Why does linearization work




















Differentials can be used to estimate the change in the value of a function resulting from a small change in input values. In summary,. We can see this in the following graph. We now take a look at how to use differentials to approximate the change in the value of the function that results from a small change in the value of the input. Note the calculation with differentials is much simpler than calculating actual values of functions and the result is very close to what we would obtain with the more exact calculation.

Any type of measurement is prone to a certain amount of error. In many applications, certain quantities are calculated based on measurements.

For example, the area of a circle is calculated by measuring the radius of the circle. An error in the measurement of the radius leads to an error in the computed value of the area. Here we examine this type of error and study how differentials can be used to estimate the error. This type of error is known as a propagated error and is given by. Since all measurements are prone to some degree of error, we do not know the exact value of a measured quantity, so we cannot calculate the propagated error exactly.

In the next example, we look at how differentials can be used to estimate the error in calculating the volume of a box if we assume the measurement of the side length is made with a certain amount of accuracy. We are typically interested in the size of an error relative to the size of the quantity being measured or calculated.

So, if we are confronted with non-linear curved data then our goal is to convert the data to a linear straight form that can be easily analyzed.

This process is called linearization. There are four possibilities for graph shapes that we will deal with. Each shape represents data that exhibits a different mathematical form. Skip to main content. QuarkNet Toggle navigation. How to linearize a curved data plot. LHC Fellows Workspace. However, look closer and the regression line systematically over and under-predicts the data at different points in the curve. When you check the residuals plots which you always do, right?

You want a lower S value because it means the data points are closer to the fit line. What's more, the Residual versus Fits plot shows the randomness that you want to see. That Is the Question. In Operations Research, we have very good algorithms for solving certain classes of well-structured convex optimization problems.

Our specialty is the class of linear programs, which is discussed by Oguz Toragay. These optimization problems can be solved efficiently in practice. Operations Research also provides good algorithms for optimization problems in which some or all of the variables are integer, but would otherwise be well-structured and convex.

This includes mixed-integer programs, which are linear programs that include integer variables. These problems are more difficult to solve. So given that we are very good at solving linear programs and mixed-integer programs, it makes sense to attempt to linearize non-linear problems to make them fit in this framework. This allows us to solve these problems with the existing machinery. If the non-linear problem is not convex, it is probably not possible to find an equivalent linear program. However, we might be able to obtain an equivalent mixed-integer problem.

On this site, there are plenty of questions about linearization in which the answers introduce binary variables to model the non-linearity. In the above, I have assumed that you are interested in finding an equivalent representation of your non-linear program. Linearization then allows you to get the same global optimum, but faster. If you approximate non-linear functions by piece-wise linear ones, global optimality is no longer guaranteed. Definition from Wikipedia : In a mathematical programming model, if the objective functions and constraints are represented entirely by linear equations, then the model is regarded as a linear model.

If one or more of the objective functions or constraints are represented with a nonlinear equation, then the model is known as a nonlinear model. In optimization, cost functions and non-linear components within can be linearized in order to apply a linear solving method such as the Simplex algorithm. The optimized result is reached much more efficiently and is deterministic as a global optimum.

Note that: I googled but couldn't find any paper in which the authors compare the performance of linear vs. Without loss of generality, this can be inferred that:. This is a complicated question with a complicated answer.

Linearisations are a powerful tool when used correctly, but can also have massive drawbacks. Others have covered a lot of the theoretical implications, so I will share what I have seen in applied problems.

Because we Octeract sell nonlinear optimisation technology we spend a lot of time studying whether a client needs nonlinear optimisation, or if they are better off using linear approximations.

Our conclusion so far has been it depends on the math and the people writing the math. Certain problems are just not amenable to linearisations. These predominantly tend to be problems where the price of things is a dependent variable.

In other cases, where clients were using massive linear models with only a few nonlinear terms, linearisations were just fine. When it comes to modelling risk, we have seen that linearising inherently nonlinear dependencies is basically equivalent to making random decisions - solutions tend to be at least 10x the noise in the data.

Otherwise it is impossible to tell how good the solution of the linearisation is. In all other cases it is worth at least trying to solve the MINLP and measure the difference in quality of solution, performance, and consistency. Sign up to join this community.



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