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I'm looking for a succinct explanation of the difference between variability and variation.

This question gets at the difference between variance and variation.

This page references Van Belle 2008 in describing variability as one category of variation.

Is there a context where it is acceptable to use variability and variation interchangeably?

Roman
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    I am not aware of any generally accepted technical definitions of either "variability" or "variation." (Do not confuse these with "variance," which does have a standard meaning as the second central moment of a distribution or dataset.) This looks like something to be decided with a dictionary or by consulting a particular community (environmental data analysis in the page you reference). – whuber Sep 14 '22 at 19:26
  • Thank you for your comment. I personally don't like to see them used interchangeably, but perhaps that is just me being pedantic. Good suggestion about the dictionary too- I debated posting this question on English Language and Usage and still might if others think it would be more appropriate there. – Roman Sep 14 '22 at 19:42
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    I'm not sure experts in English usage will have the requisite knowledge. The environmental and human health risk assessment people, for instance, have developed their own terminology, such as "second order uncertainty," that few others use. The "variability/variation/uncertainty" distinctions appear to fit within that framework. – whuber Sep 14 '22 at 20:16

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