Calculation Error (DE)
Calculation Error is the distance between objective evidence and perceived evidence.
The Objective Evidence to Perceived Evidence Gap (E0-EP)
Calculation Error (DE) measures the distance between Objective Evidence (E0) and Perceived Evidence (EP). It is the gap between the evidential situation and the agent’s internal representation of that situation.
Sources of Calculation Error
Calculation Error can arise from missing information, poor measurement, weak priors, base-rate neglect, bad likelihood comparisons, misleading testimony, propaganda, or limited cognitive skill.
Not all calculation error is culpable. Sometimes the world is simply hard to read.
Repair
Repairing Calculation Error (DE) usually means improving Deep Rationality (SD) or improving access to evidence: better tools, better data, better comparison classes, better feedback, and less distorted information environments.
Reading Calculation Error Carefully
Calculation Error (DE) should not be heard as a sneer. It is a name for the distance between the evidence field and the agent’s interpretation of it. That distance may come from poor education, unavailable data, hostile information environments, or genuinely difficult evidence.
The repair question is therefore practical: what would improve the agent’s perception? Better measurement, better statistical tools, more reliable testimony, a broader reference class, and slower inference can all reduce DE without accusatory drama.