Parameter estimation for power-law distributions by maximum likelihood methods
arXiv:0704.1867 · doi:10.1140/epjb/e2007-00219-y
Abstract
Distributions following a power-law are an ubiquitous phenomenon. Methods for determining the exponent of a power-law tail by graphical means are often used in practice but are intrinsically unreliable. Maximum likelihood estimators for the exponent are a mathematically sound alternative to graphical methods.
Supplementary software: http://www.physics.ox.ac.uk/users/bauke/Publications/index.html#powerlaws