"What If...?" isn't just a popular Marvel animated series exploring alternate history (just imagine a kind Thanos or a zombie Thor), it's also a favorite question for many historians. For example, what would’ve happened if President Lincoln hadn't gone to the theater, or Columbus hadn't found investors for his transoceanic voyage?
Indeed, life is a complex and unpredictable thing, like a mathematical equation with many variables, and many things in our path are actually interconnected. A seemingly minor change can cause major consequences years and decades later. So here's another collection of such stories for you today.
More info: Reddit
#1
I worked in a bookstore, and was in charge of the bargain section, but that day my back was hurting and I decided to shelve the fiction section as I didn't want to have to move around all the heavy big coffee table books. While shelving, I overheard in the next aisle on the other side of the shelves a fellow new employee who I thought was attractive talking to her female co-worker about if I was single or not. The co-worker replied, "He is, but I'd bet you five bucks he'd go out with you."
I am incredibly shy, but knowing I had probably a sure thing, I asked her out in the breakroom that afternoon. She said yes.
We've been married 10 years now and have a seven year old daughter.
I gave the co-worker $5 at my wedding, she laughed.
All because my back was hurting a bit and I decided to shelve a different section of the store.
I am incredibly shy, but knowing I had probably a sure thing, I asked her out in the breakroom that afternoon. She said yes.
We've been married 10 years now and have a seven year old daughter.
I gave the co-worker $5 at my wedding, she laughed.
All because my back was hurting a bit and I decided to shelve a different section of the store.
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46points
#2
At university, who got a particular research project was decided by a coin flip. I didn't get it, so did something else in a different field, which meant I went to a different university for a PhD and, thanks to the specific field, also moved countries for part of it. I liked that country, and did my best to stay. That coin flip meant that now, fifteen years down the line, I live in Switzerland, speak French, and have an utterly different set of friends and activities.
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40points
#3
I got on an intercity bus in China and was about to sit down near the middle but a Chinese woman who was sitting in the seat behind pointed me to the back of the bus. I looked up and saw there were some other white people there (that I didn’t know) so I just moved to the back. After a few hours on the road we were in a horrific accident that resulted in about half the side of the bus being crushed. If I had sat where I originally intended I would have been gone.
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35points
There are many stories and threads online encouraging people to share their own examples from life that clearly illustrate the "butterfly effect." Today, we offer a selection of real-life tales from netizens, both sad and uplifting, which only prove that so much in this life is interconnected.
#4
I applied for a job that I didn't think I'd get at all just to practice interviewing. I've been working there for seven years and I've been promoted.
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35points
#5
The invention of modern pregnancy test made the old method obsolete. That method involved injecting suspectedly pregnant woman's pee into a frog and if the frog laid eggs she was pregnant. Now these frogs were no longer needed and back then in the 50s and 60s conservation was in it's infancy so labs all over the world released these frogs out into the wild willy-nilly.
This species of frog was native to Africa and had specialized skin that was resistant to different types of fungus that would sometimes occur on their skin naturally. Unfortunately most amphibians that didnt have this immunity from all over the world became exposed to this fungus from the released frogs. That fungus has now ravaged amphibian populations worldwide causing endangerment and extinction in over 100 species. We will never get those species back, all because we developed pregnancy tests. .
This species of frog was native to Africa and had specialized skin that was resistant to different types of fungus that would sometimes occur on their skin naturally. Unfortunately most amphibians that didnt have this immunity from all over the world became exposed to this fungus from the released frogs. That fungus has now ravaged amphibian populations worldwide causing endangerment and extinction in over 100 species. We will never get those species back, all because we developed pregnancy tests. .
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33points
#6
Cousin turns 17. Cousin goes with mom and dad to get a car for her birthday. Gets a used Ford Escape from a dealership. Drives off lot headed back home.
Cousin’s car suddenly accelerates
and won’t stop. Cousin maneuvers through main road with increasing speed, dodging cars with totally uncontrolled acceleration. Cousin avoids all other cars but loses control, clipping a minivan at 90+ mph with a family inside. Her maneuver saved the family but she lost control. Car flips, cousin dies within a day.
Ford attempts to seize vehicle for “investigation” but family and local sheriff insist on impounding the vehicle in a secure lot. NHSTA + sheriff+ lawyer investigate with cameras inside the wrecked car and find the accelerator cable snagged.
