Re: [UAI] how to evaluate approximate algorithms when exact solution is not available?

From: Gordon Hazen (Hazen@iems.northwestern.edu)
Date: Mon May 14 2001 - 21:13:03 PDT

  • Next message: SKAANNING,CLAUS (HP-Denmark,ex1): "RE: [UAI] how to evaluate approximate algorithms when exact solution is not available?"

    Bob, Rina:

    I was speaking off the cuff - I don't immediately have any references to
    give, so until I do, I can't back up my linearity assertions. I'll let you
    know if I come across anything.

    Gordon

    At 10:20 PM 5/13/01 -0700, Rina Dechter wrote:

    >Gordon,
    >
    >If you have referenice to this theoretical results or experiments
    >it can be very useful.
    >Thanks,
    >------Rina.
    >
    >Gordon Hazen wrote:
    > >
    > > I don't think so - MC Monte Carlo and Monte Carlo in general provide only
    > > a statistical approximation whose convergence is guaranteed, but no
    > > guaranteed bound. What I think is true is that convergence to within a
    > > given confidence range is linear in problem size, but of course a 95%
    > > confidence bound is only an estimate, not a guarantee.
    > >
    > > -- Gordon
    > >
    > > At 07:22 PM 5/12/01 -0700, Bob Welch wrote:
    > > >Gordon:
    > > >
    > > >If that were true then wouldn't there be a counter example to the NP hard
    > > >results for both exact and approximate solutions?
    > > >
    > > >Bob
    > > >----- Original Message -----
    > > >From: "Gordon Hazen" <Hazen@iems.northwestern.edu>
    > > >To: <uai@cs.orst.edu>
    > > >Sent: Friday, May 11, 2001 7:49 PM
    > > >Subject: Re: [UAI] how to evaluate approximate algorithms when exact
    > > >solution is not available?
    > > >
    > > >
    > > > > Empirical studies would be interesting. Why not run an exact
    > algorithm if
    > > > > one has huge amounts of time available? Because, as I understand it,
    > > > > peformance for Gibbs is linear in problem size, whereas performance
    > for an
    > > > > exact algorithm is exponential in problem size.
    > > > >
    > > > > -- Gordon
    > > > >
    > >
    > > Gordon Hazen
    > > IE/MS Department, McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science
    > > Northwestern University, Evanston, IL. USA 60208-3119
    > > Phone 847-491-5673 Fax 847-491-8005
    > > Web: www.iems.nwu.edu/~hazen/
    >
    >--
    >-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
    >Rina Dechter dechter@ics.uci.edu
    >Information and Computer Science Dept. (949) 824-6556
    >University of California, Irvine fax: (949)-824-4056
    >Irvine, CA 92717
    >http://www.ics.uci.edu/~dechter

    Gordon Hazen
    IE/MS Department, McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science
    Northwestern University, Evanston, IL. USA 60208-3119
    Phone 847-491-5673 Fax 847-491-8005
    Web: www.iems.nwu.edu/~hazen/



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