EDST 391-082 Intelligence in Everyday Life

Name:
Date:
"Calendar"

P/F Writing Assignment for Day 16

Video (DVD—55 minutes):

“Unnatural causes: Is inequality making us sick?” One copy of this DVD is on reserve in the reserve room of Morris library (2-hour loan). (The second copy is not working.) You can watch it in the media area in the lower level of Morris. There are facilities to watch it individually, in a group of 2, or in a group of 3-5.
If the good copy is checked out, then read this article instead and answer the same pass-fail questions.

“For good health, it helps to be rich and important.” New York Times, June 1, 1999.

Reading:

Please reread: Gottfredson & Deary ("Intelligence predicts health and longevity, but why?")
Your answer to Question 1 of pass-fail 12.

1. Video:

a. What is the general “health problem” it is trying to explain and prevent? Please be specific.

b. What is/are the causal force/s it proposes to explain the wealth-health gradient?

c. What solutions does it propose, if any?

2. Please compare the explanations for differences in health that are offered by the “Unnatural Causes” video and by the Gottfredson-Deary paper.

a. Specifically, to what extent do the two coincide or contradict each other? Please be very specific. Consider—or reconsider—what you wrote in your answer to Question #1 in Pass-Fail 12.

b. On Thursday, I am going to ask you how you would set up a scientific contest between the two explanations to determine which one is closer to the truth. For example, is there something on which they would make different predictions—perhaps even opposite predictions? So start thinking about that. I have some data that may allow us to test some of your ideas.