Ford recalled the Escape previously, but the mandatory repairs caused another issue: accelerator cables could be snagged on an engine part and cause uncontrolled acceleration. Investigation showed Ford knew this, and that this issue had caused serious accidents already, including deaths, but Ford decided it wasn’t worth another recall.
Long story short. Ford was forced to recall 500k Escapes, at massive cost, to have the issue repaired permanently and to prevent cable snags.
My cousin’s 17th birthday caused a massive vehicle recall from a major automotive manufacturer back in 2012.
Edit: she also apparently assisted in the reporter (rightfully) getting a [Peabody Award]
Edit #2 [More details] and actual footage of the caught cable around the 3 min mark.
If you know anyone with a Ford Escape please make sure their car has had this issue fixed at a dealer.
Cousin’s car suddenly accelerates
and won’t stop. Cousin maneuvers through main road with increasing speed, dodging cars with totally uncontrolled acceleration. Cousin avoids all other cars but loses control, clipping a minivan at 90+ mph with a family inside. Her maneuver saved the family but she lost control. Car flips, cousin dies within a day.
Ford attempts to seize vehicle for “investigation” but family and local sheriff insist on impounding the vehicle in a secure lot. NHSTA + sheriff+ lawyer investigate with cameras inside the wrecked car and find the accelerator cable snagged.
Ford recalled the Escape previously, but the mandatory repairs caused another issue: accelerator cables could be snagged on an engine part and cause uncontrolled acceleration. Investigation showed Ford knew this, and that this issue had caused serious accidents already, including deaths, but Ford decided it wasn’t worth another recall.
Long story short. Ford was forced to recall 500k Escapes, at massive cost, to have the issue repaired permanently and to prevent cable snags.
My cousin’s 17th birthday caused a massive vehicle recall from a major automotive manufacturer back in 2012.
Edit: she also apparently assisted in the reporter (rightfully) getting a [Peabody Award]
Edit #2 [More details] and actual footage of the caught cable around the 3 min mark.
If you know anyone with a Ford Escape please make sure their car has had this issue fixed at a dealer.
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33points
Let's remember right away that the very concept of the "butterfly effect" was coined by the American mathematician Edward Lorenz as a reference to Ray Bradbury's famous short story "A Sound of Thunder."
The story's protagonist, while traveling through time, accidentally crushes a butterfly during the dinosaur era - and upon returning, discovers that his actions ultimately caused a change in the country's political regime.
However, it's possible that Bradbury himself borrowed the plot - at least, the Brothers Grimm of the early 19th century had a fairy tale called "The Louse and the Flea," in which the main character's unexpected burn ultimately leads to a massive flood. Regardless, the concept is clear and reasonable for the majority of us.
#7
My brother told a girl (who he wasn't dating at the time but was dating his friend) that she could stop and stay with us during Thanksgiving on the drive to see the friend. My brother didn't tell us that was the plan and tried to sneak her in the house. He got caught, and though I was strongly against her staying with us (cause what the heck), my mom was empathetic to her and let her stay because it's the holidays.
My brother ended up getting her pregnant during the stay, and my mom was empathetic again and invited her to live with us because her family kicked her out.
She then slept with my mom's husband and got pregnant by him.
They're divorced now, and the girl refuses to let my mom see her grandchild because she kicked her out after that.
My brother ended up getting her pregnant during the stay, and my mom was empathetic again and invited her to live with us because her family kicked her out.
She then slept with my mom's husband and got pregnant by him.
They're divorced now, and the girl refuses to let my mom see her grandchild because she kicked her out after that.
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28points
#8
A decision between going to Taco Bell or driving home for lunch. During college, 2002, I chose taco bell and bumped into a previous college professor. He and I ended up sitting and having lunch together. Over a long conversation, he helped me understand that there were bigger and better opportunities at a larger, more specialized (expensive) college than the local one I was going to, I wasting my potential, blah blah blah and made some calls on my behalf. Fast forward to today, if not for me going to a different school - I would have never met my wife, never had my children. My sister never meets her husband (one of my college friends), they never have their son (my nephew). My cousin never meets her husband (another college friend) and they never have their daughter (my niece). Whole lives and a handful of children's existence and future lives all hinged on whether I went to lunch at Taco Bell.
28points
#9
My uncle decided to switch his heart medication before the holidays, because his old one made him tired.
