Weather, contests, manufacturing, comprehension - in many areas and subjects, it is possible to see the effect of large N, situations where there are many attempts, trials, repeated events. It is the old story that the team from the big city often defeats the team from the small town. Not because there is something magic and powerful about big city athletes but because the best of a large group will often be better than the best of a small group. Nature tries to make a superior athlete. There are more tries in the big city so, provided the selection process, the coaches, are good at securing the best, the team from the big city will often be more outstanding.
The left diagram gives the idea of a Galton board. It can allow beads or BB's or balls to trickle through some obstacles and fall into one of the compartments at the bottom. The right diagram shows that multiple paths can lead to the same result, the yellow ball at the bottom, second slot from the right. To be a top athlete, you have to fall to the right consistently. Each row of little triangles is a different variable. In athletics, they might be endurance, strength, attitude and physical coordination. You have to have the right breaks to be good on all the needed variables.
If we pour enough kids through the triangles, we will get enough high level athletes to fill all the positions on the team. Whether it is sports, politics, medical research or something else, enough trials will result in some very surprising results. They may be extra good or extra bad.
This subject is nicely examined in "The Improbability Principle" by David Hand.
