Timelags
Timelags are delays between an initiating event and when its effects become observable. They arise whenever the response to a stimulus or action is not instantaneous and can span timescales from seconds to years. They are common in natural, engineered, and social systems.
Causes and types: physical lag due to transport, inertia, or processing; reporting or data lag due to
Domain examples: In signal processing and computing, latency refers to delays in data transmission or processing.
Modelling and analysis: Analysts use lag terms, distributed lag models or transfer function approaches to account
Implications: Timelags affect forecasting, causal inference, and policy evaluation. Properly accounting for lags improves signal interpretation