Treed Avalanche Forecasting: Mitigating Avalanche Danger Utilizing Bayesian Additive Regression Trees

Little Cottonwood Canyon Highway is a dead‐end, two‐lane road leading to Utah's Alta and Snowbird ski resorts. It is the only road access to these resorts and is heavily traveled during the ski season. Professional avalanche forecasters monitor this road throughout the ski season in order to make road closure decisions in the face of avalanche danger. Forecasters at the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) avalanche guard station at Alta have maintained an extensive daily winter database on explanatory variables relating to avalanche prediction. Whether or not an avalanche crosses the road is modeled in this paper via Bayesian additive tree methods. Utilizing daily winter data from 1995 to 2011, results show that using Bayesian tree analysis outperforms traditional statistical methods in terms of realized misclassification costs that take into consideration asymmetric losses arising from two types of error. Closing the road when an avalanche does not occur is an error harmful to resort owners, and not closing the road when one does may result in injury or death. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The impact of parameter and model uncertainty on market risk predictions from GARCH‐type models

We study the effect of parameter and model uncertainty on the left‐tail of predictive densities and in particular on VaR forecasts. To this end, we evaluate the predictive performance of several GARCH‐type models estimated via Bayesian and maximum likelihood techniques. In addition to individual models, several combination methods are considered, such as Bayesian model averaging and (censored) optimal pooling for linear, log or beta linear pools. Daily returns for a set of stock market indexes are predicted over about 13 years from the early 2000s. We find that Bayesian predictive densities improve the VaR backtest at the 1% risk level for single models and for linear and log pools. We also find that the robust VaR backtest exhibited by linear and log pools is better than the backtest of single models at the 5% risk level. Finally, the equally weighted linear pool of Bayesian predictives tends to be the best VaR forecaster in a set of 42 forecasting techniques.     

Dynamic Model Averaging and CPI Inflation Forecasts: A Comparison between the Euro Area and the United States

The paper forecasts consumer price inflation in the euro area (EA) and in the USA between 1980:Q1 and 2012:Q4 based on a large set of predictors, with dynamic model averaging (DMA) and dynamic model selection (DMS). DMA/DMS allows not solely for coefficients to change over time, but also for changes in the entire forecasting model over time. DMA/DMS provides on average the best inflation forecasts with regard to alternative approaches (such as the random walk). DMS outperforms DMA. These results are robust for different sample periods and for various forecast horizons. The paper highlights common features between the USA and the EA. First, two groups of predictors forecast inflation: temporary fundamentals that have a frequent impact on inflation but only for short time periods; and persistent fundamentals whose switches are less frequent over time. Second, the importance of some variables (particularly international food commodity prices, house prices and oil prices) as predictors for consumer price index inflation increases when such variables experience large shocks. The paper also shows that significant differences prevail in the forecasting models between the USA and the EA. Such differences can be explained by the structure of these respective economies. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Predicting Recessions with Leading Indicators: Model Averaging and Selection over the Business Cycle

Four methods of model selection—equally weighted forecasts, Bayesian model‐averaged forecasts, and two models produced by the machine‐learning algorithm boosting—are applied to the problem of predicting business cycle turning points with a set of common macroeconomic variables. The methods address a fundamental problem faced by forecasters: the most useful model is simple but makes use of all relevant indicators. The results indicate that successful models of recession condition on different economic indicators at different forecast horizons. Predictors that describe real economic activity provide the clearest signal of recession at very short horizons. In contrast, signals from housing and financial markets produce the best forecasts at longer forecast horizons. A real‐time forecast experiment explores the predictability of the 2001 and 2007 recessions. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Forecast Combination and Bayesian Model Averaging: A Prior Sensitivity Analysis

In this study we evaluate the forecast performance of model‐averaged forecasts based on the predictive likelihood carrying out a prior sensitivity analysis regarding Zellner's g prior. The main results are fourfold. First, the predictive likelihood does always better than the traditionally employed ‘marginal’ likelihood in settings where the true model is not part of the model space. Secondly, forecast accuracy as measured by the root mean square error (RMSE) is maximized for the median probability model. On the other hand, model averaging excels in predicting direction of changes. Lastly, g should be set according to Laud and Ibrahim (1995: Predictive model selection. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society B 57 : 247–262) with a hold‐out sample size of 25% to minimize the RMSE (median model) and 75% to optimize direction of change forecasts (model averaging). We finally apply the aforementioned recommendations to forecast the monthly industrial production output of six countries, beating for almost all countries the AR(1) benchmark model. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Forecasting regional house price inflation: a comparison between dynamic factor models and vector autoregressive models

This paper uses the dynamic factor model framework, which accommodates a large cross‐section of macroeconomic time series, for forecasting regional house price inflation. In this study, we forecast house price inflation for five metropolitan areas of South Africa using principal components obtained from 282 quarterly macroeconomic time series in the period 1980:1 to 2006:4. The results, based on the root mean square errors of one to four quarters ahead out‐of‐sample forecasts over the period 2001:1 to 2006:4 indicate that, in the majority of the cases, the Dynamic Factor Model statistically outperforms the vector autoregressive models, using both the classical and the Bayesian treatments. We also consider spatial and non‐spatial specifications. Our results indicate that macroeconomic fundamentals in forecasting house price inflation are important. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

英语音系过程中从底层表达向表层表达推导的研究

英语音系过程中语素或词项的表达有两个层面:底层表达和表层表达,前者包括语法预测的音系信息,抽象笼统;后者却具全部或大部分的语音信息,能作为某个结构单位的语音现实基础,是一种语音表达形式.从底层表达到表层表达的推导可使语素的表达由抽象变得具体.传统生成音系学SPE模式和发展生成音系学OT理论对该推导过程都有研究,其研究成果有助于学习者更好掌握和运用英语.     

基于混合先验分布的贝叶斯因子分析模型

针对现有因子分析模型不能充分融合模型参数信息问题,通过研究因子分析模型的统计结构,构造了参数的混合先验分布;利用贝叶斯定理证明了模型因子载荷阵的条件后验分布为矩阵t分布,协方差阵的条件后验分布为逆Wishart分布.实证研究表明:由于参数先验分布的作用,贝叶斯因子分析结果与传统的因子分析之间存在明显的差异.     

基于故障树分析和贝叶斯网络方法的液压举升机构故障诊断

为应对液压举升机故障原因复杂,诊断方法准确性不高等问题,提出一种基于故障树和贝叶斯网络的液压举升机故障诊断方法。首先建立液压举升机构故障树,然后将故障树转换为贝叶斯网络,利用三角模糊函数表示举升机底事件发生概率,得到底事件模糊概率,将其做为先验概率计算叶节点发生概率,进而求得根节点后验概率以及概率重要度,可快速诊断出故障点。     

基于Beta过程的高分辨ISAR成像

对于高信噪比、完整回波、目标平稳运动等理想观测环境,现有成像技术已经较为成熟,可以获得聚焦良好的高分辨逆合成孔径雷达(inverse synthetic aperture radar, ISAR)像。但在实际中的方位回波缺损与低信噪比观测情况下,随机相位误差等因素会降低现有成像算法的性能甚至使其失效。本文首先建立了ISAR稀疏观测模型,并基于稀疏贝叶斯学习理论,通过引入Beta过程非参数先验构建层级概率模型,进而交替利用Gibbs采样及最大似然方法对ISAR像及随机相位误差进行估计。实验结果表明,所提方法在低信噪比、回波缺损等复杂观测环境下能够获得聚焦良好的ISAR图像。