Algebraic Statistics

This thesis on algebraic statistics contains five papers. In paper I we define ideals of graph homomorphisms. These ideals generalize many of the toric ideals defined in terms of graphs that are important in algebraic statistics and commutative algebra. In paper II we study polytopes from subgraph statistics. Polytopes from subgraph statistics are important for statistical models for large graphs and many problems in extremal graph theory can be stated in terms of them. We find easily described semi-algebraic sets that are contained in these polytopes, and using them we compute dimensions and get volume bounds for the polytopes. In paper III we study the topological Tverberg theorem and its generalizations. We develop a toolbox for complexes from graphs using vertex decomposability to bound the connectivity. In paper IV we prove a conjecture by Haws, Martin del Campo, Takemura and Yoshida. It states that the three-state toric homogenous Markov chain model has Markov degree two. In algebraic terminology this means that a certain class of toric ideals are generated by quadratic binomials. In paper V we produce cellular resolutions for a large class of edge ideals and their powers. Using algebraic discrete Morse theory it is then possible to make many of these resolutions minimal, for example explicit minimal resolutions for powers of edge ideals of paths are constructed this way.