zacharys solution : find humans to whom traumatic events had occurred , ask them how the traumatic event had shaped them ( this would be nearly impossible to measure ) , and then take a look at their children born before the traumatic event , and compare them to their children born after the traumatic event ( two sets of children would have to fall serendipitously into place ) and answer the question : does the second set of children share the trait that the parent believed the traumatic event caused in them , while the first set does not ?