Dynamics and statistics of extreme events

Abstract

Complex dynamics is characterized by an irregular, non-periodic time dependence of characteristic quantities. Rare fluctuations which lead to unexpectedly large (or small) values are called extreme events. Since such large deviations from the system's mean behavior have in many applications huge impact, their statistical characterization and their dynamical origin are of relevance. We discuss recent approaches, with special emphasis on dynamics on networks. © 2010 Springer-Verlag London Limited.