Image for Rosen's butterfly effect

Rosen's butterfly effect

Rosen's butterfly effect emphasizes how small, seemingly insignificant actions or changes can lead to significant, unpredictable outcomes over time within complex systems. Essentially, tiny differences—like a butterfly flapping its wings—can set off a chain of events that dramatically alter the future. This concept highlights the sensitive dependence on initial conditions in systems such as weather, economies, or ecosystems, where minor variations can lead to vastly different results, making precise long-term predictions very challenging.