PHI 120

Give an example of a conditional proposition, identify its antecedent and consequent.

1) A conditional proposition is a "If, then statement." If it is sunny, then I will go outside. a. If= antecedent, then= consequent. b. p->q

State and explain Orwell's six rules to help avoid misleading language

1. Never use a metaphor, simile or figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print 2. Never use a long word when you can use a short word instead. Helps us to avoid misleading or readers. 3. If it's possible to cut a word out, cut it out. Omit unnecessary words. This helps us to maintain clarity. 4. Never use the passive voice where you can use the active voice. This helps us to make clear what it is that we are talking about, and causes of effects clear rather than keeping effects vague and unconnected to anything. 5. Never use a foreign word or scientific word or jargon. This rule will help us avoid hiding our meaning behind words that sound impressive but do not adequately express what we are trying to sat to an audience who may be unfamiliar with the esoteric words or phrases. 6. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.

What kind of propositions express necessary and sufficient conditions?

11) A conditional statement is the kind of propositions express necessary and sufficient conditions.

Explain the relationship between necessary and sufficient conditions and conditional propositions (this can be done by stating the rule for the relation between conditional propositions and necessary and sufficient conditions

12) "If S, Then N" S is a sufficient condition for N, and N is necessary condition for S, only if," if S, then N" is true

Using an example, explain why a sufficient condition need not also be a necessary condition.

13) The presence of fire is a sufficient, but not necessary, condition for there to be oxygen. If there is a fire, then there is oxygen present. There is a fire only if there is oxygen present. If there is oxygen present, then there is a fire.

Using an example, explain why a necessary condition need not also be a sufficient condition

14) If someone is a widow, then that person is a woman. Someone is a widow...

State the rule for truth functional biconditionals.

15) A truth functional bi-conditional is true if and only if the component propositions it connects have the same truth value, otherwise its false. A bi-conditional is just the conjunction of conditional and its converse.

Explain why biconditionals are appropriate for stating definitions. Describe and explain the general form of such definitions.

16) Real definitions: what something really is. Must pick out ALL and ONLY examples that fit the general term it claims to define.

Give arguments that demonstrate that the truth table for logical negation can be derived from the laws of logic

1st Argument: For every proposition "P" and its negation "its not the case that P" either one or the other will be true. The proposition "P" is false. Therefore, the proposition "It is not the case that P" is true. 2nd Argument: Law of Bivalence. Law of non-contradiction. "P" is true. "it is not the case that P" is false.

What is the formal difference between conditionals, on the one hand, and disjunctions and conjunctions, on the other hand?

2) The difference has to do with symmetry. Conditionals do not have symmetry. Switching p and q ruins the truth value. Conjunctions are symmetrical. Disjunctions are also symmetrical, same truth value even when switched around

What are the steps for putting an argument in premises and conclusion form? Give an example which puts an argument that is not in premises and conclusion form into that form.

2) Write the premises and conclusions as separate propositions. Write the premises one premise on a line. Write the conclusion last on a separate line. Number the premises and conclusion consecutively. Write the word therefore before the conclusion. Draw a horizontal line between the last premise and conclusion.

In determining the truth value of any sort of conditional proposition (whether it is predictive, a conditional bet, a conditional promise, a causal conditional, or truth functional conditional), when can we clearly assert that the conditional proposition is false?

3) When Conditional propositions are false when the antecedent is true and the consequent is false, otherwise they are true. a. Conditional predictions: when the antecedent is true, but the consequent is false. b. Conditional bet: when the antecedent is true and the consequent is false c. Conditional promise: when the antecedent is true, and consequent is false d. Causal conditionals and causal explanations: if the antecedent is true and the consequent is false.

Explain the relationship between causal relations and causal conditionals.

4) We use causal relations to describe causal relations

Using an example, explain how the converse of a conditional is formed. Give an example of two propositions that are converses of one another.

6) If Sue is a citizen of Kentucky, then she is a citizen of the USA. If Sue is a citizen of the USA, then she is a citizen of Kentucky.

