A return period also known as a recurrence interval is an estimate of the interval of time between events like an earthquake, flood or a river discharge flow of a certain intensity or size. It is a statistical measurement denoting the average recurrence interval over an extended period of time, and is usually used for risk analysis (e.g. to decide whether a project should be allowed to go forward in a zone of a certain risk, or to design structures to withstand an event with a certain return period. The following analysis assumes that the probability of the event occurring does not vary over time and is independent of past events.
Read more about Return Period: Equation, Return Period As "expected Frequency", Probability Distribution
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“In my walks I would fain return to my senses.”
—Henry David Thoreau (18171862)
“Finally she grew quiet, and after that, coherent thought. With this, stalked through her a cold, bloody rage. Hours of this, a period of introspection, a space of retrospection, then a mixture of both. Out of this an awful calm.”
—Zora Neale Hurston (18911960)