Hi All:

I do believe in partial credit for "misses", but I don't agree with this proposal.

For example, as I have previously posted, under this proposed system, if I predict a 3.0 at a certain location, and a 3.0 occurs 100 Km away from it, why should I get 80 points? What does a 3.0 100 Km away have to do with my prediction of a 3.0 at a predicted location? Probably nothing. What does a 8.5 100 Km away have to do with my prediction of an 8.5? Quite a bit, and I should get points.

I fail to see how this proposal is fair in its' current form.

I've suggested before, the scale for Time, Location, Magnitude should be logarithmic, or at the very least, linear in nature. A predictor predicts:

1. A point in Time.
2. A single location.
3. A single magnitude.

Maximum points are awarded for an exact hit. Points trail off to zero from each of the predicted parameters over time, distance, or magnitude depending on parameter. Those zero points would have to be agreed upon by the board, but I would suggest that they be tied to magnitude in some manner.

Michael