The butterfly effect is a scientific concept coined 50 years ago today, and it has become a literary and metaphorical term to describe the idea that the smallest change may have massive, worldwide implications. It is often associated with chaos theory. American mathematician and meteorologist Edward Norton Lorenz theorized that the flapping of a butterfly"s wings, like those of the silver-studded blue butterflies you see in today"s image, could weeks later influence the formation of a tornado.
Silver-studded blue butterflies
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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Native American Heritage Month
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Mountain goats at Glacier National Park in Montana
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Ljubljana, Slovenia
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Replica of a Viking home in Dublin National Botanic Gardens, Ireland
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A polar bear near Churchill, Manitoba, Canada
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World Bee Day
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Protecting wildlife today and tomorrow
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Isla del Pescado on the Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia
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A leafy seadragon in the waters off Wool Bay, Australia
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A bridge comes full circle
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Infrared Jupiter, erupting Io
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Road-trip worthy attraction in the heartland
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Baddest of the badlands
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Going head-to-head with winter
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Grandparents Day
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Churún Merú waterfall in Venezuela
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Spring equinox
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A monster view in Scotland
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Celebrating women in science
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Stari Most in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
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Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting
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Yellow-eyed penguins, Moeraki, New Zealand
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A special day for a special cat
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Lunar eclipse
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Rockin with the rockhoppers
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International Day of the World s Indigenous Peoples
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A giant relic in Java
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SantaPark, Lapland, Finland
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Perseid meteor shower over Nevada
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Ring of fire solar eclipse