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but·ter·fly ef·fect

/ˈbədərˌflaɪ əˈfɛkt/

noun
- 1. (in chaos theory) the phenomenon whereby a minute localized change in a complex system can have large effects elsewhere.
Word Origin 1970s: first described in relation to meteorology, from the notion that a butterfly fluttering in Rio de Janeiro could change the weather in Chicago.
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Butterfly effect
Idea that small causes can have large effects in complex or nonlinear dynamic systems
In chaos theory, the butterfly effect is the sensitive dependence on initial conditions in which a small change in one state of a deterministic nonlinear system can result in large differences in a later state. The term is closely associated with the work of mathematician and meteorologist Edward Norton Lorenz. Wikipedia
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