Date/Time
Date(s) - 25/10/2022
3:30 pm - 5:00 pm

Title: A Markov chain on binary trees

Speaker: Noah Forman, McMaster University

Abstract: Consider a Markov process in the space of binary trees – a randomly changing tree – in which, at each step, you delete a random leaf and then grow a new leaf in a random location on the tree. This chain is used in a Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithm for phylogenetic inference. How does this process behave differently on large trees versus small ones? Is there a natural relationship between the two? We will discuss a method of swapping leaf labels to obtain a family of projectively consistent Markov chains on binary trees, with the aim of understanding the (limiting) behavior of these chains on very large trees. This label swapping has been used to resolve a 2000 conjecture of Aldous on the scaling limit of the Markov chain. This is joint work with Soumik Pal, Douglas Rizzolo, and Matthias Winkel.

Date/Time: Tuesday October 25, 2022, 3:30 – 5:00 

Location: UH 112