A mother takes her child to the beach on a hot summer day, where she buys her an ice cream cone from a vendor. That evening the child has an upset stomach. The mother says that every time the child eats ice cream, the child gets a stomachache. The mother needs to be reminded that __________.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Although the mother has established an association between the ice cream and stomachaches, she cannot assume that the ice cream is the cause of the stomachache. This is an example of the general principle that correlation does not prove causation.

A Mother Takes Her Child to the Beach on a Hot