LATENCY
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(1) |
| ID | ◀ 1857 ▶ |
| Object type | General information, Methodology or model |
The situation in which some process remains potential during a more or less long span of time.
According to the nature of the system, latency can be on quite different time scales. The most dangerous latent events are those that result from a very slow accumulation of the trigger factor. This is the case, for ex. of earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, markets crashes and probably social and political sudden and violent upheavels.
Latency is a very important — sometimes quite critical — and in many cases overlooked condition in many complex systems. Latent processes or events may or may not be predictable. Their forecast depends on the knowledge of the systems dynamics, which in turn depends on its strictly deterministic or on the contrary, chaotic character.
Compare with “dormancy”.