Using an example, explain why a conditional proposition and its converse do not always have the same truth value.

7) If I skip lunch, then I'll be hungry. If S>H, if H>S The truth value of the first statement isn't necessarily the truth value of the second statement.

Give the definition of a sound argument. Give both a paraphrase in your own words and the formal definition as given in the text. Give an example of a sound argument (other than the examples given in the text).

A deductive argument is sound if and only if it is both valid and all its premises are actually true

Give the definition of an unsound argument. Give both a paraphrase in your own words and the formal definition as given in the text. Give an example of an unsound argument (other than the examples given in the text).

A deductive argument is unsound if and only if it is either invalid or has at least one actually false premise

How, in general, is the truth value of a conditional related to the truth value of its converse (Hint: compare the truth table of a conditional with that of its converse)?

8) The truth value of the conditional isn't the same as the truth value of the converse. They are not logically equivalent.

What is the most common formal mistake in reasoning

9) An argumentative mistake involving form is a formal mistake. Affirming that they're equal. Switching the antecedent and consequent {P>Q}={Q>P}. Informal mistake involves content.

Give the definition of a valid argument. Give both a paraphrase in your own words and the formal definition as given in the text. Give an example of a valid argument (other than the examples given in the text

A deductive argument is valid if and only if it is impossible for the premises to be true and the conclusion false. If the premises of the argument were true, then the conclusion would have to be true.

Give the definition of an invalid argument. Give both a paraphrase in your own words and the formal definition as given in the text. Give an example of an invalid argument (other than the examples given in the text

A deductive argument is valid if and only if it is possible for the premises to be true and the conclusion false. If the conclusion is false and the premises could be true then the deductive argument is invalid.

Give the definition of a weak inductive argument. Give both a paraphrase in your own words and the formal definition as given in the text. Give an example of a weak inductive argument (other than the examples given in the text).

A deductive argument is weak if and only if the argument is such that if the premises of the argument were true, then the conclusion would be less likely to be true

What is a law of logic

A law of logic states a condition that must hold

What is the confusion involve in saying that an attitude is true or false?

A person's attitude is not a proposition. Only propositions are true or false. Therefore, an attitude cannot be true or false

Explain why a proposition can never be valid or invalid, and why an argument can never be true or false

A proposition is supposed to be true or false. An argument is the relationship between premises and conclusions.

What is a proposition?

A proposition is that aspect of language that can be true or false.

Define rhetorically effective argument.

A rhetorically effective argument is rhetorically effective if and only if it is successful in persuading its audience of the truth of its conclusion.

What is a state of affairs

A state of affairs is an arrangement of things in the world

In what circumstances should we say "true proposition" or "statement of fact" rather than saying "fact"? Why?

A statement of fact is a proposition that is describing a state of affairs.

State the rule for truth functional conditionals. Give the truth table for a truth functional conditional, and explain how the truth table displays the rule

A truth functional conditional is false if and only if its antecedent is true and its consequent is false, otherwise the truth functional conditional is true.

Define and give an example of each of the following: (a) a sufficient condition (b) a necessary condition

A) A state of affairs or event S is a sufficient condition for a state of affairs or event N if and only if the occurrence of S is enough for N to occur. I.E. that Sue is a citizen of United States is a necessary condition for her to be a citizen of the Colorado. B)A state of affairs or event N is a necessary condition for a state of affairs or event S if and only if N must occur for S to occur. I.E. while it is true that Sue's being a citizen of Colorado is a sufficient condition for her being a citizen of the United States (i.e., it is enough for her to be a citizen of Colorado for her to be a citizen of the United States),

If a deductive argument is invalid, what does that indicate about the truth or falsity of its premises? Why?

Actual truth or falsity has nothing to do with validity.

Using an example, explain how a deductive argument can have true premises and a true conclusion and still not be valid.

All toasters are items made of gold, all items made of gold are time travelled devices therefore all toasters are time travel devices

What kind of connections do logic and critical thinking explore?

