Work Text:
A bit of science for those who prefer their fiction to contain "some" proven scientific research.
The Butterfly Effect
"The unexpected result led Lorenz to a powerful insight about the way nature works: small changes can have large consequences. The idea came to be known as the “butterfly effect” after Lorenz suggested that the flap of a butterfly’s wings might ultimately cause a tornado. And the butterfly effect, also known as “sensitive dependence on initial conditions,” has a profound corollary: forecasting the future can be nearly impossible."
"Unpredictability plays no role in the universe of Newton and Laplace; in a deterministic sequence, as Lorenz once wrote, “only one thing can happen next.” All future events are determined by initial conditions. Yet Lorenz’s own deterministic equations demonstrated how easily the dream of perfect knowledge founders in reality. That the tiny change in his simulation mattered so much showed, by extension, that the imprecision inherent in any human measurement could become magnified into wildly incorrect forecasts."
When the Butterfly Effect Took Flight
What Is Chaos Theory?
"Chaos Theory deals with nonlinear things that are effectively impossible to predict or control, like turbulence, weather, the stock market, our brain states, and so on. These phenomena are often described by fractal mathematics, which captures the infinite complexity of nature. Many natural objects exhibit fractal properties, including landscapes, clouds, trees, organs, rivers etc, and many of the systems in which we live exhibit complex, chaotic behavior."
Excerpt (partial example of chaos theory):
"Feedback: Systems often become chaotic when there is feedback present. A good example is the behavior of the stock market. As the value of a stock rises or falls, people are inclined to buy or sell that stock. This in turn further affects the price of the stock, causing it to rise or fall chaotically."
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And that's all she wrote folks. There is a lot more research out there on both scientific concepts for anyone interested. I just thought that after receiving several comments on one of my stories which thanked me for introducing them to chaos theory, I would share the scientific basis behind why I vehemently object to Marvel's assertion that Doctor Strange or ANYONE can reliably predict anything past seven days. Because they can't. It is scientifically impossible. And no, even if someone were to suggest it's "science we just don't understand yet," it's still impossible because then it would disprove everything science has already proven to be true. Like gravity and the law of physics. So, until science disproves known science, predictions of any kind will remain flawed by their own definition.
Anyway, hope you enjoyed the mini science class, and if you didn't, well that's okay too. It's not everyone's cup of tea.