He was supposed to take it under supervision the first time, but he was in a rush to leave because he and my cousin were going to their holiday cabin to set it up for the family holidays, and he wanted to make the trip short by going early.
He took it the night they arrived and had a fatal allergic reaction to something in the new meds that he and his doctor didn’t think to test for, as allergies to it are rare.
My cousin managed to get him an ambulance pretty quickly, but he went into a coma on the way to the hospital.
He remained in that coma for weeks, and the damage to his brain was so severe that he would have been in bed for the rest of his life if he ever woke up at all. He had specific requests if he was ever on life support, and they were honored.
My aunt and cousins, I don’t think, will ever be able to shake that trauma. The one that was with him that night has always had a lot going on with their mental health, and this broke them completely.
I really wish there was a single thing in this world that I thought would give them peace, but I know that won’t be possible without time travel.
He was supposed to take it under supervision the first time, but he was in a rush to leave because he and my cousin were going to their holiday cabin to set it up for the family holidays, and he wanted to make the trip short by going early.
He took it the night they arrived and had a fatal allergic reaction to something in the new meds that he and his doctor didn’t think to test for, as allergies to it are rare.
My cousin managed to get him an ambulance pretty quickly, but he went into a coma on the way to the hospital.
He remained in that coma for weeks, and the damage to his brain was so severe that he would have been in bed for the rest of his life if he ever woke up at all. He had specific requests if he was ever on life support, and they were honored.
My aunt and cousins, I don’t think, will ever be able to shake that trauma. The one that was with him that night has always had a lot going on with their mental health, and this broke them completely.
I really wish there was a single thing in this world that I thought would give them peace, but I know that won’t be possible without time travel.
23points
The "butterfly effect" has many interesting historical examples, sometimes beginning with the Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand, whose attack attempt effectively started World War I.
In reality, of course, there were many reasons for the outbreak of that war - both political and economic - so the unfortunate heir to the Austrian throne has been retroactively attributed to the catalyst for the tragic events.
It's enough to read numerous serious studies of that war - for example, famous historian Barbara Tuchman's book "The Guns of August" - to clearly understand that Franz Ferdinand merely served as a pretext to accelerate a process that the world's leading powers had been working toward for decades.
But now, for the general public, it looks quite impressive: all it takes is a trip back in time, save just one person (actually, two - the Archduke's wife was with him that day), and the colossal war will be avoided. Alas, history doesn't work that way...
#10
Just take the bus instead of walking, to meet the love of my life, currently 10 years together.
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23points
#11
One day my uncle said he wanted to come over and talk with my dad, but my dad couldnt since he was taking me and my sister to the theater to see Coco. It turns out, my uncle was doing horrible mentally, and went missing less than a week later. We still havent found him.
I often wonder if we never went to the movies, would my dad have talked him out of it?
I often wonder if we never went to the movies, would my dad have talked him out of it?
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21points
#12
Coming home to the squat house from my terrible call center job. Stopped at a gas station for a drink. Got pulled over on the way out, got a ticket. Judge gave me 8 hours community service. Community service overseer said I ought to apply with his department.
That sparked off the last 8 years of learning new and actually interesting stuff at work. I now own a good house, with windows and everything. I only mention prices at the grocery store to teach my kid how budgets work. I got a few professional and occupational licenses out of it, and if I quit tomorrow, I can pick from like 5 careers.
That sparked off the last 8 years of learning new and actually interesting stuff at work. I now own a good house, with windows and everything. I only mention prices at the grocery store to teach my kid how budgets work. I got a few professional and occupational licenses out of it, and if I quit tomorrow, I can pick from like 5 careers.
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19points
Yes, our subconscious tends to retroactively invent "logical chains" and connections, constructing a chain of events triggered by one or another of our actions, words, or simply inactions. But in doing so, we sometimes tend to discount reality.
For example, Tom Brady, whose journey from a sixth-round NFL draft pick and backup quarterback to the greatest football player of all time is, of course, an incredible confluence of favorable circumstances.
But at the same time, Tom Brady's journey is also an incredible story of self-improvement, perseverance, and self-sacrifice. As the ancient sages said, "Fortune favors the bold."
#13
I'm an actor and I was set to play a soldier in a scene I was filming to put on my demo reel. I was in the city around the time, so I went to this barber I'd never been to before to get a crew cut for it that I did not like one bit. Then the shoot had to be postponed for a couple of weeks when the other actor in the scene got called into his day job unexpectedly.
