All Questions
78 questions
30
votes
5
answers
14k
views
Can all convex optimization problems be solved in polynomial time using interior-point algorithms?
Just a new guy in optimization. Is it true that all convex optimization problems can be solved in polynomial time using interior-point algorithms?
- 303
2
votes
2
answers
293
views
Optimal transport: the existence of an optimal pair of $c$-conjugate functions
$\newcommand{\diff}{ \, \mathrm d}$
Let
$X,Y$ be Polish spaces,
$\mathcal C_b(X)$ the space of all real-valued bounded continuous functions on $X$,
$\mathcal P(X)$ the space of Borel probability ...
- 835
12
votes
1
answer
5k
views
Closest 3D rotation matrix in the Frobenius norm sense
Given a 3 by 3 matrix $M$ I would like to find the rotation matrix $R$ minimizing the Frobenius norm:
\begin{equation}
\|R-M\|_F
\end{equation}
Is there a closed form solution for $R$, or is it ...
- 561
11
votes
3
answers
6k
views
Random Sampling a linearly constrained region in n-dimensions...
Hi,
So here is my problem:
Given a nonlinear, discontinous, cost function $f(x_1,x_2,..,x_N)$ along with linear constraints $x_n \ge 0, \forall n$
$x_n \le c_n$
and $\sum_{n=1}^N x_n = 1$ find an ...
- 113
6
votes
6
answers
3k
views
Circumference of Convex Shapes
Here is a puzzle I found in Mitteilungen der DMV (roughly, "Letters of the German Society of Mathematicians"), issue 19/2011. It was posed by Alfred Schreiber in "Wie man Hasen fangt" (How to catch ...
3
votes
1
answer
328
views
LP Constraints for Connected Subgraphs of Fixed Size
Question:
how can the connectedness-constraint for a subgraph, that is induced by a proper subset $W\subset V$ of the vertices of $G(V,E),\ |V|=n,\ |W|=m$, be formulated in a $LP$ or $ILP$?
...
- 13.2k
3
votes
2
answers
968
views
Can one estimate the distribution of eigenvalues of a matrix by its Cauchy/Stieltje transform?
Given a real symmetric $n$ dimensional matrix $A$, with eigenvalues $\lambda_i$ I am defining its Cauchy transform as the function, $f_A(z) = \sum_i \frac{1}{z-\lambda_i}\,$
Is there any information ...
- 617
27
votes
5
answers
2k
views
Is the matrix $\left({2m\choose 2j-i}\right)_{i,j=1}^{2m-1}$ nonsingular?
Suppose we have a $(2m-1) \times (2m-1)$ matrix defined as follows:
$$\left({2m\choose 2j-i}\right)_{i,j=1}^{2m-1}.$$
For example, if $m=3$, the matrix is
$$\begin{pmatrix}6 & 20 & 6& 0 ...
- 1,121
19
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Is the tensor product of polyhedra a polyhedron?
Conventions: A polytope in a finite-dimensional $\mathbb R$-vector space $V$ is defined to be a convex hull of finitely many points in $V$. A polyhedron in a finite-dimensional $\mathbb R$-vector ...
- 33.8k
17
votes
3
answers
2k
views
The minimum of a sum of absolute values of inner products in $\mathbb{R}^d$
Consider a collection of unit vectors $v_1, \ldots, v_n$ in $\mathbb{R}^d$ (we think of $n$ being much larger than $d$). I would like to minimize the sum:
$$\sum_{i\neq j}|\langle v_i,v_j\rangle|.$$
...
- 2,288
8
votes
0
answers
459
views
Are there any characterizations of $C^2$ convex functions?
There are several characterizations of convex functions with the Lipschitz continuous gradient. If we already know that the function is of class $C^1$, then we have the following equivalent conditions:...
- 28k
6
votes
1
answer
4k
views
Complexity for solving linear equations?
What is the best known complexity for finding a vector $x \in \mathbb{R}^n$ to minimize $||Ax - b||^2$ and/or to solve (when possible) the system of linear equations $Ax=b$?
I am interested in ...
