Season 1: The Book of Why
Understanding what happens when we take action—rather than just observe—is at the heart of causal reasoning. In this episode, we ascend to the second rung of the Ladder of Causation: intervention. How can we predict the effects of a new drug, a change in policy, or even a personal decision if we’ve never observed it before? We explore the tools that make this possible: back-door and front-door adjustments, instrumental variables, and the powerful do-calculus.
Why are randomized controlled trials celebrated as the “gold standard”? When can observational data be just as good—or even better? And what happens when we don’t have access to all the confounders? From elegant theory to practical tools, we reveal how modern causal diagrams and equations let us do the unthinkable: predict the consequences of actions not yet taken.
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📧 Email: amir.rafe@usu.edu
🌐 Website: https://pozapas.github.io/
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