Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2017 iii Paper 201 4 b Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Fix an exponent in the range from (a), and work on the single probability-one event where and all dyadic values are finite. We give the dyadic increment chaining argument. For dyadic , put and choose with . Let and . The level- approximations are at most two grid steps apart, so their difference is bounded by . At each subsequent level an approximation either stays fixed or moves by one adjacent level increment. Because are dyadic, these approximations eventually equal . ThusThe dyadic rationals are dense in , so this uniform bound gives a unique continuous extension to the entire interval, withAll these equalities hold on that one event, not merely one event per dyadic time. Define to be the zero path on its null complement. Each is measurable as the limit of the random variables at deterministic left dyadic approximations. Alternatively, their measurable linear interpolations converge uniformly to , which also shows measurability as a random element of . This is the continuous extension version of a continuous modification.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2017 iii Paper 201 4 c Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
The Gaussian process assumption and the covariance formula give a centered Gaussian increment with varianceFor every finite , a standard normal variable therefore givesFor any , choose . Then , so parts (a) and (b) give a Hölder continuous function of exponent as an extension. To obtain one extension with every required exponent, take a countable sequence and apply the construction with suitable . Intersect the probability-one events. Their continuous extensions agree on the dense set and hence agree everywhere. For each smaller exponent choose with ; since , the bound with also implies the bound with . ThusThe exponent constants may depend on and the sample path. This proves Brownian Hölder regularity for the continuous Gaussian extension without making an uncountable intersection of unrelated full-probability events.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2017 iii Paper 201 5 b Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Take a sequence with . The events increase, and their union is . Indeed, if the sphere of radius is reached at a finite time, continuity makes the path bounded up to that time, so a sufficiently large outer sphere has not yet been hit. Conversely, each event in the union includes a finite inner hit.
Taking the limit of part (a)'s Brownian sphere-hitting probability in dimension three yields the sharper formulaThis establishes the required escape probability without presupposing the transience of Brownian motion in dimension at least three.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2017 iii Paper 201 6 b Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Fix a deterministic . By the Strong Markov property at the finite Brownian first-passage time , the process is a standard Brownian motion started at zero. Such a process takes positive values arbitrarily soon almost surely: for every , the Brownian reflection principle makes its maximum on have the distribution of , so the probability that the maximum is zero is zero. Intersecting these events for gives an infimum of positive-crossing times equal to zero. ThereforeThe infimum defining the strict crossing time need not itself be a time when ; continuity gives . The quantifier here is fixed-level almost sure equality, not indistinguishability of stochastic processes as the level varies.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2017 iii Paper 201 6 c Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Let , a random level. The Brownian reflection principle gives , so almost surely. Also : this follows by applying reflection to the reversed increment process , which has the law of a standard Brownian motion. Thus almost surely as well.
By continuity and compactness, is attained at some time strictly between zero and one, so . It is not exceeded anywhere on ; since , continuity even excludes an exceedance in a positive interval just after time one. Consequently . Both conclusions hold on a single probability-one event, giving the fixed-level versus simultaneous Brownian passage-time equality distinction:Thus the simultaneous assertion is false. Equality for each deterministic level, and even simultaneously for all rational levels, cannot be extended to all real levels by an uncountable intersection.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2017 iii Paper 201 6 d Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Use the usual completed right-continuous Brownian filtration. The strict passage process is finite at every level on one probability-one event: finiteness at all integer levels from (a) suffices by monotonicity. Also almost surely by (b).
For each fixed , is a stopping time with . The Strong Markov property shows that the passage times above this level depend on a new independent standard Brownian motion. Thus for , is independent of the past at and has the same law as . Iteration gives independent increments and stationary increments in the level parameter. From (a) and fixed-level equality,For , this also proves continuity in probability at zero, sinceFinally, with , we have . This strict generalized inverse of a nondecreasing function is right-continuous: if , then for any we have , and eventually , which forces . Monotonicity gives the reverse bound. Monotonicity and local finiteness also give finite left limits. Hence is the Brownian first-passage subordinator, with càdlàg paths.
