How Does 2 - Intervening, the do-operator Work?

Imagine you're playing with building blocks, and someone moves one block, that’s like intervening.

Now, think about how we usually see things: if a block falls down, we might say it's because another block was knocked over. But what if we want to know what would happen if we actually moved the block ourselves, instead of just watching it fall? That’s where the do-operator comes in, it helps us imagine changing something on purpose.

Suppose you're baking cookies, and your recipe says: “If you add chocolate chips, then the cookies will be extra tasty.” Usually, we watch the process and say, “Oh, she added chocolate chips, so the cookies are tasty.”

But what if we want to try adding chocolate chips, not just observe it? That’s like using the do-operator. It's like saying, “Let’s go ahead and add chocolate chips ourselves, let’s see what happens!” This helps us understand cause and effect in a fun, hands-on way.

So, the do-operator is your tool for pretending you're making changes on purpose, just like when you decide to move that block or add chocolate chips yourself. Imagine you're playing with building blocks, and someone moves one block, that’s like intervening.

Now, think about how we usually see things: if a block falls down, we might say it's because another block was knocked over. But what if we want to know what would happen if we actually moved the block ourselves, instead of just watching it fall? That’s where the do-operator comes in, it helps us imagine changing something on purpose.