[R] mode

[Prof Brian Ripley]

On 11 Dec 2003, Douglas Bates wrote:

> "Christian Mora" <christian_mora at vtr.net> writes:
> 
> > How can I get the mode (most frequent value) from a dataset (continuos
> > variables)? I can obtain it when the data is discrete (by making a table
> > and looking at the higher frequency) but I don't know how obtain it
> > from, for example, a density plot of the data. Does anyone know how to
> > do it? Thanks
> 
> I don't think the mode of a sample from a continuous random variable is well
> defined.

I agree, but one might take the viewpoint that if this were assumed to be 
an iid sample from a unimodal distribution, can one estimate the mode?
Or if from a bi-, tri- modal etc can one estimate the number and position 
of the modes?  There is quite a lot of work on those problems: here is a 
link to one approach:

http://www.isi-2003.de/guest/3112.pdf?MItabObj=pcoabstract&MIcolObj=uploadpaper&MInamObj=id&MIvalObj=3112&MItypeObj=application/pdf

-- 
Brian D. Ripley,                  ripley at stats.ox.ac.uk
Professor of Applied Statistics,  http://www.stats.ox.ac.uk/~ripley/
University of Oxford,             Tel:  +44 1865 272861 (self)
1 South Parks Road,                     +44 1865 272866 (PA)
Oxford OX1 3TG, UK                Fax:  +44 1865 272595