I grow a playoff beard, and my team gets a streak going. Did my playoff beard help? Clouds appear and it starts raining, but do the clouds cause the rain?
Not quite, but why?
Learn more about this specific type of mistake in only 90 seconds.
Correlation does not imply causation: On shaving and exams (Podcast #015)
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Sources / Further Reading:
Logical Fallacies and the Art of Debate: Post hoc ergo propter hoc
Wikipedia: Post hoc ergo propter hoc
Wikipedia: Correlation does not imply causation
Skeptics Dictionary: post hoc fallacy
(photo by kevindooley)
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