- 544
5
votes
1
answer
355
views
Are the polyhedral cones the only examples of cones that remains closed when they are added to vector subspaces?
Let $C \subset \mathbb{R}^{n}$ be a closed convex cone. If one wants to know whether the linear map $T:\mathbb{R}^{n} \to\mathbb{R}^m$ sends the closed set $C$ to another closed one, $T(C)$, it is ...
- 225
5
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Algorithm for the intersection of a vector subspace with a cone of non-negative vectors
Hi,
I would like to know whether there is some more effective way of how to compute an intersection of a vector subspace of $\mathbb{R}^{n}$ with a cone of vectors with non-negative entries than the ...
5
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Minimum of squared sum minus sum of squares
I know that
$$
\min_{\|x\|_2=1=\|y\|_2} \left(\sum_{k=1}^nx_ky_k\right)^2-\sum_{k=1}^nx_k^2y_k^2 \geq -1/2
$$
with equality whenever $|x_k|=\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}=|y_k|$ for two coordinates.
I'm ...
- 205
4
votes
1
answer
8k
views
Detection of Redundant Constraints
Suppose I pose the following query to a constraint logic programming
system:
?- Y <= 6 - X, Y <= (- 4) + 4 * X, Y <= 4 + X / 3.
Are there systems that would recognize the last inequality as
...
Countably Infinite
4
votes
1
answer
3k
views
optimization of inverse matrix with constraint on matrix elements
everyone! I have this optimization problem with constraint.
$D$ and $T$ are symmetric matrices, where T is known and D is the unknown parameter.
$x$ and $v$ are two known p-dimensional vectors.
The ...
- 49
3
votes
2
answers
386
views
Standard solution to semidefinite program [closed]
I have an optimization problem of the following form
$$\text{minimize} \,\|Qa-b\|_2 \quad \text{ subject to } Q \succeq 0$$
where $a,b \in \mathbb{R}^n$ are given and the $n \times n$ square matrix ...
- 153
2
votes
0
answers
105
views
Optimization over a convex cone generated by a set is equal to optimization over the set
Within my research I found an important doubt and that prevents me from advancing, the context of my doubt is as follows:
We considerer the following optimization problem
$$
\left\{\begin{array}{cl} \...
- 159
2
votes
0
answers
111
views
Maximization of an integral functional over a closed convex set
I want to maximize $$F(w):=\sum_{1\le i,\:j\le2}\int\lambda^{\otimes2}({\rm d}(x,y))\left(w_i(x)f_j(x,y)\wedge w_j(y)f_i(y,x)\right)g_{ij}(x,y)$$ over the closed convex set $$S:=\left\{w\in{\mathcal L^...
- 167
1
vote
1
answer
148
views
How can we calculate the generalized gradient of $L^2\ni x\mapsto a\min(x(s),by(t))$?
Let $(T,\mathcal T,\tau)$ be a measure space, $a,b\ge0$, $s,t\in T$ and $$f(x):=a\min(x(s),bx(t))\;\;\;\text{for }x\in L^2(\tau).$$
How can we calculate the generalized gradient $\partial_Cf(x)$ of ...
- 167
39
votes
2
answers
2k
views
How to make a sandwich from just one piece of bread?
I don't know how to go about such questions. It's not exactly my area, so maybe it is stupid, but curiosity is winning.
So I have a piece of bread $P$ of a really non-regular shape (let's make it ...
- 5,529
29
votes
6
answers
8k
views
How to find a closest integer point to the intersection of two lines?
Here's a question that originates from StackOverflow.
Given are two lines on a plane, specified by equations ($a x + b y = c$) with integer coefficients. The lines aren't parallel and they don't ...
- 391
19
votes
4
answers
1k
views
Applications of linear programming duality in combinatorics
So, I know that one can apply the strong LP duality theorem to specific instances of maximum flow problems to recover some nontrivial theorems in combinatorics, such as Hall's theorem, Koenig's ...
- 997
18
votes
8
answers
3k
views
When do people actually use the maximum entropy distribution?
