#18 - Doctor: Angiotensinogen is a protein in human blood.

[ltowns1]

Could someone help me with why (D) is wrong? I'm always confused about what I should read in the stimulus when it says things like " the second causes the first and the first causes the second" lol.

[James Finch]

Hi LTowns,

What (D) means is that the stimulus is reversing cause and effect, which is not the case here. Instead we see causation and correlation confused: that because disease X causes one symptom, which typically correlates with another medical issue, that the underlying disease must also be a cause of the correlated issue, by implying high angiotensinogen levels cause high blood pressure.

Hope this clears things up!

[ltowns1]

Okay thanks

[coolbeans747]

In the correct answer choice C, the “two phenomena being correlated” are a persons angiotensinogen levels and blood pressure, correct?

Also, why is C a better choice than B?

Thanks

[Alex Bodaken]

coolbeans747,

Thanks for the question! Spot on - the two things being correlated are angiotensinogen and blood pressure.

As to why (C) is a better answer than (B): the weakness of (B) as an answer is that we are provided no evidence of "other factors that may fully counteract" the effect that disease X has on blood pressure. Because there is no evidence provided of these factors, it isn't a valid criticism to say that the author overlooks this possibility. Answer choice (C), by contrast, speaks to a flaw that is inherent in causal reasoning, which is that we can never be 100% certain that one thing causes another just because another thing happens after it. Therefore, it is the better answer choice.

Hope that helps!
Alex

[haganskl]

Hello.
I have a question about the stim. So did the doctor, the freaking DOCTOR LOL, rationalize the causal relationship like this?

C: Disease X Effect: Long A word

C: Long A word Effect: High blood pressure

Therefore:
C: Disease X Effect: High blood pressure

?

I illicitly chose answer choice B. I read above why its wrong. I immediately got rid of C because I didn’t see the connection, even though it’s SO clear. Smh

Thanks in advance for taking my question.

[Adam Tyson]

The Doctor did indeed make a bad causal argument, haganski! But the evidence was not that A causes high blood pressure. The evidence was that higher A levels are correlated with higher BP. If we knew that disease X caused higher levels of A, and if we also knew that higher levels of A cause higher BP, then it would be valid to conclude that Disease X causes higher BP. The problem is that we don't know that A and BP have a causal relationship, but only that they are correlated.

[haganskl]

Got it! Thank you.

[LeBronSAT]

I picked E, even though I was vacillating between that as well as C and D, and I think the wrong answer came emanates from my lack of understanding regarding the abstractness of the answer choices; therefore, I would like some clarification to elucidate my confusion.

When they say phenomenon, do they mean, for example, high blood pressure, or does phenomenon refer to the correlation between higher angiotensinogen and higher blood pressure?

The answer to the aforementioned question will obviate my additional questions. For C, when they say two phenomena being correlated, do they mean higher angiotensinogen being assoicated with higher blood pressure (the first phenomena) and Disease X usually causing higher angiotensinogen (second phenomena), or do the two phenomena in the answer choice just refer to the first phenomena (which, in this case, phenomena one would be higher angiotensinogen and two being higher blood pressure) I mentioned? The reason I ask is because clearly the former is a correlation, but I am unsure if the latter is deemed a correlation rather than a causal statement because of the verbiage (usually causes), while the conclusion uses the verbiage of "must be a cause," a clear causal statement.

So, ultimately, is a phenomena the correlation, or is the phenomena literally high blood pressure, Disease X, high angiotensinogen, etc.? To further clarify why I ask, the definition of a phenomenon is a fact or situation whose cause tends to be in question, and isn't high blood pressure a type of phenomena, while a correlation is a correlation? This is largely why I picked E, because it seemed like each factor mentioned is indeed a phenomenon in and of itself.

[LeBronSAT]

(disregard the first part of my post. Now I am seeing the replies. I just never received a notification.) Sorry.