Related papers: Complexity results and active-set identification o…
We study a new model-free algorithm to compute $\varepsilon$-optimal policies for average reward Markov decision processes, in the weakly communicating case. Given a generative model, our procedure combines a recursive sampling technique…
The branching algorithm is a fundamental technique for designing fast exponential-time algorithms to solve combinatorial optimization problems exactly. It divides the entire solution space into independent search branches using…
Non-negative and bounded-variable linear regression problems arise in a variety of applications in machine learning and signal processing. In this paper, we propose a technique to accelerate existing solvers for these problems by…
We study the conditions under which one is able to efficiently apply variance-reduction and acceleration schemes on finite sum optimization problems. First, we show that, perhaps surprisingly, the finite sum structure by itself, is not…
In most machine learning applications, classification accuracy is not the primary metric of interest. Binary classifiers which face class imbalance are often evaluated by the $F_\beta$ score, area under the precision-recall curve, Precision…
The optimization of high dimensional functions is a key issue in engineering problems but it frequently comes at a cost that is not acceptable since it usually involves a complex and expensive computer code. Engineers often overcome this…
In this paper we consider the problem of locating a nonzero entry in a high-dimensional vector from possibly adaptive linear measurements. We consider a recursive bisection method which we dub the compressive binary search and show that it…
In contrast to the advances in characterizing the sample complexity for solving Markov decision processes (MDPs), the optimal statistical complexity for solving constrained MDPs (CMDPs) remains unknown. We resolve this question by providing…
This work considers a Motion Planning Problem with Dynamic Obstacles (MPDO) in 2D that requires finding a minimum-arrival-time collision-free trajectory for a point robot between its start and goal locations amid dynamic obstacles moving…
Two widely-used computational paradigms for sublinear algorithms are using linear measurements to perform computations on a high dimensional input and using structured queries to access a massive input. Typically, algorithms in the former…
In this paper, we exploit linear programming duality in the online setting (i.e., where input arrives on the fly) from the unique perspective of designing lower bounds on the competitive ratio. In particular, we provide a general technique…
Necessary conditions for high-order optimality in smooth nonlinear constrained optimization are explored and their inherent intricacy discussed. A two-phase minimization algorithm is proposed which can achieve approximate first-, second-…
A data-based policy for iterative control task is presented. The proposed strategy is model-free and can be applied whenever safe input and state trajectories of a system performing an iterative task are available. These trajectories,…
Existing work in multi-agent collision prediction and avoidance typically assumes discrete-time trajectories with Gaussian uncertainty or that are completely deterministic. We propose an approach that allows detection of collisions even…
In this paper, we consider the problem of minimizing a smooth function, given as finite sum of black-box functions, over a convex set. In order to advantageously exploit the structure of the problem, for instance when the terms of the…
We systematically investigate the complexity of model checking the existential positive fragment of first-order logic. In particular, for a set of existential positive sentences, we consider model checking where the sentence is restricted…
Causal discovery from interventional data is an important problem, where the task is to design an interventional strategy that learns the hidden ground truth causal graph $G(V,E)$ on $|V| = n$ nodes while minimizing the number of performed…
We propose approximately exact line search (AELS), which uses only function evaluations to select a step size within a constant fraction of the exact line search minimizer of a unimodal objective. We bound the number of iterations and…
In this paper we consider bound-constrained mixed-integer optimization problems where the objective function is differentiable w.r.t.\ the continuous variables for every configuration of the integer variables. We mainly suggest to exploit…
The fragile complexity of a comparison-based algorithm is $f(n)$ if each input element participates in $O(f(n))$ comparisons. In this paper, we explore the fragile complexity of algorithms adaptive to various restrictions on the input,…