# compound interest (small-cause)

*Ordinarily means:* interest that is added to both the principal and the accumulated interest.

a small cause that grows because each new effect becomes a cause in the same direction, drifting the parameter further without any additional input.

- Computed level: L14 (depth in the emergence graph, not abstraction)
- Status: review  ·  Domain: economic growth

## Emergence
**Emerges from:** [drift](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-drift.aimless), [cause](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-cause.reason), [parameter](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-parameter.condition), [increase](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-increase.quantity)

**Through:** stacked

**Novel properties:**
- self-reinforcing drift

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*Canonical: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-compound-interest.small-cause*  
*Structured data: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-compound-interest.small-cause.json*  
*Every definition provably resolves to space, time, energy and pattern.*