Allows us to determine which arguments are good or bad

Give the definition of a deductive argument. Give both a paraphrase in your own words and the formal definition as given in the text. Give an example of a deductive argument (other than the examples given in the text).

An argument is deductive if and only if it supposes that if the premises of the argument were true, then its conclusion would have to be true. The conclusion of an argument would have to be true if the premises were true

Give the definition of an inductive argument. Give both a paraphrase in your own words and the formal definition as given in the text. Give an example of an inductive argument (other than the examples given in the text).

An argument is inductive if and only if its conclusion is supposed to be made more likely to be true than to be false given the truth of its premises, i.e., inductive arguments suppose that if their premises were true then their conclusion would be more likely to be true

What does it mean for someone to have an opinion? How do opinions differ from other propositional attitudes

An attitude of belief directed towards a proposition that describes a state of affairs. A person has an opinion if and only if that person believes some proposition to be true.

Give definitions of a bad inductive argument. Give both a paraphrase in your own words and the formal definition as given in the text. Give an example of a bad inductive argument (other than the examples given in the text).

An inductive argument is bad if and only if it is either weak or has at least one actually false premise. If an argument has a false premise or it is weak then it is a bad inductive argument

Give a definition of a good inductive argument. Give both a paraphrase in your own words and the formal definition as given in the text. Give an example of a good inductive argument (other than the examples given in the text).

An inductive argument is good if and only if the premises are strong and are actually true

Give the definition of a strong inductive argument. Give both a paraphrase in your own words and the formal definition as given in the text. Give an example of a strong inductive argument (other than the examples given in the text).

An inductive argument is strong if and only if the premises of the argument were true, then the conclusion would be more likely to be truer than to be false

What are the two separate and independent considerations that must be taken into account when judging whether the premises of an argument give good reasons in support of its conclusion? Explain why these considerations are independent of one another.

Are all the premises actually true? Do the premises support the conclusion? The premises can support the conclusion and be false

What is the smallest number of sentences that can express an argument? Why?

Arguments can be expressed in a single sentence. A single sentence can have multiple prepositions that are related to each-other

What is wrong with promoting dogmatism and skepticism?

Both shun the use of reason

Using an example, show that not all uses of negative indicators in English are logical negations

Dissatisfaction unsettles some people. Dissatisfaction does not unsettle some people. The logical negation has to operate on the whole proposition not just one word.

How do logic and critical thinking help us resist force?

Do the premises support the conclusion? Are the premises actually true? Doing this allows us to think for ourselves

What are dogmatism and skepticism?

Dogmatism is about someone accepting a proposition as true (or false) regardless of reasons for and against, whereas skepticism is about someone rejecting a proposition as true (or false) regardless of reasons for and against. So, the difference isn't about truth and falsity, but an attitude of either unconditional acceptance (i.e., belief) of truth value (either true or false) or rejection (i.e., doubt) of truth value (either true or false).

Give an example (in English) of a logical conjunction

I bought a grape. I bought a kiwi. I bought a grape and I bought a kiwi. I bought a grape and kiwi.

If a deductive argument is valid, what does that indicate about the truth or falsity of that argument's premises? Why

If a deductive argument is valid that doesn't mean the premises are true. Valid only means the premises actually support the conclusion.

If an argument is a good inductive argument, what does that indicate about its strength? Why?

If an argument is good it is also strong

If an argument is sound, what does that indicate about its validity? Why?

If an argument is sound that would mean it is also valid because a sound argument has only true premises

If an argument is sound, what does that indicate about the truth or falsity of its conclusion? Why?

If an argument is sound, then the conclusion must be true.

If an argument is a good inductive argument, what does that indicate about the truth or falsity of its conclusion? Why

If and argument is a good inductive argument it is more likely to be true then false.

What does the definition of strong inductive argument say about the actual truth of the argument's premises? Why?

If the premises are true, then conclusion is more likely to be true. The definition says nothing about the truth or falsity

Why are logic and critical thinking important?

