Incoprea Theory
Vol. XXXI · 129

Theory 128/The past predicts the future

Rare Events Aren't in the Record

The claim

The largest events are usually absent from the historical record, so past maxima underestimate future extremes.

01Mechanism

Record length bounds observed extremes.

02Prediction

Observed maxima should be exceeded more often than theory implies.

03Refutation

Record capturing the tail would remove the underestimate.