Equipartitions and a Distribution for Numbers: A Statistical Model for Benford's Law
Data Analysis, Statistics and Probability
2015-03-31 v1
Abstract
A statistical model for the fragmentation of a conserved quantity is analyzed, using the principle of maximum entropy and the theory of partitions. Upper and lower bounds for the restricted partitioning problem are derived and applied to the distribution of fragments. The resulting power law directly leads to Benford's law for the first digits of the parts.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.1503.08259,
title = {Equipartitions and a Distribution for Numbers: A Statistical Model for Benford's Law},
author = {Joseph R. Iafrate and Steven J. Miller and Frederick W. Strauch},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1503.08259},
year = {2015}
}