It is a matter of common experience that corresponding to several causes there are separate effects.

In other words each cause acts separately to produce its specific effect. Not only the causes are separate their respective effects too are separate. For example, malaria has its own cause, typhoid has its own separate cause, and influenza too has its own specific cause.

Causes are separate and distinct and their corresponding effects too are separate and distinct. But nature being highly complex, rarely we come across simple phenomena.

On the other hand often things are jumbled up and nature presents herself in a highly complex manner. Often several causes get mixed up and produce a joint effect. In such cases it is a difficult task to separate the causes and observe their effects separately.

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Now when separate causes act together and produce a joint effect the acting together of several causes is called “conjunction of causes” and their joint effect is called “intermixture of effects.”

But conjunction of causes should not be mistaken for plurality of causes. For while in conjunction of causes several causes combine or act together to produce a single effect, in plurality of causes several causes act separately or independently to produce a single effect. To speak it out symbolically, in plurality of causes c, or C2 or c< produces e while in conjunction of causes c1+c2+c3 Produce xe.

There are two kinds of intermixture of effects, namely (I) homogeneous intermixture of effects and (ii) heterogeneous or heteropathic intermixture of effects.

In homogeneous intermixture of effects the joint effect is of the same kind or nature with separate effects. When switched on an electric bulb gives light. Again if one more bulb is lighted in the same room no doubt together they will provide more light.

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But nevertheless it is light only. So light is not only the joint effect of two bulbs operating together, it is also the effect of two separate bulbs operating individually.

In heteropathic or heterogeneous intermixture of effects the nature or characteristic of the joint effect is. Of different kind from the separate causes.

Thus when oxygen and hydrogen are added in required proportion by means of an electric current then the resultant or the joint effect is water. Here the nature of the joint effect that is water is different from the separate causes i.e. oxygen and hydrogen. In other words while water is liquid oxygen and hydrogen are gases.

Likewise we take different types of food and the joint effect of all these is blood, bone, vitality etc. But blood and bone are of different in nature from the food we have taken i.e. rice, milk, vegetable, fish etc. In other words the characteristics of rice, milk etc is not found in blood, bone, vitality etc.

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It is to be noted that in some cases the cause and effect are mutually convertible. But that is not a universal phenomenon.

In the above example we get water from oxygen and hydrogen, so also we get oxygen and hydrogen from water experimentally. Such mutual convertibility of cause and effect is called transformation. But in other cases such convertibility of cause and effect is ruled out for neither can food be converted to blood and bone nor vice versa.

The idea of intermixture and of convertibility is mostly illustrated in some area of science like chemistry, physiology etc.

Permanent cause:

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A cause may be temporary or permanent. A cause is temporary if it disappears after producing its effect. But a permanent cause continuously goes on producing some effect.

The gravitational power of the earth, the heat of the sun, the pressure of the atmosphere etc. are instances of permanent cause. They are permanent for they never cease to operate.

The accumulated influence of a permanent cause is called progressive effect. It is a complex effect which is the result of the permanent cause. Further permanent causes operate in two different ways. For example in case of gravity the force remains unchanged while acting upon a body. But in other case instead of remaining fixed or constant it -undergoes a continuous or progressive change as in case of decrease of atmospheric temperature as winter advances.

Functional dependence:

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The relation of functional dependence has been introduced by the modern scientists for calculating the exact relation between two phenomena. Particularly in well developed empirical sciences laws are formulated which give exact result in context of the quantitative characteristic of the cause.

The notion of function is familiar in mathematics. For example if we say y = x+1, y happens to be a function of x for the value of y is definitely determined when x takes a determinate value. So in sciences attempts are made to formulate laws for exactly determine functional relation of the characteristics covering a cause and its exact effect. Einstein’s formula E = mc2 categorically states the mass-energy relationship.

On the other hand .e proposition “water boils when heated” is not an exact contention to explain the relation of water and heat. But if it is held that water boils at 100° C it is expressed in more exact terms.

That means some of the empirical laws are calculated in mathematical terms because of their preciseness and exactness. That is what is called the relation of functional dependence.

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Law of Causation:

Every event has a cause that is every phenomenon which has a beginning has a cause. The important characteristics of a cause are:

(i) Cause and effect are relative concepts;

(ii) Causal relation holds between a pair of events;

(iii) Cause can be taken as the necessary and sufficient condition for the occurrence of the effect;

(iv) Causal relation is an empirical relation, but not a logical implication;

(v) Causal connection is not a relation between two isolated events, but there is generality in such a connection.

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Aristotle considered cause as a compound concept and distinguished four kinds of causes. They a. material cause, formal cause, efficient cause and final cause.

Cause and Condition:

Cause is considered as the sum total of conditions, positive and negative. For the occurrence of the effect positive conditions must be present and negative condition must be absent. A negative condition is the preventing circumstance.

A necessary condition is the circumstance in the absence of which the event cannot occur. A sufficient condition is the circumstance in the presence of which the event must occur.

In a causal sequence there are several events connected like a chain. The immediate preceding condition of an event is called its proximate cause and the remote conditions in the sequence are called the remote cause.

Qualitative and Quantitative Mark of Causation:

Qualitatively cause is the invariable, unconditional and immediate antecedent of the effect and quantitatively equal to the effect. This is called the scientific view of causation which is distinguished from the popular view.

Plurality of causes is a common sense opinion according to which there can be alternative causes of an effect. Plurality of causes arises due to generalizing the effect and specializing the cause.

The problem can be remedied by following one standard for the cause and the effect. That means if the effect is to be generalized, the cause too should be generalized or if the cause is specialised the effect so too should be specialised.

Moving power and collocation and agent and patient also come under popular view of causation.

When separate causes act together and produce a joint effect, the acting together of several causes is called conjunction of causes and intermixture of effects. It may be of two types such as homogeneous intermixture and heteropathic intermixture of effects.

The idea of manent cause is that which never ceases to operate. A tempo­rary cause is the disappears after producing its effect.

In devt i Sciences laws are formulated to calculate the exact relation between phenomena supposed to be causally related. That is called functional dependence.