The causes of some of the following events and phenomena are well known and frequently discussed. But do you understand these causes well enough to spell them out to someone else? Working in a group, see how well (and in how much detail) you can explain each of the following events or phenomena. Which explanations are relatively clear, and which seem more open to debate?

earthquakes/tsunamis
popularity of Lady Gaga or Taylor Swift or the band Wolf Alice
Cold War
Edward Snowden’s leak of CIA documents
Ebola crisis in western Africa
popularity of the Transformers films
swelling caused by a bee sting
sharp rise in cases of autism or asthma
climate change