Relativity on a different scale.

[pljames]

I swear I have ask this question before somewhere but here goes...again. What is it called when a butterfly in Japan flaps its wings and somewhere a Tsaumi(?) happens?

pljames:confused:

[ecoli]

the Butterfly effect.

[CrazyScience]

What does this theory consist of? I've never heard of it.

[Cap'n Refsmmat]

It's chaos theory. In essence (when applied to something like butterflies and tsunamis), it says that in an incredibly complex system like the Earth, one tiny input change can cause a radically different side effect (albeit indirectly, causing numerous other tiny changes), like a tsunami.

[iglak]

the original example (or at least, an example that's easier to understand) is:

 

you have a super computer that predicts the weather, by computing every single movement on earth.

 

the creators of the super computer forgot about one butterfly somewhere in Japan.

 

over the course of a few years, the computer would predict the weather perfectly.

but over time, because of the accumulation of additional movement caused by the butterfly, and the butterfly's interractions with other butterflies and creatures, the weather predictions would slowly become slightly off. after a couple decades, that lightning storm might start a few hours later, and that hurricane might hit a couple miles south.

 

over the course of a century, the butterfly's existance has changed the movement of all animals in a very large area, to a large extent. the changes will escalate to the point when the super computer will eventually be completely wrong.

[CrazyScience]

Wow. That's very likely to happen. I think God has a plan for us all.