Philosophy 21: Introduction to Symbolic Logic
Section 2: Caldwell 105
Tuesday and Thursday
11:00-12:15pm

Instructor: Ted Parent
Email: tparent@email.unc.edu
Phone: 962-3329
Office: Caldwell Hall 210B
Office Hours: Monday 2-3pm, Thursday 10-11am, and by appointment.
Course Website: http://www.unc.edu/~tparent/phil21.html

 

“Logic is the study of methods and principles used to distinguish correct reasoning from incorrect reasoning.”*  In this course we will learn the principles of deductive logic, which attempts to distinguish deductively valid arguments from deductively invalid arguments. This will mainly involve getting familiar with certain mathematical formal systems that model deductive reasoning.

 

Text:

Bergmann, M. et al., The Logic Book, 4th edition (with Student Solutions CD-ROM). McGraw Hill 2004.

 

Course Assignments:

(1)   Short quiz on Jan 19 worth 10% of the final grade.

(2)   There will be four longer quizzes scheduled throughout the semester (see below). At the end of the semester, your lowest grade among these four will be dropped—the remaining quizzes will each be worth 18.33 % of the final grade. Note that on the day of the quiz, you will first have a chance to ask me any lingering questions about the material.

(3)   Final exam on May 2 worth 35% of the final grade.

(4)   Homework is due each Tuesday in class. Homework is a requirement for the course, rather than a constituent of the final grade. (They are meant to help you prepare for the quizzes and final exam.) It is graded on a pass/fail basis, where ‘pass’ reflects a “good faith” effort to complete the homework correctly. Failure to give a “good faith” effort on the homeworks can lower your final grade. N.B. All answers to the homework exercises will be posted on the course website (so you can self-check your work).

(5)   Extra credit can be earned by scoring points in “THE GAME” (see below). You also get extra credit if you correct a mistake I make in class.

 

 

If you are absent for a quiz, I will allow you ONE opportunity for a make-up quiz. Any further missed quizzes will receive a grade of zero. There will be no make-up final exam, though if you need to take the exam early, let me know.

 

*Copi and Cohen, Introduction to Logic, 10th edition, Prentice-Hall 1998. p. 3. 

 

Tentative Schedule

 

 

Jan.12         Intro to the course; Validity and Soundness; Bergmann et al. Chapter 1

Jan 17         Chapter 1 (cont’)


Jan 19         Symbolization and Syntax of SL; Chapter 2   Short Quiz on Intro Material
Jan 24         Chapter 2 (cont’)
Jan 26         Chapter 2 (cont’)
Jan 31         Chapter 2 (cont’)

Feb 2          Chapter 2 (cont’)

 

Feb 7           Semantics of SL; Chapter 3
Feb 9           Chapter 3 (cont’)
Feb 14         Quiz on Syntax/Semantics of SL

 

Feb 16         Derivations in SL; Chapter 5
Feb 21         Chapter 5 (cont’)
Feb 23         Chapter 5 (cont’)

Feb 28         Chapter 5 (cont’)
Mar 2           Chapter 5 (cont’)
Mar 7           Quiz on Derivations in SL

 

Mar 9          Symbolization and Syntax of PL; Chapter 7


Mar 14 &16   NO CLASS (Spring Break)

 

Mar 21        Chapter 7 (cont’)
Mar 23        Chapter 7 (cont’)
Mar 28        Chapter 7 (cont’)


Mar 30        Semantics of PL; Chapter 8

Apr 4          Chapter 8 (cont’)
Apr 6          Chapter 8 (cont’)


Apr 11        Derivations in PL; Chapter 10


Apr 13       Quiz on Syntax/Semantics of PL

 

Apr 18       Chapter 10 (cont’)
Apr 20       Chapter 10 (cont’)
Apr 25       Chapter 10 (cont’)
Apr 27       Quiz on Derivations in PL


Comprehensive Final Exam on May 2 at 12 noon in our usual classroom.

 

 

Honor code:
The Chancellor has asked faculty to include the following statement in all course syllabi.

 

The Honor Code prohibits lying, cheating or stealing when these actions involve academic processes or University, student or academic personnel acting in an official capacity.  The Campus Code requires students to conduct themselves in such ways as not to impair the welfare or the educational opportunities of others in the University community.  As a UNC student, you have accepted a commitment to the Honor Code and the Campus Code, and the principles of academic integrity, personal honesty, and responsible citizenship on which they were founded more than 100 years ago.
Academic dishonesty in any form is unacceptable, because it circumvents the purpose of the University’s life and work.  As a faculty member, I have a responsibility to report any possible Honor Code violations to the Student Attorney General.  I trust that you will join me in supporting the Honor Code by signing the Honor Pledge on all written work, and by consulting me if you are uncertain about your responsibilities within this course.

 

 

 

Rules for THE GAME

 

Instead of the usual Q and A sessions, we will be playing a game when doing logic exercises in class. The Game begins when I say “The Game begins.” During that time, we will be either working through homework exercises, or example exercises in the book. I will call on people by going through the class roster (in alphabetical order); when you are called on, you have the choice either to “Play” or “Pass.”

 

  • If you choose to Pass, you don’t have to do anything. But you give up your chance to win extra credit until the next time you are called on.

 

  • If you choose to Play, you will be given an exercise to work out in front of the class.

 

If the player makes a mistake on the exercise, other students have the opportunity to “steal” the extra credit. I will call on the first one to raise their hand when a mistake is made. But I will not call on anyone before it is clear that the player has made a genuine mistake (and not merely a “typo”). Anyone raising their hand prior to that becomes ineligible for the steal.

 

  • If you are called on for the steal, you must take the player’s place at the front of the room, correct the player’s mistake, and (if necessary) finish the rest of the exercise correctly.

 

  • If the stealer herself makes a mistake, everyone (including the player) can then steal from the stealer. (Same rules for stealing apply).

 

1pt. of extra credit is awarded to whoever finishes the exercise correctly.