Now condition on this clock, which is independent of . For a deterministic partition , write and . Conditional on the clock these are independent centered Gaussian increments, with respective variances . ConsequentlyFactorization and dependence only on interval lengths prove independent increments and stationary increments for . For small , in probability, and independence and continuity of imply in probability. For example, bound its deviation probability by and then let and . Stationary increments give stochastic continuity at every deterministic level. Composition of the continuous path of with the nondecreasing càdlàg clock gives càdlàg paths for , and . ThusThis is subordination of a Lévy process. Using strict passage times ensures the required right-continuous path choice, despite their fixed-level equality with the non-strict times.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 201 3 a Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
The tail sigma-algebra isIts events depend only on arbitrarily late coordinates. The Kolmogorov zero-one law states that for a sequence of independent random variables, every tail event has probability zero or one:Identical probability distributions and integrability are not required for the Kolmogorov zero-one law.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 201 4 b Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
For any finite list , the random vector has a multivariate normal distribution, since it is a linear image of a vector of Brownian motion coordinates. The Brownian covariance kernel and linearity of covariance giveThe independence of uncorrelated jointly normal variables implies that is independent of . Extending from finite-coordinate cylinder events by independence extended from generating pi-systems provesThus the Brownian bridge is independent of its endpoint. Its covariance kernel is , confirming that is the standard Brownian bridge. This is the Brownian bridge independence from its endpoint property.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 201 4 d Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Fix an integer and consider the independent incrementsFor fixed these are independent and identically distributed random variables with the normal distribution , so . The second Borel-Cantelli lemma gives for infinitely many , almost surely. Intersecting these probability-one events over the countably many preserves probability one.
On any path in this intersection, uniform continuity on would give some such that whenever . Choosing with contradicts the existence of an increment . Therefore Brownian paths are not uniformly continuous on the half-line:The event is measurable: for continuous paths, uniform continuity can be tested by countably many pairs of nonnegative rational numbers and tolerances . Brownian motion has uniform continuity on every compact time interval, but almost surely fails it on the whole half-line.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 201 5 b Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
For , the Brownian reflection principle at the first-passage time of gives the Brownian running maximum identitywhere is the distribution function of the standard normal distribution. Indeed, reflection pairs paths that have reached and end below with paths ending above ; has no atom at .
As , this probability tends to one. The events increase with integer , so with probability one the path reaches in finite time. Taking a countable intersection over positive integer givesHere . This also proves that every positive-level Brownian first-passage time is finite almost surely.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 iii Paper 201 5 c Solution Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-05
Let . Reflect at this stopping time, using the Brownian reflection principle from (a). Path continuity gives , and on this event the reflected endpoint is . ConsequentlySince , an endpoint forces the reflected path to have hit by time . Reflection preserves the first hit of , so the condition is redundant on the right. As has the same probability distribution as , the joint distribution of Brownian motion and its running maximum satisfiesThis argument includes ; at positive the boundary endpoint has zero probability under the normal distribution. At both sides vanish because .
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2024 iii Paper 202 5 a i Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-25
The relation is an instance of absolute continuity of measures: it means that every -null event is also -null,By the Radon-Nikodym theorem, this is equivalent to the existence of a nonnegative Radon-Nikodym derivative whose -expectation is one.
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2026 iii Paper 201 1 a Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-25
The finite sigma-algebra is partitioned by the nonempty eventsThese are its atoms. Define the random variableand give it any finite value on the union of the null atoms. It is -measurable and integrable. Every is a union of atoms, soThis constructs the requested variable directly, without invoking the general existence theorem for conditional expectation.
Positive association of two events 2026-10-06
For nontrivial events, strict attraction under conditional probability is equivalent to a positive covariance of their indicator variables. This condition is symmetric in the two events. Complementing exactly one of the events reverses the strict inequality. This two-event condition should be distinguished from association of an entire family of random variables.