after every draw, balls of the different colors are added to the urn in a proportion determined by a given stochastic replacement matrix. We consider some special replacement matrices which are not…

A classical P\'olya urn scheme is a Markov process whose evolution is encoded by a replacement matrix $(R_{i,j})_{1\leq i,j\leq d}$. At every discrete time-step, we draw a ball uniformly at random, denote its colour $c$, and replace it in…

Let $G$ be a finite Abelian group of order $d$. We consider an urn in which, initially, there are labeled balls that generate the group $G$. Choosing two balls from the urn with replacement, observe their labels, and perform a group…

In order to study how well a finite group might be generated by repeated random multiplications, P. Diaconis suggested the following urn model. An urn contains some balls labeled by elements which generate a group G. Two are drawn at random…

This paper considers the $(n,k)$-Bernoulli--Laplace model in the case when there are two urns, the total number of red and white balls is the same, and the number of selections $k$ at each step is on the same asymptotic order as the number…

For any discrete target distribution, we exploit the connection between Markov chains and Stein's method via the generator approach and express the solution of Stein's equation in terms of expected hitting time. This yields new upper bounds…

We consider a game with two players, consisting of a number of rounds, where the first player to win $n$ rounds becomes the overall winner. Who wins each individual round is governed by a certain urn having two types of balls (type 1 and…

The expected hitting time from vertex $a$ to vertex $b$, $H(a,b)$, is the expected value of the time it takes a random walk starting at $a$ to reach $b$. In this paper, we give estimates for $H(a,b)$ when the distance between $a$ and $b$ is…

Generative modeling via stochastic processes has led to remarkable empirical results as well as to recent advances in their theoretical understanding. In principle, both space and time of the processes can be discrete or continuous. In this…

Consider shuffling a deck of $n$ cards, labeled $1$ through $n$, as follows: at each time step, pick one card uniformly with your right hand and another card, independently and uniformly with your left hand; then swap the cards. How long…

This article describes a purely analytic approach to urn models of the generalized or extended P\'olya-Eggenberger type, in the case of two types of balls and constant ``balance,'' that is, constant row sum. The treatment starts from a…

We study a generalized P\'{o}lya urn model with two types of ball. If the drawn ball is red, it is replaced together with a black ball, but if the drawn ball is black it is replaced and a red ball is thrown out of the urn. When only black…

An urn model of Diaconis and some generalizations are discussed. A convergence theorem is proved that implies for Diaconis' model that the empirical distribution of balls in the urn converges with probability one to the uniform…

We consider the voter model with $M$ states initially in the system. Using generating functions, we pose the spectral problem for the Markov transition matrix and solve for all eigenvalues and eigenvectors exactly. With this solution, we…

We study parallel algorithms for the classical balls-into-bins problem, in which $m$ balls acting in parallel as separate agents are placed into $n$ bins. Algorithms operate in synchronous rounds, in each of which balls and bins exchange…

The aim of this paper is to study the asymptotic behavior of strongly reinforced interacting urns with partial memory sharing. The reinforcement mechanism considered is as follows: draw at each step and for each urn a white or black ball…

Using the Ehrenfest urn model we illustrate the subtleties of error estimation in Monte Carlo simulations. We discuss how the smooth results of correlated sampling in Markov chains can fool one's perception of the accuracy of the data, and…

Consider a finite undirected graph and place an urn with balls of two colours at each vertex. At every discrete time step, for each urn, a fixed number of balls are drawn from that same urn with probability $p$, and from a randomly chosen…

We show how averages of exponential functions of path dependent quantities, such as those of Work Fluctuation Theorems, detect phase transitions in deterministic and stochastic systems. State space truncation -- the restriction of the…