The 9th Conference on Bayesian Nonparametrics is going to be held in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, from June 10 to 14, 2013. Bayesian nonparametrics has evolved as one of the fastest growing areas of research in modern statistics. Its applications areas include genetics, finance, survival analysis, sociology, networks and machine learning. The conference is the most important meeting of researchers working in theory, methodology and all types of applications of Bayesian nonparametrics all over the world. This grant supports junior researchers currently working in U.S. institutions (graduate students, postdoctoral researchers and junior faculty generally within three years of completion of their terminal degree) to participate in the conference. Participation in this meeting is critical for junior researchers working in this area. The primary objective of this conference is to bring together experts and young researchers, as well as theoreticians and practitioners, who use Bayesian nonparametric techniques. The conference has a well-structured balanced program covering various areas of the subject. The scientific committee of the conference consists of renowned international experts on Bayesian nonparametrics and related topics. The meeting will include four overview plenary talks, forty-two invited talks, six contributed talks and a contributed poster session. Many of the invited speakers including a plenary speaker are women.
Providing support for junior researchers who do not have access to other sources of funding to attend the important international gathering of scientists working on one of the fastest growing areas of statistical sciences is key to maintaining the current leadership of American institutions in this field. These workshops in the past were always characterized by a congenial atmosphere particularly supportive of junior researchers. The conference will include a series of activities especially designed to maximize the active participation of young researchers and to provide them with many opportunities for interaction with other young researchers and with more senior colleagues. The conference will also provide American researchers opportunity to exchange ideas with leading researchers from elsewhere in the world such as Europe, Asia and Latin America. In addition, the conference will provide opportunities for young researchers to disseminate widely the results of their work, not only through contributed talks and posters, but also by facilitating the publication of peer-reviewed papers and a proposed conference volume to be published by a leading publisher. The extensive poster session and some slots for contributed talks are especially reserved for young researchers. Women and minorities are highly encouraged to take part in the conference with the help from the travel support.
Bayesin nonparametric paradigm to statistical inference has been very attractive option due to its naturality, flexibility and versatility. Bayesian nonparametric solutions to complex problems are most natural. Once a prior distribution has been enacted, inference follows most naturally simply by calculating the posterior distribution, although computational and theoretical challenges remain. Moreover, measures of uncertainty are provided in the most natural way in terms of a genuine probability distribution. In the last twenty years, it has gone through tremendous growth. To feel the need for a growing research community, the first conference on Bayesian nonparametrics was organized in 1999 in the UK. Subsequently, a conference has been organized roughly every other year and participation has grown. The last conference took place in June 2013 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Over two hundred participants took part in it. US maintains its strong position as a nation in Bayesian nonparametric research. In order to continue with that, US young researchers needed travel support provided by the present grant from the National Science Foundation.The grant provided the necessary fund for US young researchers to travel to Amsterdma to showcase their work and learn new ideas. Women and underrepresented groups were especially encouraged to participate in the conference with support from this grant.
