The Fourth Erich L. Lehmann Symposium -- Optimality; May 9-12, 2011; Rice University

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The conference is the fourth of a series of symposia. The goal of the Symposia is to examine the role that Optimality can play, or should play, in modern statistics. Due to the advent of high throughput data collection technology and the parallel development of computing power to analyze such data, it often happens that statistical theory gives way to raw computing power. Although most of the new exciting computational/statistical methodologies have provided tools to make headway in many important scientific problems, a need to generalize and systematize this knowledge is now quite evident. The Symposia will bring together a group of experts to discuss cutting-edge research optimality ideas in the context of modern statistical methodologies. It is believed that, although much progress has taken place in areas such as data visualization and data mining and knowledge discovery among others, the subjects are ripe for the development of an optimality paradigm that allows for objective comparisons of methodologies. This new paradigm, although still to be defined, is necessary to push the research frontiers in these important areas. The conference will showcase new developments by leading researchers in an environment conducive to the development of new human resources and an opening session will showcase the work of young investigators.With the substantial contributions that statistics continues to make to the analyses of massive high-dimensional data arising in the biomedical sciences, national security, reliability of urban infrastructures, atmospheric sciences, etc, the need to synthesize this knowledge to more efficiently and effectively analyze such data has come to the forefront of the discipline. Current statistical efforts, for example, leading to a better understanding of the stochastic behavior of the power grid, should help in the creation of an intelligent grid that can better respond to changes in the grid's status and thus avert cascading failures that currently cost in the order of $104 billion dollars in the United States alone. The symposium will provide a forum to showcase the exciting and impacting theoretical work that needs to be developed to better understand the behavior of these complex systems. In addition, the symposium will provide the environment for the maturing of young researchers and the development of more human resources in these important areas.