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A black swan is an unpredictable event that is beyond what is normally expected of a situation and has potentially severe consequences. Black swan events are characterized by their extreme rarity, severe impact, and the widespread insistence they were obvious in hindsight. One frequently-cited example of a black swan event was the housing market crash of 2008, which led to the Great Recession. Other examples include the COVID-19 pandemic, the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, and the hyperinflation crisis in Zimbabwe.