One of the standard problems in convex optimization is the calculation of the maximum entropy distribution that satisfies some set of criteria. For example, if $\mathbf{x} \in \mathbb R^n$ is an ...
- 183
18
votes
3
answers
3k
views
Deciding membership in a convex hull
Given points $u, v_1, \dots,v_n \in \mathbb{R}^m$, decide if $u$ is contained in the convex hull of $v_1, \dots, v_n$.
This can be done efficiently by linear programming (time polynomial in $n,m$) in ...
- 667
16
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Can a convex polytope with $f$ facets have more than $f$ facets when projected into $\mathbb{R}^2$?
Let $P$ be a convex polytope in $\mathbb{R}^d$ with $n$ vertices and $f$ facets.
Let $\text{Proj}(P)$ denote the projection of $P$ into $\mathbb{R}^2$.
Can $\text{Proj}(P)$ have more than $f$ facets?
...
- 163
14
votes
2
answers
743
views
Is there a class of optimization problems more general than semidefinite programming?
I was TA-ing my convex optimization class and explaining that linear programs are a special case of second-order cone programs, which are themselves special cases of semidefinite programs. Is there ...
- 141
13
votes
0
answers
710
views
Minimizing total variation under constraint
For $p\in[0,1]$, we write $\mathrm{Ber}(p)$
to denote the Bernoulli measure on $\{0,1\}$;
that is, $\mathrm{Ber}(p)(0)=1-p$,
$\mathrm{Ber}(p)(1)=p$.
For $n\in\mathbb{N}$ and $p=(p_1,\ldots,p_n)\in[0,1]...
- 6,541
11
votes
2
answers
414
views
Sum of squared nearest-neighbor distances between points in a square
Let $\square_2=\{(x,y): 0\leq x, y\leq1\}$ be the unit square in $\mathbb{R}^2$. Take $n>1$ points $P_1, \dots, P_n\in\square_2$.
Denote the distances $d_j=\min\{\Vert P_k-P_j\Vert: k\neq j\}$, ...
- 43.2k
10
votes
1
answer
411
views
Network flows with capacities on pairs of edges
Take a standard network flow problem: a directed graph with nonnegative capacities on each edge, a source $s$, a sink $t$. We all know how to find the maximum flow from $s$ to $t$.
Now add edge-pair ...
- 37.7k
10
votes
2
answers
3k
views
How do you tell if a system of linear inequalities has a solution?
A naive solution would be to optimize a dummy variable via linear programming and see if a result is returned. I imagine there must be a more direct way.
- 693
10
votes
4
answers
904
views
The distribution of the shortest path through $n$ points
In the big picture, I'd like to know: if I sample $n$ points uniformly at random in the unit square, what is the probability that the shortest path that visits each one of them is very small?
More ...
- 121
9
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Orthogonal representations of graphs
A faithful orthonormal representation of a graph $G=(V,E)$ on $n$ vertices $\{1,2,\dotsc,n\}$ is an assignment of unit vectors $v_1,v_2,...,v_n \in \mathbb{R}^d$ to the vertices of $G$ such that $\...
- 201
9
votes
1
answer
295
views
Definition of packing property
Definition 1:
A clutter $C$ is said to have the packing property if $C$ and all of its minors satisfy the König property.
where,
vertex cover of $C$ is a set of vertices that have non-empty ...
- 381
9
votes
1
answer
749
views
property of convex functions
I am able to give a proof to the following inequality for convex functions. Most likely this is well known, but I am unable to find a reference. I would appreciate if someone more knowledgeable in the ...
- 1,211
9
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Uniform sampling from general simplex with a twist
This is part of a question I had asked elsewhere, and then some of the links redirected me to CS stack exchange.
Given $0\leq a_1\leq\dots\leq a_D\leq1$ (all strictly positive), I want to draw points ...
- 221
7
votes
2
answers
497
views
Proving the set $\left\lbrace \frac{(x + y)^2}{\sqrt{y}} \leq x - y + 5, y > 0 \right\rbrace$ is convex
I have recently picked up a course on Convex Analysis in my spare time, but feel I'm not quite up to speed with the 'tricks' for proving a set is convex.
