08

Do large changes need large forces?

No.

small forces can have unimaginable consequences.

the butterfly effect

Can the flap of a butterfly’s wing in Brazil set off a tornado in Texas?

 

If so, what can a badly taught lesson on the present continuous lead to?

Causes are irrecoverable.

 

Fragments

The Butterfly Effect:

“small changes in the state of a system can cause major changes in the final output (sensitivity to initial conditions). We had been used to thinking large changes need large forces.” [but no!]

“even a very small change in initial conditions can drastically alter the later state of a complex system. This is known as sensitive dependence on initial conditions. While in theory a chaotic system might be deterministic (i.e. could be calculated if we had enough accurate data), we find that in the real world we cannot predict a chaotic system. No matter how accurately we measure the initial conditions of a complex system, we can always measure it more accurately and that difference, however small will lead to a significantly different outcome” – (poorly) Adapted fromVictor MacGill’s website.