[tlarkworthy]

the topological dependency order of cells is computed, and only (logically) downstream dependencies are recomputed on a code change. See https://observablehq.com/@observablehq/how-observable-runs

[hueyluey]

Is "topological dependency order of cells" different from what an average person would understand from saying "dependency order of cells"?

[tlarkworthy]

yeah it's the technical name for the intuitive sort order you need for a graph of dependencies.