Extracting Persistent Clusters in Dynamic Data via M\"obius inversion

TL;DR

This paper introduces a stable, functorial method for summarizing evolving clusters in dynamic networks using M"obius inversion, resulting in dual diagram invariants that capture cluster evolution more comprehensively than traditional Reeb graphs.

Contribution

It develops a novel, mathematically rigorous pipeline for analyzing cluster dynamics in time-varying networks, introducing dual invariants that enhance understanding of cluster evolution.

Findings

The maximal group diagram encodes maximal groups as annotated intervals.

The persistence clustergram captures merging and disbanding events.

Both diagrams are complete invariants of the clustering structure.

Abstract

Identifying and representing clusters in time-varying network data is of particular importance when studying collective behaviors emerging in nature, in mobile device networks or in social networks. Based on combinatorial, categorical, and persistence theoretic viewpoints, we establish a stable functorial pipeline for the summarization of the evolution of clusters in a time-varying network. We first construct a complete summary of the evolution of clusters in a given time-varying network over a set of entities $X$ of which takes the form of a formigram. This formigram can be understood as a certain Reeb graph $\mathcal{R}$ which is labeled by subsets of $X$. By applying M\"obius inversion to the formigram in two different manners, we obtain two dual notions of diagram: the maximal group diagram and the persistence clustergram, both of which are in the form of an `annotated' barcode. The maximal group diagram consists of time intervals annotated by their corresponding maximal groups -- a notion due to Buchin et al., implying that we recognize the notion of maximal groups as a special instance of generalized persistence diagram by Patel. On the other hand, the persistence clustergram is mostly obtained by annotating the intervals in the zigzag barcode of the Reeb graph $\mathcal{R}$ with certain merging/disbanding events in the given time-varying network. We show that both diagrams are complete invariants of formigrams (or equivalently of trajectory grouping structure by Buchin et al.) and thus contain more information than the Reeb graph $\mathcal{R}$.