Statistical path ($t\mapsto P_t,P_0=P$)

A statistical path is a one-dimensional family of probability measures inside a statistical model, passing through a specified baseline $P$. A differentiability in quadratic mean condition gives its score function, the first-order direction of the family in square-root-density coordinates. The path must respect all restrictions of the statistical model, including normalization and any fixed moments.

A statistical tangent set is the collection of score functions attained by a specified family of differentiable-in-quadratic-mean paths through $P$. The choice of paths is part of the definition. Its elements lie in the mean-zero L2 space, but the set need not already be a closed vector subspace.

For bounded measurable $g$ with $Pg=0$, the formula $p_t=p(1+tg)$ defines a normalized positive probability density function for $|t|\Vert g{\Vert }_{\infty }<1$. A uniform Taylor expansion of the square root proves differentiability in quadratic mean with score function $g$: the squared remainder is $O(t^{4}P{g}^4)$. Such paths realize all bounded centered directions of an unrestricted density model.

For $h\in L_0^2(P)$, truncate $h$ to $h_m=\max (-m,\min (h,m))$ and subtract $P{h}_m$. Dominated convergence gives $h_m\to h$ in L2 space, and the Cauchy-Schwarz inequality gives $P{h}_m\to 0$. Thus bounded centered directions are dense in the mean-zero L2 space. The measure defining the L2 norm is essential: density-weighted L2 space can contain functions outside the unweighted Lebesgue space.

The statistical tangent space is the closed linear span in L2 space of a statistical tangent set. Taking this closure makes orthogonal projection available and ensures that a continuous derivative specified on attainable score functions extends to the whole space.

A dominated statistical path is differentiable in quadratic mean at $P$ if its square-root probability density function has an L2 space derivative $(1/2)g\sqrt{p}$, with $g\in L^2(P)$. The score function is $g$. This formulation controls mass near zeros of $p$ as well as the derivative on the support of $P$; a pointwise log-density derivative is insufficient by itself.

Let ${\delta }_t=\sqrt{p_t}-\sqrt{p}=(t/2)g\sqrt{p}+r_t$, with $\Vert r_t{\Vert }_2=o(|t|)$. Since $p_t-p=2\sqrt{p}{\delta }_t+{\delta }_t^2$, the Cauchy-Schwarz inequality gives $\Vert p_t-p-tpg{\Vert }_1\le 2\Vert r_t{\Vert }_2+\Vert {\delta }_t{\Vert }_2^2=o(|t|)$. Thus differentiability in quadratic mean suffices to differentiate bounded density integrals, even when the density itself has no useful pointwise derivative.

For a differentiable-in-quadratic-mean path, normalization gives $⟨(\sqrt{p_t}-\sqrt{p})/t,\sqrt{p_t}+\sqrt{p}⟩=0$. The two factors converge in L2 space to $g\sqrt{p}/2$ and $2\sqrt{p}$. Continuity of the inner product therefore gives $Pg=0$. This proves score function centering without differentiating the density integral.