A couple of days before the rescheduled date, I had to get the crew cut fixed up, so I went into this other more local barbershop that I'd been to on and off. I struggle with social anxiety a LOT (I'm autistic) and often could barely speak, and I felt bad about that during one visit before this, because the guy who cut my hair was really nice and friendly. It was the same guy this time and I wanted to make an effort to talk more - and we had a great convo that I really needed at the time. Turns out he was a cool guy who had a lot in common with me.
I made that my regular place because of that guy's kindness, and I spent the next year in recovery for PTSD and depression, and eventually that place became my lifeline as I gradually made friends with all the guys there. I thought of them like my brothers, and that guy in particular I just loved, and was so devastated when he left to work in another shop that I eventually told him what he'd done for me in DMs, thinking I'd never seen him again.
Eventually I was miserable not seeing him every two weeks so I worked up the courage to see him in his new shop, and the reunion was honestly one of my happiest memories. He later told me "that was the best message I've ever got, that broke my heart", and I left the shop that day crying in the street with happiness - it was like my depression was momentarily cured completely. Seeing him again regularly saw me really enjoying life a lot more and just being happier in general, as well as having the courage to do a lot of things I'd been putting off out of anxiety. He basically became one of my favourite people in the world and I loved him like he was my own brother.
Sadly he moved away to another country a few months ago and we didn't keep in touch, as by the time the move came we suddenly just weren't as close as we used to be, which is sad on several levels, but he was miserable living here and a change of scenery was best for him. So while the end to the story certainly wasn't happy, the middle was and I can at least be grateful that I was better when he left me than he was when he found me
So the guy who made the call to make my scene partner work that day had no idea he was saving my life.
A couple of days before the rescheduled date, I had to get the crew cut fixed up, so I went into this other more local barbershop that I'd been to on and off. I struggle with social anxiety a LOT (I'm autistic) and often could barely speak, and I felt bad about that during one visit before this, because the guy who cut my hair was really nice and friendly. It was the same guy this time and I wanted to make an effort to talk more - and we had a great convo that I really needed at the time. Turns out he was a cool guy who had a lot in common with me.
I made that my regular place because of that guy's kindness, and I spent the next year in recovery for PTSD and depression, and eventually that place became my lifeline as I gradually made friends with all the guys there. I thought of them like my brothers, and that guy in particular I just loved, and was so devastated when he left to work in another shop that I eventually told him what he'd done for me in DMs, thinking I'd never seen him again.
Eventually I was miserable not seeing him every two weeks so I worked up the courage to see him in his new shop, and the reunion was honestly one of my happiest memories. He later told me "that was the best message I've ever got, that broke my heart", and I left the shop that day crying in the street with happiness - it was like my depression was momentarily cured completely. Seeing him again regularly saw me really enjoying life a lot more and just being happier in general, as well as having the courage to do a lot of things I'd been putting off out of anxiety. He basically became one of my favourite people in the world and I loved him like he was my own brother.
Sadly he moved away to another country a few months ago and we didn't keep in touch, as by the time the move came we suddenly just weren't as close as we used to be, which is sad on several levels, but he was miserable living here and a change of scenery was best for him. So while the end to the story certainly wasn't happy, the middle was and I can at least be grateful that I was better when he left me than he was when he found me
So the guy who made the call to make my scene partner work that day had no idea he was saving my life.
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19points
#14
My car broke down on the way to a party I didn't really want to go. It was full of teachers and it was the day they'd broken up for summer. So it'd be all work talk I thought.
I didn't need to call and say I wasn't going, but I thought it was the right thing to do.
The host immediately says, 'my friend is probably going past Il call you back', as soon as I told them and hangs up.
Next thing I know a woman turns up at my place and says she's giving me a lift. She's hanging and doesnt know if she'll even drink.
We chat the journey there and have this slow realisation that unlike every other teacher I've met, this woman has her head screwed on. Everything we chat about we agree upon. Every controversial opinion we share is discussed with complete ease and jokes.
We get to the party and go our separate ways. I end up reconnecting several times throughout the night. Eventually I pluck up the courage to make plans with her that summer seeing as she'll be free. She had just got divorced however and wasn't looking for a relationship. I already know we're a no-no because I smoke and she had said 'I will never be with a smoker'.
The summer goes by and we hang out lots, she's always funny and it's always super easy to be around her.
