One obviously mistaken model that I got a lot of use out of during a stretch of Feb-Mar is the one where the cumulative number of coronavirus infections in a region doubles every n days (for some globally fixed, unknown value of n).
This model has ridiculous implications if you extend it forward for a few months, as well as various other flaws. I was aware of those ridiculous implications and some of those other flaws, and used it anyways for several days before trying to find less flawed models.
I’m glad that I did, since it helped me have a better grasp of the situation and be more prepared for what was coming. And I don’t think it would’ve made much difference at the time if I’d learned more about SEIR models and so on.
It’s unclear how examples like this are supposed to fit with the One Mistake Rule or the exceptions in the last paragraph.
One obviously mistaken model that I got a lot of use out of during a stretch of Feb-Mar is the one where the cumulative number of coronavirus infections in a region doubles every n days (for some globally fixed, unknown value of n).
This model has ridiculous implications if you extend it forward for a few months, as well as various other flaws. I was aware of those ridiculous implications and some of those other flaws, and used it anyways for several days before trying to find less flawed models.
I’m glad that I did, since it helped me have a better grasp of the situation and be more prepared for what was coming. And I don’t think it would’ve made much difference at the time if I’d learned more about SEIR models and so on.
It’s unclear how examples like this are supposed to fit with the One Mistake Rule or the exceptions in the last paragraph.