Diversification, I was merely simplifying to suggest the process that was going on. Data comes in to the basic computational loop with some periodicity. That periodicity can put limits on what the software can detect. Other characteristics in the software, such as data smoothing, will introduce effective delays on data changes on their way into the computation loop.
I guess the simple question is "how often does the computer recalculate its airspeed estimate?"
And, I suppose if the changes were happening slow enough it could sneak up on a computer without being noticed. (That was the principle behind the GPS dithering that has been, thank God, turned off.) I had the impression that the freeze up process was fairly abrupt as the plane plowed into extreme weather phenomena.
(I'm a communications electronics B***h retread as a software bimbo, for reference.)