If we do not think for ourselves someone else will think for us. Reason helps us defend ourselves against the force of rhetoric

Explain why (give the argument that) fact and opinion do not constitute genuine alternatives to one another

Is that a square root or a carburetor? The terms fact or opinion don't pose a genuine alternative because they do not pick out comparable things.

If the conclusion of a valid argument is false, what does that indicate about the truth or falsity of that argument's premises? Why

It is impossible for the premises to be true and conclusion false. At least one premise would have to be true.

How does knowledge differ from a fact in the most basic sense?

Knowledge is an attitude of justified belief that is directed towards true propositions.

Name and state all four laws of logic. What is a law of logic?

Law of Bivalence. Law of Truth Values. Law of non-contradictions: a proposition P and its negation cannot both be true. The law of excluded middles:

Name and state the first two laws of logic

Law of bivalence: each proposition is either true or false. Law of truth values: no proposition is both true and false

Explain the difference between a (causal) law of nature and a law of logic

Laws of nature regulate causal relations between actual events in the world. Laws of logic are necessary conditions for the possibility of there being any proposition whatsoever.

Distinguish logical negation from falsehood.

Logical negation is a function belonging to solely to language. Falsehood is a relationship between language and the world. Falsehood has to do with state of affairs. A logical negation can be true so it doesn't make sense to call it falsehood

Why must we say that a deductive argument only supposes that its premises support its conclusion, i.e., why must the definition of deductive argument include the word "supposes

Not all deductive arguments are good deductive arguments. Some arguments are valid some are invalid. Premises have to support the conclusion with necessity in order to be valid.

If an inductive argument is weak, what does that indicate about the truth or falsity of its premises? Why?

Nothing is indicated about the actual truth or falsity in the definition of a weak inductive argument

Using examples, show that not all uses of the word "and" are logical conjunctions.

Sigmund Freud and Emily Durkheim were contemporaries. The word "and" indicates a relationship between the two names. Here the word "and" does not connect whole propositions.

What distinctions should we use instead of the bogus one between fact and opinion

The distinction between proposition and state of affairs. And the distinction between knowledge and proposition.

State the differences between arguments that arise in everyday concerns and the simplified models of arguments that will be developed through most of this text

Part of the difficulty is that we are usually and for the most part concerned with what we are reasoning about, the specific subject matter, rather than with how and how well we are reasoning about that subject matter

Compare and contrast the content of rhetoric with the content of logic and critical thinking

People and their attitudes is what is important to rhetoric. Critical thinking is concerned with propositions

What are people usually asking when they ask the question "Is that a fact or an opinion?"? What confusions are involved in asking this question in this way?

People are usually asking about authority of the person who are making the claim that they are making. They are looking for reliability from an authority figure.

) Why does the question "Is that a fact or an opinion?" promote dogmatism and skepticism?

Promoting dogmatism: can affirm truth just based on authority without reason. Promoting Skepticism: that the person asked the question has no authority to affirm the proposition. "just their opinion.

Using the distinction (make the distinction before using it) between propositions and states of affairs, explain what "true" and "false" mean. In what way are truth values relations?

Propositions are the basic unit of meaning in language. State of affairs are the arrangements of things in the world. So a proposition is "true" if it correctly describes a state of affairs. Truth values are relations between a proposition and state of affairs.

Using an example, explain why people's psychological states are irrelevant to considerations of logic.

Psychological states or no concern of logic. Sue believes god exists. A psychological explanation of her belief would refer to some psychological laws. Talk about history or culture and other psychological influences. Causal explanations would be used to explain her belief. Logic would use whether her statement is a proposition and whether it is true or false. Logic would look at the arguments that give reasons and premises that are supposed to support the conclusion that god exists.

What is rhetoric?

Rhetoric is the art (technique of persuasion). An act of using language is a form of rhetoric if and only if the use of language attempts to influence people by affecting their attitudes and actions.

Compare and contrast the form of rhetoric with the form of logic and critical thinking

Rhetoric proceeds by assertion of the opinions the rhetorician wants the audience to believe. Critical thinking evaluates arguments to see if the premises support the conclusion.

