First Steps in Formal Logic 2013
Logic is concerned with the rules of coherent and systematic reasoning. In this course, we will think about 'logical' thinking, explore the nature of validity, and learn a new symbolic way to lay bare the formal structure of arguments.
Date created:
Course: Further details, online booking
Resources for this course
| Type | Resource | Description | People | Full details |
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Handout 2: Arguments |
Handout about validity and soundness. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Validity and Soundness |
An article in the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. |
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Book: Formal Logic |
A link to Peter Smith's website that accompanies his book 'Formal Logic': plenty of additional material. |
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Handout 1: Logic, the 'Art of Thinking' |
Introduction to the course. Remarks on validity. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 3: Propositional Logic I |
Syntax and basic semantics of PL. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Exercises 1 |
Arguments, Soundness and Validity. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Exercises 2 |
Translating into PL, wffs, quotation. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 4: Propositional Logic II |
All dyadic connectives, reductions (equivalences), paradoxes of the material implication. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Book: Logic Manual |
A link to Volker Halbach's website that accompanies his book 'The Logic Manual', additional material for download. |
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Handout 5: How to Evaluate Complex PL Sentences |
A guide for calculating truth values in truth tables. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Exercises 3 |
Formalise sentences and calculate truth values in PL. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 6: Propositional Logic III |
Testing validity with the semantical method. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 7: Propositional Logic IV |
Testing validity with the syntactical method; natural deduction. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Exercises 4 |
Translating into PL language, testing validity, tautologies and contradictions. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 8: Syllogistics I |
Limits of PL, categorical propositions, Venn diagrams. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 9: Syllogistics II |
Distribution, square of opposition, conversions. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Exercises 5 |
Identifying subject and predicate terms, A E I O statements, direct inferences and conversions. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Book: Logic Primer |
A link to Paul Teller's website, where he offers for download his two-volume introduction to formal logic, which is out of print. |
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Exercises 4 (Solution for 5) |
Solutions for the three natural deductions of exercise 5a–c. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 10: Syllogistics III |
More on distribution, all valid modes at a glance. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 11: Syllogistics IV |
Reduction to the first figure, rules for validity, test for validity with Venn diagrams. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 11A: Validity for Syllogisms |
Further information about testing validity using modus Felapton. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Exercises 6 |
Formulating syllogisms, test for validity. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 12: Predicate Logic I |
The limits of syllogistics; introduction to QL and its syntax. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Exercises 7 |
Translations into and from QL. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 13: Predicate Logic II |
The semantics of QL, vailidity, and a sketch of natural deduction. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 14: Predicate Logic III |
The tree method sketched, predicate logic with identity (QL=), extensionality, second-order predicate logic. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Exercises 8 |
Translations to and from QL and QL=. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 15: Modal Logic |
Sketch of modal logic, possible worlds, the de re/de dicto distinction. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 16: Formal Fallacies |
A list of formal fallacies (PL, QL, syllogistics, modal logic) with examples. |
Peter Wyss | view |
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Handout 17: Non-Classical Logic |
Rough sketches of many-valued logic and free logic. |
Peter Wyss | view |