3. bring about: to cause to take place 引起，带来(注意使用时更倾向于“带来“这个意思)

　　The internet technologies that have brought about so much social change were scarcely imaginable just decades before they appeared.

　　4.spark off 引发、引爆 ，具体指引发比较严重的后果、冲突等(=trigger / activate)，或指”点燃“(=inspire)

　　Spark offa series of problems / a chain of events related to…

　　They canspark off each other's talents

　　affect系列（影响到）

　　1. Affect/influence

　　More likely than not, getting a vehicle from point "A" to point "B" involves combustion of a fossil fuel, a process that emits gasses and affectsthe environment and the ozone layer.

　　People's behavior is influenced by circumstances and events, friends and family, education, job prospects, income, housing and environment.

　　2.impact on 对…产生影响(impact 一般做名词使用，也可以作为动词

　　Over the last few decades, there has been a tremendous growth in information technology, which can impact onour everyday life.

　　3. give rise to 使发生

　　The decrease inthe number of bicycles and cars might give rise to another new set of problems.

　　名词系列（因果）

　　1. cause (of sth.)/ reason 原因

　　Obesity can be divided into three main causes – diet, lifestyle and education.

　　Thousands of people migrate to the cities not only for jobs but also for educational and personal reasons.

　　2. result (for sth.)/ effect 结果

　　This is a difficult problem with many seriouseffects on the individual and country.

　　Another result is lack of self-esteem.

　　3. causality 因果关系(cause and effect)   causation 原因

　　The correlation between population and housing price does not indicated causality, only the association. 这里的causality也可以换成：causal effect （因果效应）

　　Such a causality-driven, prevention-focused approach to homicide and other serious crime would revolutionize our conception of criminal justice, moving from the imposition of “just deserts” to the enlightened pursuit of a less violent society.

　　4. impact/influence 影响

　　This area is often overlooked but has a tremendous impact on your life

　　Friends have a biginfluence on the way that we use social media—from unwritten rules to buying decisions and so much more.

　　形容词系列（因果）表示因果的形容词不是很常用，使用时多和factor, element 结合

　　1. causal  原因的，因果的

　　Low income and elderly are among the potential causalfactors of prevalence of obesity among adults

　　2.consequential 结果的，随之发生的

　　Measures other than ratings will prove more consequential

　　3.influential 影响的，有影响力的（大多数情况下使用第二个意思）

　　Family is the most influential factor on happiness.

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