# house of cards (stacked)

*Ordinarily means:* something that seems stable but can collapse easily

A structure whose parts depend on one another in sequence, where the failure of any one part causes the whole to fall because no part is held up except by the next.

- Computed level: L15 (depth in the emergence graph, not abstraction)
- Status: review  ·  Domain: social systems, engineering, trust networks

## Emergence
**Emerges from:** [wall](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-wall.range-end), [parameter](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-parameter.condition), [maintenance](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-maintenance.upkeep), [dependence](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-dependence.condition), [collapse](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-collapse.failure)

**Through:** stacked dependency

**Novel properties:**
- fragile stability
- sequential reliance
- zero redundancy

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