Editing Open Problems:83
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Given the full description of a fixed distribution $q$ over a discrete domain (say $[n]=\{1,\dots,n\}$), as well as access to i.i.d. samples from an unknown probability distributions $p$ over $[n]$ and distance parameter $\varepsilon\in(0,1]$, the identity testing problem asks to distinguish w.h.p. between (i) $p=q$ and (ii) $\operatorname{d}_{\rm TV}(p,q)>\varepsilon$. | Given the full description of a fixed distribution $q$ over a discrete domain (say $[n]=\{1,\dots,n\}$), as well as access to i.i.d. samples from an unknown probability distributions $p$ over $[n]$ and distance parameter $\varepsilon\in(0,1]$, the identity testing problem asks to distinguish w.h.p. between (i) $p=q$ and (ii) $\operatorname{d}_{\rm TV}(p,q)>\varepsilon$. | ||
− | The sample complexity of this question as a function of $n$ and $\varepsilon$ is fully understood by now: $\Theta(\sqrt{n}/\varepsilon^2)$ are necessary and sufficient, the worst-case lower bound following from taking $q$ to be the uniform distribution on $[n]$. Valiant and Valiant {{cite|ValiantV-14}} shown an ''instance-specific'' bound on this problem, where the sample complexity $\Psi_{\rm TV}$ now only depends on $ | + | The sample complexity of this question as a function of $n$ and $\varepsilon$ is fully understood by now: $\Theta(\sqrt{n}/\varepsilon^2)$ are necessary and sufficient, the worst-case lower bound following from taking $q$ to be the uniform distribution on $[n]$. Valiant and Valiant {{cite|ValiantV-14}} shown an ''instance-specific'' bound on this problem, where the sample complexity $\Psi_{\rm TV}$ now only depends on $n$ and the (massive) parameter $q$ instead of $n$: namely, that |
$$\Psi_{\rm TV}(q,\varepsilon) = \Theta\left(\max\left( \frac{\Phi(q,\Theta(\varepsilon))}{\varepsilon^2}, \frac{1}{\varepsilon}\right)\right)$$ | $$\Psi_{\rm TV}(q,\varepsilon) = \Theta\left(\max\left( \frac{\Phi(q,\Theta(\varepsilon))}{\varepsilon^2}, \frac{1}{\varepsilon}\right)\right)$$ | ||
samples were necessary and sufficient, where $\Phi$ is the functional defined by taking the $2/3$-pseudonorm of the vector of probabilities of $q$, once both the biggest element and $\varepsilon$ total mass of the smallest elements had been removed: | samples were necessary and sufficient, where $\Phi$ is the functional defined by taking the $2/3$-pseudonorm of the vector of probabilities of $q$, once both the biggest element and $\varepsilon$ total mass of the smallest elements had been removed: |