TYPES OF CORRELATIONS
In geology there are several different types of correlations that can
be used to help establish cause and effect relationships:
1. SPATIAL PATTERNS
Example: the distribution of landslides and topography (U.S.)
Spatial correlations could be coincidental, so there needs to be
a reasonable causal mechanism to explain why the relationship
establishes cause and effect.
2. TEMPORAL PATTERNS
Example: trends in mean sea level though time
Note that time is not the cause of temporal trends, but temporal
trends suggest that the variable which changes through time is
not behaving randomly (i.e., there is a reason for the trend).