Let a1, . . . , an, b1, . . . , bn be random variables in some (non-commutative) probability space, such that {a1, . . . , an} is free from {b1, . . . , bn}. We show how the joint distribution of the n-tuple (a1b1, . . . , anbn) can be described in terms of the joint distributions of (a1, . . . , an) and (b1, . . . , bn), by using the combinatorics of the n-dimensional R-transform. We point out...

The count of the nucleotides in a cloned, short genomic sequence has become an important criterion to annotate such a sequence as a miRNA molecule. While the majority of human mature miRNA sequences consist of 22 nucleotides, there exists discrepancy in the characteristic lengths of the miRNA sequences. There is also a lack of systematic studies on such length distribution and on the biological...

In this paper, we present an approach to execute more realistic traffic sources in network simulators (like Network Simulator 2) for fixed and mobile networks. Traffic source models can be defined from network measures to give an accurate statistical distribution of inter-arrival time and packet size at packet level. These traffic sources models can be integrated into a network simulator to per...

A new algorithm for the automatic recognition of peak and baseline regions in spectra is presented. It is part of a study to devise a baseline correction method that is particularly suitable for the simple and fast treatment of large amounts of data of the same type, such as those coming from high-throughput instruments, images, process monitoring, etc. This algorithm is based on the continuous...

Investigating the degree of similarity between infants' and adults' representation of speech is critical to our understanding of infants' ability to acquire language. Phoneme perception plays a crucial role in language processing, and numerous behavioral studies have demonstrated similar capacities in infants and adults, but are these subserved by the same neural substrates or networks? In this...

The validity of the normal distribution as an error model is commonly tested with a (half) normal probability plot. Real data often contain outliers. The use of t-distributions in a probability plot to model such data more realistically is described. It is shown how a suitable value of the parameter nu of the t-distribution can be determined from the data. The results suggest that even data tha...

The main statistical distributions applicable to the analysis of genome architecture and genome tracks are briefly discussed and critically assessed. Although the observed features in distributions of element lengths can be equally well fitted by the different statistical approximations, the interpretation of observed regularities may strongly depend on the chosen scheme. We discuss the possibl...

The methods of Maximum Entropy have been deployed for some years to address the problem of species abundance distributions. In this approach, it is important to identify the correct weighting factors, or priors, to be applied before maximising the entropy function subject to constraints. The forms of such priors depend not only on the exact problem but can also depend on the way it is set up; p...

The volume of cold tap water consumed is an essential element in quantitative microbial risk assessment. This paper presents a review of tap water consumption studies. Study designs were evaluated and statistical distributions were fitted to water consumption data from The Netherlands, Great Britain, Germany and Australia. We conclude that the diary is to be preferred for collecting water consu...

The market for tranched credit products (CDOs, Itraxx tranches) is one of the fastest growing segments in the credit derivatives industry. However, some assumptions underlying the standard Gaussian onefactor pricing model (homogeneity, single factor, Normality), which is the pricing standard widely used in the industry, are probably too restrictive. In this paper we generalize the standard mode...