chapter 7.1 Flashcards
proximate causes
are those that occurred more closely in time and place to the even that was caused
distal causes
occurred further back in time or place from their effects. For example, when you asked about the cause of your illness, you may cite your friends recent case of the flue. Or you might instead reply that were in the midst of flu season, and this years seasonal flue has spread extensively. The former cause is proximate and the latter distal
common cause
a third even that causes both
Spurious correlations
where two types of events happen to be correlated but are not related in any interesting way, causally or otherwise.
For example, from 2000 to 20009 data from the US dairy association regarding per capita cheese consuption and ddata form the centers for disease control regarding the number of people who died by becoming tangled in their besheets weere highly correlated, but obviously theres no causal relationship connecting these variables
difference making
if the only occurrence of one event makes a difference to the occurrence of a second even then the first even is a cause for the second event.
Physical process
Causation occurrs when there is a continuous physical process connecting a cause to its effect, such as the transfer of energy
sufficient causes
the causal condition is enough to bring about the presumed effect, but that effect might sometimes occur because of some other cause
Necessary cause
the causal condition must be present for the effect to occur, but the cause might sometimes occur without bringing about the effect
causal background of two events
comprises all the other factors that actually do, or in principle might, causally influence these two events, thereby also potentially affecting the causal relationship between the two events. Oftentimes causal background is ignored when causal claims are made bbut its actually crucial for causal relationships to occur as expected
contributing cause
contributing causes are much more common than truly necessary or sufficient causes. For this reason it is useful to think about causaiton probabilistically.
