Domino cascade
During Michaelmas (Autumn) Term 2016 I gave a series of lectures on causation. This is a fascinating subject. Causation is one of the most fundamental relationship most of us ever deal with. We have myriad causal beliefs, so fundamental we are not even aware of them (unless they go wrong). So we believe that flipping the switch will cause the light to go on, that posting a letter will result in its receipt by the one to whom it was written…..
If you click on the link for each week you’ll find the podcasts. If you click on the ‘lecture notes’ link the notes should download immediately.
Week one: Regularity Theory
Lecture notes for lecture one: Lecture one
Causation versus Correlation
Week two: The Counterfactual Theory of Causation
Lecture notes for Lecture two:
Week three: The Necessary Connection Analysis of Causation
Lecture notes for Lecture three:
Week four: The Singularist Theory of Causation
Lecture notes for Lecture four
Week five: Time and Causation
David Hume
Lecture notes for Lecture Five
Week six: Mental Causation
Lecture notes for Lecture Six:
There is a difference between a ’cause’ and a ‘condition’. A seed of plant has a program in its DNA which causes its growth, provided that conducive soil conditions are met. The same seed, having a potential to become the cause for a future tree – is not sufficient for the event. The event is cause-condition-dependant. The troika of Cause-Condition-Effect is one occurrence characterising what we call an “event”.
Dear Safwan,
I am aware (of course) of the differences between causes and conditions, and discuss them in my podcasts.
Marianne
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