"Why on earth did I agree to this crazy plan?! Thismultimillionaire Jack Bullen had a proposal for me—to pose as his girlfriend so he could avoid anunwanted marriage. I said yes—it was a wholelot better than going back to being a waitress. Itsounded like fun—a free holiday in Monte Carlo—who’d say no? —But Jack is gorgeous! Like Pierce Brosnan. It’sreally hard doing all this kissing and flirting when it’sall 'pretend.' I want it to be for real! And you know—I’m beginning to think he likes me, too…"

The Monte Carlo Proposal by Lucy Gordon released on Jan 25, 2005 is available now for purchase.

Since their popularization in the 1990s, Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods have revolutionized statistical computing and have had an especially profound impact on the practice of Bayesian statistics. Furthermore, MCMC methods have enabled the development and use of intricate models in an astonishing array of disciplines as diverse as fisherie

Offering a rich diversity of models, Bayesian phylogenetics allows evolutionary biologists, systematists, ecologists, and epidemiologists to obtain answers to very detailed phylogenetic questions. Suitable for graduate-level researchers in statistics and biology, Bayesian Phylogenetics: Methods, Algorithms, and Applications presents a snapshot of current trends in Bayesian phylogenetic research. Encouraging interdisciplinary research, this book introduces state-of-the-art phylogenetics to the Bayesian statistical community and, likewise, presents state-of-the-art Bayesian statistics to the phylogenetics community. The book emphasizes model selection, reflecting recent interest in accurately estimating marginal likelihoods. It also discusses new approaches to improve mixing in Bayesian phylogenetic analyses in which the tree topology varies. In addition, the book covers divergence time estimation, biologically realistic models, and the burgeoning interface between phylogenetics and population genetics.

Praise for Bayes Rules!: An Introduction to Applied Bayesian Modeling “A thoughtful and entertaining book, and a great way to get started with Bayesian analysis.” Andrew Gelman, Columbia University “The examples are modern, and even many frequentist intro books ignore important topics (like the great p-value debate) that the authors address. The focus on simulation for understanding is excellent.” Amy Herring, Duke University “I sincerely believe that a generation of students will cite this book as inspiration for their use of – and love for – Bayesian statistics. The narrative holds the reader’s attention and flows naturally – almost conversationally. Put simply, this is perhaps the most engaging introductory statistics textbook I have ever read. [It] is a natural choice for an introductory undergraduate course in applied Bayesian statistics." Yue Jiang, Duke University “This is by far the best book I’ve seen on how to (and how to teach students to) do Bayesian modeling and understand the underlying mathematics and computation. The authors build intuition and scaffold ideas expertly, using interesting real case studies, insightful graphics, and clear explanations. The scope of this book is vast – from basic building blocks to hierarchical modeling, but the authors’ thoughtful organization allows the reader to navigate this journey smoothly. And impressively, by the end of the book, one can run sophisticated Bayesian models and actually understand the whys, whats, and hows.” Paul Roback, St. Olaf College “The authors provide a compelling, integrated, accessible, and non-religious introduction to statistical modeling using a Bayesian approach. They outline a principled approach that features computational implementations and model assessment with ethical implications interwoven throughout. Students and instructors will find the conceptual and computational exercises to be fresh and engaging.” Nicholas Horton, Amherst College An engaging, sophisticated, and fun introduction to the field of Bayesian statistics, Bayes Rules!: An Introduction to Applied Bayesian Modeling brings the power of modern Bayesian thinking, modeling, and computing to a broad audience. In particular, the book is an ideal resource for advanced undergraduate statistics students and practitioners with comparable experience. Bayes Rules! empowers readers to weave Bayesian approaches into their everyday practice. Discussions and applications are data driven. A natural progression from fundamental to multivariable, hierarchical models emphasizes a practical and generalizable model building process. The evaluation of these Bayesian models reflects the fact that a data analysis does not exist in a vacuum. Features • Utilizes data-driven examples and exercises. • Emphasizes the iterative model building and evaluation process. • Surveys an interconnected range of multivariable regression and classification models. • Presents fundamental Markov chain Monte Carlo simulation. • Integrates R code, including RStan modeling tools and the bayesrules package. • Encourages readers to tap into their intuition and learn by doing. • Provides a friendly and inclusive introduction to technical Bayesian concepts. • Supports Bayesian applications with foundational Bayesian theory.

This book covers the main tools used in statistical simulation from a programmer’s point of view, explaining the R implementation of each simulation technique and providing the output for better understanding and comparison.

In this compilation, the authors first consider applying the Monte Carlo method to the general form of the heat equation that is used for analyzing conduction heat transfer. The Monte Carlo method is then extended to some convection heat transfer applications by representing the probabilistic interpretation of the energy equation to obtain the temperature profile.Following this, Monte Carlo Methods: History and Applications discusses the Monte Carlo methods needed for the estimation of the mean glandular dose in both digital mammography and digital breast tomosynthesis. Various breast anatomies are considered.The gradual development of the Monte Carlo method for solving problems of mathematical chemistry is considered. A comparison of various quantitative structure-property/activity relationships based on the Monte Carlo method is also presented.Lastly, the Monte Carlo technique is used to characterize the statistical distributions of received measurements in an electric energy power system, as well as to quantify the correlations among these variables. To check the numerical accuracy of the results, the point estimate algorithm is employed.

Aimed at researchers across the social sciences, this book explains the logic behind the Monte Carlo simulation method and demonstrates its uses for social and behavioural research.

While there have been few theoretical contributions on the Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods in the past decade, current understanding and application of MCMC to the solution of inference problems has increased by leaps and bounds. Incorporating changes in theory and highlighting new applications, Markov Chain Monte Carlo: Stochastic Simul

Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods are now an indispensable tool in scientific computing. This book discusses recent developments of MCMC methods with an emphasis on those making use of past sample information during simulations. The application examples are drawn from diverse fields such as bioinformatics, machine learning, social science, combinatorial optimization, and computational physics. Key Features: Expanded coverage of the stochastic approximation Monte Carlo and dynamic weighting algorithms that are essentially immune to local trap problems. A detailed discussion of the Monte Carlo Metropolis-Hastings algorithm that can be used for sampling from distributions with intractable normalizing constants. Up-to-date accounts of recent developments of the Gibbs sampler. Comprehensive overviews of the population-based MCMC algorithms and the MCMC algorithms with adaptive proposals. This book can be used as a textbook or a reference book for a one-semester graduate course in statistics, computational biology, engineering, and computer sciences. Applied or theoretical researchers will also find this book beneficial.