Questions tagged [markov-chains]

Stochastic processes (with either discrete or continuous time dependence) on a discrete (finite or countably infinite) state space in which the distribution of the next state depends only on the current state. For Markov processes on continuous state spaces please use (markov-process) instead.

A Markov chain is a stochastic process on a discrete (finite or countably infinite) space in which the distribution of the next state depends only on the current state. These objects show up in probability and computer science both in discrete-time and continuous-time models. For Markov processes on continuous spaces please use .

A discrete-time Markov chain is a sequence of random variables $\{X_n\}_{n\geq1}$ with the Markov property, namely that the probability of moving to the next state depends only on the present state and not on the previous states, i.e. $$\mathbb P(X_{n+1}=x\mid X_{1}=x_{1},X_{2}=x_{2},\ldots ,X_{n}=x_{n})=\mathbb P(X_{n+1}=x\mid X_{n}=x_{n}),$$ if both conditional probabilities are well defined, i.e. if $\mathbb P(X_{1}=x_{1},\ldots ,X_{n}=x_{n})>0.$

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proof that Metropolis - Hastings algo satisfy the detailed balance

This is in reference to https://ermongroup.github.io/cs323-notes/probabilistic/mh/ In it is says *we want to show that $p$ satisfies detailed balance for all $i, j$. By the definition of $\alpha$, without loss of generality, assume that $\alpha(j,…
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difference between existence of stationary distribution and definition of stationary distribution

I am currently relooking at some basics of Markov Chain (after a long time) and find myself confused over some concepts. Defintion: stationary distribution Let $P$ be a distribution of some dimension $R^{d}$ and $T$ a transition probability matrix.…
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Why are row vectors used in finding the stationary distribution of a markov chain?

In the process of finding the stationary distribution of a markov chain: $\begin{pmatrix} \Pi _{1} & \Pi _{2} \end{pmatrix}\begin{pmatrix} P_{00} & P_{01}\\ P_{10}& P_{11} \end{pmatrix} =\begin{pmatrix} \Pi_{1} &\Pi_{2} \end{pmatrix}$ i.e…
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Markov chain having unique stationary distribution

Let be a finite time homogeneous Markov chain with $P_{n \times n}$ transition matrix. As far as I know, $P$ has a unique stationary distribution if and only if it has a unique recurrent class (***). So, let’s take: $$P=\begin{pmatrix} 3/4&0&1/4 \\…
Andrew
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Markov Model transition probability

Hy, i have a little doubt about a Markov model problem. The problem requests to find a transition probability matrix for a situation with two statistically independent person that can be in 4 different state $S_1, S_2, S_3, S_4$. The transaction…
testef
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Can we generalize this Markov property further?

Let $S$ be a countable state space and $(X_n)$ an $S$-valued discrete Markov chain. Then $$ \mathbb P [X_{n+1} = x_{n+1} |X_n = x_n, \ldots, X_0=x_0] = \mathbb P [X_{n+1} = x_{n+1} |X_n = x_n] $$ for all $x_0, \ldots, x_{n+1} \in S$. This is called…
Akira
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Another equivalence of Markov property

Let $S$ be a countable state space and $(X_n)$ an $S$-valued discrete Markov chain. Then $$ \mathbb P [X_{n+1} = x_{n+1} |X_n = x_n, \ldots, X_0=x_0] = \mathbb P [X_{n+1} = x_{n+1} |X_n = x_n] $$ for all $x_0, \ldots, x_{n+1} \in S$. This is called…
Akira
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An equivalence of Markov property

Let $S$ be a countable set and $(X_n)$ an $S$-valued discrete Markov chain. Then $$ \mathbb P [X_{n+1} = x_{n+1} |X_n = x_n, \ldots, X_0=x_0] = \mathbb P [X_{n+1} = x_{n+1} |X_n = x_n] $$ for all $x_0, \ldots, x_{n+1} \in S$. This is called the…
Akira
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Why is the sojourn time not exponentially distributed?

Problem: A service station has three servers, indexed 1, 2, and 3 . When a customer arrives, he is assigned to the idle server with the lowest index. If all servers are busy, the customer goes away. The service times at server $i$ are independent…
Tim
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Markov chain, is this a typo in book?

I'm just starting to learn about Markov chains, and would just like to know if this is a typo in the course literature, or if there is something that I don't understand. The book gives an example of an Markov matrix, following: Some winter days in…
uoiu
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How do you rewrite conditional probability?

Currently I am learning about Markov chains. In the solution of a problem I find the following statement. $$ \mathbb{P}\left(X_4=2 \mid X_3 \neq 0, X_2 \neq 0, X_1 \neq 0, > X_0=2\right) $$ Using the definition of conditional probability, we can…
Tim
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Markov chain: difference between limiting distribution vs long-run visitation distribution

For an irreducible and aperiodic finite-state Markov chain, it has a limiting distribution (which turns out to be its unique stationary distribution), which is defined as the distribution over states at timestep $t$ as $t \rightarrow \infty$. I've…
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Existance of a reccurence state

I am looking at the following theorem and proof For the purposes of my question, one need only know that $$p_{i,j}(n)=:P(X_n =j \mid X_0 =i)$$ I am having issues with when the author says that if $j$ is transient, then the sum is finite. The…
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How do you define a transient Markov chain?

Let M be a homogeneous, discrete-time, finite-states Markov chain. When could we say that M is transient ? When all states of M are transient ? When M is not absorbing ? I encountered both definitions when browsing MC documents, but they seem…
Andrew
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Doubt in proof of proposition 4.2.2 iii) in Meyn and Tweedie

Proposition 4.2.2 in Meyn and Tweedie's Markov Chains and Stochastic Stability, which can be found here, reads as follows: If $(X_n)_{n\geq 0}$ is $\varphi$-irreducible w.r.t a measure $\varphi$ over $\mathcal{B}(\mathcal{X})$, then there exists a…
Yagger
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