Q&A-3: What is the Butterfly Effect

The Butterfly Effect is a concept invented by the the American meteorologist Edward N. Lorenz (1917-2008) to highlight the possibility that small causes may have momentous effects. Initially enunciated in connection with the problematics of weather prediction it became eventually a metaphor used in very diverse contexts, many of them outside the strict realm of science.

For more detailed information:
http://www.scholarpedia.org/article/Butterfly_effect

Grateful thanks to Scholarpedia.