The ambiguity is resolved when the cosine and sine operators can be observed simultaneously, because cos(ωt + θ) leads sin(ωt + θ) by 1 ⁄ 4 cycle (i.e. π ⁄ 2 radians) when ω > 0, and lags by 1 ⁄ 4 cycle when ω < 0. Similarly, a vector, (cos ωt, sin ωt), rotates counter-clockwise if ω > 0, and clockwise if ω < 0. Therefore, the sign of ω ω is also preserved in the complex-valued function :