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lostfromwandering t1_j9kwwh5 wrote

Reply to comment by BrokenEye3 in TIL about the birthday effect. A statistical phenomenon where an individual's likelihood of death appears to increase on or close to their birthday, variously attributed to alcohol consumption, psychological stress, increased suicide risk, and other factors. by Deechon

What do you think “variously attributed” means?

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substantial-freud t1_j9r1p7l wrote

Not that!

“Attribute”, as the word suggests, means to regard something or someone as the cause of something else.

If a phenomenon is “variously attributed” is that there are various theories about the cause, not necessarily that there are several causes.

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BrokenEye3 t1_j9l1aij wrote

"Attributed to different factors depending on who you ask"? That's what it usually means, anyway.

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lostfromwandering t1_j9pqbqs wrote

Lol no. It is saying there are multiple factors contributing to the statistical difference.

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