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Correlation != Causation
The Situation.
Check out this news headline: "MORE ICE CREAM SALES CAUSE MORE SHARK ATTACKS!!!"
The Confusion.
Of course, this isn't actually the case. Although the sales of your favorite dairy products and shark attacks move together (both increase and decrease at the same time of year), there is no causation between these 2 variables.
The Reality.
The reason why both increase is actually because of the summer heat. Due to the increased temperatures, humans are hotter and want ice cream! Additionally, more people want to go to the beach (which sharks take advantage of).
The Takeaway.
When analyzing any data set, it is important to take into account all possible variables before declaring a correlation, as failure to do so will lead to poor decision-making, and the belief that ice cream causes shark attacks.
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