Definition
Plain language
The middle value in a list of numbers, with half above it and half below.
As stated in the literature
The 50th percentile of a distribution; used here as the neutral anchor so a truly unbiased model lands above and below it equally.
Why it matters: It provides a stable neutral reference point that isn't thrown off by a few unusually large or small values the way an average would be.
For example, in the list 2, 5, 100, the median is 5 because it sits in the middle, unswayed by the extreme value.
Heard on the show
“Across all twelve models, the top overlap runs from forty to eighty-seven percent — median sixty-seven.”Episode 004 — The Sycophancy Circuit That Survives Alignment Training