Eventually one day we're hanging out on the beach one day after going for a paddle on some boards and she starts playfully kicking my leg. By this point I was 100% sure It was friends only and was not going to make a move despite thinking she was awesome.
A guy were chatting to asks us how long weve been together and the smile she beams meant that I tried to kiss her within about 1/2 hour of that.
She's now my fiancé and our first child is due in October.
Why we both thought we'd never want to be with each other is anyone's guess. But we're perfectly balanced and it would take serendipity for us to see each other past the surface level.
The Universe intervened and allowed that to happen.
I didn't need to call and say I wasn't going, but I thought it was the right thing to do.
The host immediately says, 'my friend is probably going past Il call you back', as soon as I told them and hangs up.
Next thing I know a woman turns up at my place and says she's giving me a lift. She's hanging and doesnt know if she'll even drink.
We chat the journey there and have this slow realisation that unlike every other teacher I've met, this woman has her head screwed on. Everything we chat about we agree upon. Every controversial opinion we share is discussed with complete ease and jokes.
We get to the party and go our separate ways. I end up reconnecting several times throughout the night. Eventually I pluck up the courage to make plans with her that summer seeing as she'll be free. She had just got divorced however and wasn't looking for a relationship. I already know we're a no-no because I smoke and she had said 'I will never be with a smoker'.
The summer goes by and we hang out lots, she's always funny and it's always super easy to be around her.
Eventually one day we're hanging out on the beach one day after going for a paddle on some boards and she starts playfully kicking my leg. By this point I was 100% sure It was friends only and was not going to make a move despite thinking she was awesome.
A guy were chatting to asks us how long weve been together and the smile she beams meant that I tried to kiss her within about 1/2 hour of that.
She's now my fiancé and our first child is due in October.
Why we both thought we'd never want to be with each other is anyone's guess. But we're perfectly balanced and it would take serendipity for us to see each other past the surface level.
The Universe intervened and allowed that to happen.
18points
#15
My grandmother once told me about how she didn’t go on a date with a man because she was busy with chores. A year later he was gone in an accident. She always wondered if her life - and mine - might have been completely different if she’d gone.
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17points
However, no matter how complex and unpredictable history actually is, there will always be incredible instances in our lives that only confirm that the butterfly effect exists, one way or another. So now please feel free to read this selection of stories to the very end, and perhaps add your own similar example in the comments below. In case, of course, you too have something to say.
#16
Al gore, the climate activist barely lost against G. W. Bush in the 2000 election, by the smallest of margins. Literally single votes that needed to be settled by the Supreme Court.. He wouldn’t want the oil in the Middle East. Just saying.
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17points
#17
My brother was sent to a juvenile rehab facility. He asked me to take care of his dog Buck while he was in there and to make sure he got adequate exercise. The week before he was scheduled for release, he got into an altercation with another guy in there and he had to stay an additional 2 weeks. The day after his original scheduled release, I had taken Buck for a run. If I had to guess he was bitten by a spider or got into something he shouldnt have because he didn't make it through the night. I remember waking my dad up at like midnight that night and telling him he was gone. Such a great man, he woke up 2 hours earlier to give Buck a proper burial before going to work. I will always wonder if that would have happened if he had gotten released on his scheduled date.
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16points
#19
I got handwritten directions to a job interview, but misread exit 49 as exit 79. I missed the interview. They would not reschedule.
That one little thing directly led me to staying close to home for law school instead of moving, setting roots in a town I was planning on leaving, and having multiple children who otherwise would not have existed.
All because I couldn't read a sticky note.
That one little thing directly led me to staying close to home for law school instead of moving, setting roots in a town I was planning on leaving, and having multiple children who otherwise would not have existed.
All because I couldn't read a sticky note.
16points
#20
Moved from NC to Ohio for a woman I knew for 2 months. She left me a week later. I stayed bc I had a good job at a recovery center. Met a dude and text him when he got out of treatment. First man I dated and truly loved. Ended up pregnant. Got an abortion.
If I would have never moved to Ohio, I would have never met him. Basically, feels like I ruined my entire life due to the grief of the abortion and how bad he treated me and how much I genuinely loved him.
If I would have never moved to Ohio, I would have never met him. Basically, feels like I ruined my entire life due to the grief of the abortion and how bad he treated me and how much I genuinely loved him.
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14points