Software-development flow sits at the intersection of four traditions: queueing theory for the mathematics of waiting, Theory of Constraints for identifying and protecting the constraint, complexity science for why local optimization breaks in non-linear systems, and modern agile management for the working practices that fall out of those constraints.
Start with an assumption you have heard in real work, then follow the links to the concepts that challenge it, the observations that make it visible, and the surprises that keep repeating.
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Dashed edges connect each assumption to the concept that directly challenges it.
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The connections in this map are starting points, not conclusions. Queueing theory and Theory of Constraints agree on the non-linearity of waiting near saturation; they differ in emphasis. Complexity science adds the observation that local optimization in coupled systems can degrade global throughput in ways that averages will not reveal. The tensions between these traditions are productive. Follow the dashed lines where they lead to assumptions you hold but have not examined.