TED-Ed: Can you outsmart the fallacy that fooled a generation of doctors? | Elizabeth Cox

The video explores the historical debate over childbed fever, a deadly condition affecting women post-childbirth in the 19th century. It critiques Charles Meigs' theory that inflammation causes the fever, highlighting the false cause fallacy. Oliver Wendell Holmes suggests doctors might spread the disease through contamination, a theory later supported by Ignaz Semmelweis' handwashing practices and Louis Pasteur's identification of bacteria. The video emphasizes the importance of skepticism and scientific inquiry in medical advancements.

Discuss the false cause fallacy as it relates to the arguments made about inflammation and childbed fever.

What are some possible explanations for the correlation between inflammation and childbed fever mentioned in the text?

Why did many doctors reject Holmes' theory about infection via invisible contaminants?