Model Selection and Simplification Using Lattices

This paper shows how to cope with a problem of model selection and simplification using the principle of coherence (Gabriel (1969): A procedure involving testing a set of models ought not accept a model while rejecting a more general model). The mathematical lattice theory is used to define a partial ordering over the space of considered models. Several examples of partial ordering in large families of models are given along with a searching algorithm to deter- mine the best model with respect to chosen criteria.