# stress (condition)

A parameter whose window is between the performance window and the existence window, where the thing can persist but not function as usual.

- Computed level: L13 (depth in the emergence graph, not abstraction)
- Status: review  ·  Domain: window  ·  Arena: general

## Emergence
**Emerges from:** [parameter](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-parameter.condition), [window](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-window.range), [existence](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-existence.state), [performance](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-performance.quality), [function](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-function.purpose), [persist](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-persist.continue), [usual](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-usual.common)

**Through:** The parameter's range intersects with thresholds of existence and performance, such that the thing continues to exist but deviates from its typical functional purpose.

**Novel properties:**
- non-optimal persistence
- functional deviation
- boundary-constrained continuity

## Examples
- The International Space Station maintains orbit at 400 km, requiring weekly reboosts to counter atmospheric drag. *(engineering)*
- In 2008, Bear Stearns survived only 72 hours of trading after its stock dropped below $2, halting normal operations. *(economics)*
- During the 2019 Amazon fires, rainfall decreased 27%, pushing the rainforest toward a dieback threshold while still standing. *(ecology)*

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