Characterizing the Minimal Essential Graphs of Maximal Ancestral Graphs

Learning ancestor graph is a typical NP-hard problem. We consider the problem to represent a Markov equivalence class of ancestral graphs with a compact representation. Firstly, the minimal essential graph is defined to represent the equivalent class of maximal ancestral graphs with the minimum number of invariant arrowheads. Then, an algorithm is proposed to learn the minimal essential graph of ancestral graphs based on the detection of minimal collider paths. It is the first algorithm to use necessary and sufficient conditions for Markov equivalence as a base to seek essential graphs. Finally, a set of orientation rules is presented to orient edge marks of a minimal essential graph. Theory analysis shows our algorithm is sound, and complete in the sense of recognizing all minimal collider paths in a given ancestral graph. And the experiment results show we can discover all invariant marks by these orientation rules.