Compare and contrast the aim of rhetoric with the aim of logic and critical thinking

Rhetoric tries to persuade people to coerce them to believe something; to seek power over others. Critical thinking aims at good reasoning

Compare and contrast the means of rhetoric with the means of logic and critical thinking

Rhetoric uses appealing forms of speech, flattery of the audience, and tricks. Critical thinking tries to find the strongest version

State the rule for logical conjunction. Using the rule for logical conjunction construct the truth table for the conjunction of two propositions. Explain what you have done, and why

Rule for Logical Conjunction: A conjunction is true if and only if both conjunctions are true, otherwise the conjunctions is false. If P and Q are true then P&Q is true, otherwise its false

What do the first two laws of logic imply about propositions?

The two laws imply that every proposition should have one of the two truth values. True or false, not both.

Explain what has gone wrong when someone commits the fallacy of slippery slope.

Slippery slope arguments are fallacious because they presume that the intermediate conditional propositions are true when they are not, i.e., this presumes that just because one conditional in the series is true the other conditionals are inevitably true, i.e., it is assumed that one event in a series will inevitably lead to the others.

What are the different meanings of the word "fact"? Which meaning is most basic? Why

Something is a fact if and only if it is a state of affairs. A true proposition which describes a state of affair is a statement of fact. Knowledge come from having both

What makes vocabulary propaganda especially deceptive (more deceptive than content propaganda)?

Vocabulary more deceptive because it distorts meaning and cover distinctions interferes with ability.

State the rule for logical negation. Give an example of the logical negation of a proposition

The RULE of Logical Negation: the logical negation of a proposition is true if and only if the proposition is false. And the logical negation of a proposition is false if and only if the proposition is true. EX. It is not the case that UK is located in Louisville. ~P

Distinguish between content propaganda and vocabulary propaganda.

The difference between Content Propaganda and Vocabulary Propaganda is the difference between truth and meaning. Content propaganda tries to deceive us that false propositions are true and that true propositions are false. Vocabulary Propaganda tries to deceive us by distorting the meanings of words or phrases so as to make it unclear which propositions sentences are expressing.

Explain the difference between deductive and inductive arguments.

The difference between deductive arguments is the way the premises are supposed to support the conclusion. Deductive arguments have to have premises that support the conclusion with necessity and inductive arguments have premises that support the conclusion with high probability

Explain the differences between sentences and propositions

The difference between prepositions and a sentence is that prepositions make up a sentence. For instance, one sentence will have at least two prepositions. A sentence is a grammatical structure belonging to a particular language and forming a complete unit. While a proposition is the meaning or content that may be expressed in a sentence

What are the elements of making a clear distinction? What does it mean to respect a distinction

The elements of making a clear distinction is identifying the two things and identify what makes them different

Define truth functional connective and truth functional operator

Truth functional connective or truth functional operator -if and only if it functions to construct compound compositions such that the truth values of those compound propositions depend solely on the truth values of their component propositions.

How does the question "Is that a fact or an opinion?" ignore propositions?

We can all believe something to be true when it's really false. Attitudes and propositions are separate. Propositions and their truth values are ignored

By what criterion do we count arguments?

We count the number of arguments by counting the number of conclusions

Why must we say that an argument only supposes that its premises support its conclusion, i.e., why must the definition of argument include the word "supposes"?

We say Arguments are supposed to be supported by truth because not all arguments are good arguments. Bad arguments are still arguments however.

Instead of asking "Is that a fact or an opinion?" what questions should we ask instead? Why?

What is the state of affairs of the question? What's the proposition that is being asserted about that fact? Is the proposition true?

Define each of the following: (a) simple proposition (b) compound proposition (c) truth functional connective

a. Simple proposition is simple if and only if it contains no parts that are also propositions b. A compound proposition is compound if and only if it is composed of or contains parts that are also propositions. c. Truth functional connective if and only if it functions to construct compound compositions such that the truth values of those compound propositions depend solely

Conclusion

it functions in that argument as the proposition whose truth is supposed to be supported by the argument's premises. OR the proposition that concludes with the main point of the argument that is supposed to be supported.

