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Worldwide Major Earthquakes (M5+) vs US Population
Worldwide Major Earthquakes (M5+) and US Population correlate at r = +0.70 over 66 years (1960–2025), p < 0.0001. With the time trend removed, r = -0.43. Direction flips without the trend.
Verdict: Direction flips without the trend. The raw correlation is 0.70, but once each series' time trend is removed it becomes -0.43. The year-to-year movements run the opposite way to the long-run trends, so the headline number is misleading.
- Pearson r
- +0.70
- p-value
- < 0.0001
- Years compared (n)
- 66 (1960–2025)
- 95% confidence interval
- 0.55 to 0.80
- Correlation with the time trend removed
- -0.43
Sources
- Worldwide Major Earthquakes (M5+) (earthquakes per year): USGS. Annual worldwide count of magnitude 5+ earthquakes (USGS ComCat).
- US Population (people): World Bank. US Population (World Bank indicator SP.POP.TOTL).
Related pairs
- US Adult Obesity vs US Population (r = +1.00)
- Atmospheric CO₂ (Mauna Loa) vs US Population (r = +0.99)
- US Resident Patent Applications vs US Population (r = +0.98)
- US Median Age vs US Population (r = +0.98)
- US Cereal Yield vs US Population (r = +0.97)
- US GDP per Capita vs US Population (r = +0.97)
Correlation does not imply causation. How the verdict is worked out.