I have managed to prove this by moving all ...
7
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Is a given point in the interior of the convex hull of a given finite collection of points?
Suppose I have the convex hull $P$ of a finite collection of points in $\mathbb{R}^d,$ and I want to see whether a point $p$ is contained in $P.$ This is a standard (some would say the standard linear ...
- 96.4k
7
votes
1
answer
403
views
Does the plane clustered to minimize sum distances^2 to clusters centers ( inertia / "K-means") produce hexagonal clusters / hexagonal lattice?
"K-means" is the most simple and famous clustering algorithm, which has numerous applications.
For a given as an input number of clusters it segments set of points in R^n to that given number of ...
- 24.9k
6
votes
1
answer
761
views
Checking if one polytope is contained in another
I have two sets of inequalities, say, $Ax \leq 0$ and $Bx \leq 0$. I would like to know if they both define the same polytope. Or, even, whether one is contained in the other.
At the moment I am ...
- 491
6
votes
2
answers
874
views
Is there any efficient solution of the matrix equation AXB + (AXB)' + cX = D
I am trying to find the symmetric solution $X\in \mathbb{R}^{p\times p}$ of following matrix equation:
$AXB + (AXB)^T + cX = D$
where $A,B\in \mathbb{R}^{p\times p}$ are symmetric positive ...
- 89
6
votes
2
answers
8k
views
Existence/Uniqueness of Nonnegative Solutions of Linear Systems of Equations
Suppose we have an $m$x$n$ matrix $A$, with $m\lt n$, and an $m$x$1$ vector $b$. Are there existence and uniqueness conditions characterizing nonnegative solutions of the system of linear equations $...
6
votes
1
answer
609
views
Attempt at applying linear programming to the partial sums of the Möbius inverse of the Harmonic numbers
Let $a(n)$ be the Dirichlet inverse of the Euler totient function:
$$a(n) = \sum\limits_{d|n} d \cdot \mu(d) \tag{1}$$
and let the matrix $T(n,k)$ be:
$$T(n,k)=a(\gcd(n,k)) \tag{2}$$
It has been ...
- 1,183
6
votes
2
answers
570
views
Why are $\Gamma_0$ functions called this
It is very common to indicate with $\Gamma_0(A)$ the set of lower semicontinuous convex functions from $A$ to $(-\infty,+\infty]$ with nonempty domain. An example of usage of this notation can be ...
- 71
5
votes
1
answer
500
views
How to apply Hahn-Banach to the convex hull?
I am trying to understand the proof of Lemma 4.1.2 in Michel Talagrand's publication from 1995 on concentration inequalities (see below for the precise question statement):
A bit of context: ...
- 1,326
5
votes
1
answer
383
views
Asymptotic behavior of gradient descent on a smooth, convex, non-negative function with no finite minimum
Let $f: \mathbb{R}^d\rightarrow\mathbb{R}_{\geq 0}$ be a function which is convex and smooth (i.e., in $C^{\infty}$). If $x^* \in \mathbb{R}^d$ is the (global) minimum of $f$, it is well known that ...
- 968
4
votes
2
answers
354
views
Minimising the squared sum minus the sum of squares
I'd like to know how to show $$\min_{\Vert x\Vert_2=1=\Vert y\Vert_2}\left(\sum_{k=1}^nx_ky_k\right)^2-\sum_{k=1}^nx_k^2y_k^2\geq -1/2.$$
The inequality is discussed in a previous post Minimum of ...
- 85
4
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Simplified knapsack problem
There is a problem that I can not solve.
Given a set of items (each item has some integer weight) we have to fill bag with some number of copies of these items, with the only restriction that the ...
- 41
4
votes
1
answer
891
views
Basic result in semi-infinite linear programming
Consider a standard linear program of the form $$\textrm{minimize}_x~~~~ c^Tx~~~~ s.t. \\ Ax = b \\ x \geq 0$$ with $x\in \mathbb{R}^n$ and $A \in \mathbb{R}^{m \times n}$. It is well known that, if ...
- 4,049