Correlation vs Causation

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What is correlation?

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Correlation refers to a statistical relationship between two variables, where changes in one variable are associated with changes in another, but one does not necessarily cause the other.

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What is causation?

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Causation indicates that one event is the result of the occurrence of another event; it implies a direct cause-and-effect relationship.

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Example of correlation: Temperature and the number of people at the beach.

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This shows correlation because as temperature increases, more people tend to go to the beach, but temperature does not cause people to go to the beach.

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Example of causation: The speed you drive and the amount of fuel you use.

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This shows causation because driving faster generally leads to using more fuel.

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When there is more protein in an athlete's diet, the athlete scores more points in a game. Correlation or Causation?

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Correlation. More protein does not directly cause more points; other factors may influence performance.

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When the amount of sugar in a quart of apple juice is reduced, there are fewer calories in each serving. Correlation or Causation?

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Causation. Reducing sugar directly leads to fewer calories.

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When ice cream sales increase, incidents of sunburn increase. Correlation or Causation?

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Correlation. Both may increase during hot weather, but one does not cause the other.

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What is a spurious correlation?

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A spurious correlation is a relationship between two variables that appears to be causal but is actually caused by a third variable.

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What is an example of a spurious correlation?

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An example is the correlation between the number of people who drown in swimming pools and the number of films Nicolas Cage appears in; both increase but are unrelated.

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How can you determine if a relationship is causal?

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To determine causation, one must conduct experiments or studies that control for other variables and establish a direct link.