One of the most straightforward ways to estimate if a model makes sense is to ask whether it predicts the correct order of magnitude for a quantity. Usually, the order of magnitude for a quantity can ...One of the most straightforward ways to estimate if a model makes sense is to ask whether it predicts the correct order of magnitude for a quantity. Usually, the order of magnitude for a quantity can be determined by making a very simple model, ideally one that you can work through in your head. When we say that a prediction gives the right “order of magnitude”, we usually mean that the prediction is within a factor of “a few” (up to a factor of 10) of the correct answer.
