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@idbrii@mastodon.gamedev.place
2026-01-11 18:04:31

#TIL about Benford's law where for some data sets of numbers, the first digit is usually 1 and rarely 9 (with descending probability in between). It's especially common in data sets following the power law (which is common in nature).
Seems a useful consideration when generating random numbers shown directly to players (like a multiple choice) -- even if they're unfamiliar, …

Two distribution curves with descriptions.

Left: A broad probability distribution of the log of a variable, shown on a log scale. Benford's law can be seen in the larger area covered by red (first digit one) compared to blue (first digit 8) shading.
	
Right: A narrow probability distribution of the log of a variable, shown on a log scale. Benford's law is not followed, because the narrow distribution does not meet the criteria for Benford's law.