Why does is the question "Is that a fact or an opinion?" commit a complex question fallacy

"is it a fact or opinion" is a complex question. It gives us an extreme choice between being a dogmatic or skeptic. The only way to settle the questions is by a measure of authority.

Premise

proposition is a premise of an argument if and only if it functions in that argument as a proposition whose truth is supposed to give support to the truth of the argument's conclusion. OR when you use a preposition as part of an argument it is a premise

Argument

set of prepositions such that the truth of one is supposed to be supported by the truth of others. OR when a statement that are said try to prove something.

What are the primary tasks of logic and critical thinking?

The primary tasks of logic and critical thinking are to discover, explain, and apply methods for determining of any argument whether it is good or bad. Logic and critical thinking study how the truth or falsity [truth value] of some propositions may depend on the truth or falsity

Why is the logical negation of a proposition a compound proposition?

The rule of logical negation is a compound proposition because it contains parts that is also a proposition

What is the smallest number of propositions that can make up an argument? Why?

The smallest number of prepositions is 2. This is because every argument has to include at least a premise and conclusion

Using an example, explain how a deductive argument can have false premises and a false conclusion and still be valid

The sun has been destroyed each day for all of record history ,Therefore the sun will be destroyed tomorrow. The premise is false but they still support the conclusion which makes the argument valid

Why do we need to define truth functional operators and connectives by using truth tables?

The truth functional connectives and operators have to be defined by truth table because these expressions do not refer to objects.

Using an example, explain the distinction between a proposition and a person's attitude toward that proposition. (Hint: compare the truth values of propositions about people's attitudes towards propositions with the truth values of the propositions toward which they have those attitudes.)

The truth value of one is separate from the other

Explain what has gone wrong when someone commits the fallacy of complex question fallacy.

While these are valid argument forms it is only a sound argument if the conjunction that forms its premise is actually true

Explain how to construct a truth table for two independent propositions

You have to have four rows to include all possibilities. For a two by four

Explain and give an example of each of the following (try to find examples in addition to those in the text): (a) clichés or dead imagery (b) complicated verb phrases substituted for simple verbs (c) Pretentious words, foreign loan words, and jargon (d) Vague, ambiguous and meaningless words and phrases

a. Clichés or dead imagery: a cliché is a phrase that is overused, predictable, unoriginal, and betrays a failure to think about the subject matter in a fresh and attentive way. Ex. "as different as apples and oranges" b. Complicated verb phrases substituted for simple verbs: Imprecision and obscure writing often result when we use complicated phrases instead of simple verbs. Ex. "render inoperative" instead of "break" c. Pretentious words, foreign loan words, and jargon: Pretentious words are often used to make simple or biased sentences seem objective, scientific or impartial. Ex. "Liquidate" instead of "Kill" d. Vague, ambiguous and meaningless words or phrases: words that sound fine or impressive but get used without any clear meaning or without sorting out which of various meanings is intended may be used to dishonestly mislead or obscure what is said. Ex. Democracy, freedom, patriotic, realistic, justice.

A) how logic and critical thinking help us to resist the rhetorical force of content propaganda and B) how logic and critical thinking help us to resist the rhetorical force of vocabulary propaganda.

a. Logic makes us more on guard against content propaganda's deceptions of truth values of propositions. b. Make clear distinctions, i.e by making clear and explicit, for genuine and relevant differences.

Explain the four distinctions between the disciplines of logic and psychology in detail

a. Psychology and other natural sciences study actual events in the world. Causal laws. Logic studies logical relationships between propositions and their truth values b. Modality of the object of study. Causal relation between events in the world. Logic logical relations between propositions. What is possibly true or false c. Goal: descriptive and explanatory account of things happening in nature VS logic is an evaluative science which evaluate arguments in terms of whether they are good or bad. d. Justification: science uses empirical justification. VS logic is an a prioiri science which seeks to justify their claims independently of observation or experience.