Related papers: On Counting the Population Size
Consider the problem of finding a population or a probability distribution amongst many with the largest mean when these means are unknown but population samples can be simulated or otherwise generated. Typically, by selecting largest…
Anonymous Dynamic Networks is a harsh computational environment due to changing topology and lack of identifiers. Computing the size of the network, a problem known as Counting, is particularly challenging because messages received cannot…
We develop methods for estimating the size of hard-to-reach populations from data collected using network-based questions on standard surveys. Such data arise by asking respondents how many people they know in a specific group (e.g., people…
In this paper, we develop an exact method for the determination of the minimum sample size for estimating the proportion of a finite population with prescribed margin of error and confidence level. By characterizing the behavior of the…
Computing with synthetically engineered bacteria is a vibrant and active field with numerous applications in bio-production, bio-sensing, and medicine. Motivated by the lack of robustness and by resource limitation inside single cells,…
We study the problem of counting the number of nodes in a slotted-time communication network, under the challenging assumption that nodes do not have identifiers and the network topology changes frequently. That is, for each time slot links…
Population protocols are a formal model of computation by identical, anonymous mobile agents interacting in pairs. Their computational power is rather limited: Angluin et al. have shown that they can only compute the predicates over…
Population protocols have been introduced by Angluin et al. as a model of networks consisting of very limited mobile agents that interact in pairs but with no control over their own movement. A collection of anonymous agents, modeled by…
Estimation of population size using incomplete lists (also called the capture-recapture problem) has a long history across many biological and social sciences. For example, human rights and other groups often construct partial and…
A population protocol *stably elects a leader* if, for all $n$, starting from an initial configuration with $n$ agents each in an identical state, with probability 1 it reaches a configuration $\mathbf{y}$ that is correct (exactly one agent…
We identify and investigate a computational model arising in molecular computing, social computing and sensor network. The model is made of of multiple agents who are computationally limited and posses no global information. The agents may…
A general multi-type population model is considered, where individuals live and reproduce according to their age and type, but also under the influence of the size and composition of the entire population. We describe the dynamics of the…
The population control problem is a parameterised problem where a controller sends messages to a whole population of identical finite-state agents, aiming to eventually move them all into a target state. The decision problem asks whether…
Populations of interest are often hidden from data for a variety of reasons, though their magnitude remains important in determining resource allocation and appropriate policy. One popular approach to population size estimation, the…
Over the years, population protocols with the goal of reaching consensus have been studied in great depth. However, many systems in the real-world do not result in all agents eventually reaching consensus, but rather in the opposite: they…
We consider the problem of simulating traditional population protocols under weaker models of communication, which include one-way interactions (as opposed to two-way interactions) and omission faults (i.e., failure by an agent to read its…
We present a new design and inference method for estimating population size of a hidden population best reached through a link-tracing design. The strategy involves the Rao-Blackwell Theorem applied to a sufficient statistic markedly…
The population protocol model is a computational model for passive mobile agents. We address the leader election problem, which determines a unique leader on arbitrary communication graphs starting from any configuration. Unfortunately,…
In this paper, we study the classical problem of estimating the proportion of a finite population. First, we consider a fixed sample size method and derive an explicit sample size formula which ensures a mixed criterion of absolute and…
Coalescent theory combined with statistical modeling allows us to estimate effective population size fluctuations from molecular sequences of individuals sampled from a population of interest. When sequences are sampled serially through…