LOGIC

A. Logic Statements and Quantifiers

 One of the first mathematicians to make a serious study of symbolic logic was Gottfried Wilhelm
Leibnitz (1646-1716). He tried to advance the study of logic from merely philosophical subject to a
formal mathematical subject.
 Leibnitz never completely achieved this goal; however, several mathematicians, such as Augustus De
Morgan (1806-1871) and George Boole (1815-1864), contributed to the advancement of symbolic logic
as a mathematical discipline.

Logic Statements
 A statement (proposition) is a declarative statement that is either true or false, but not both true and
false.

Example 1: Determine whether each sentence is a statement.

1. Florida is a state in the United States. 6. 7055 is a large number.
2. How are you? 7. x > 3
3. 99 + 2 is a prime number. 8. Are you hungry?
4. x + 1 = 5 9. Go home!
5. Open the door. 10. This is my destiny.

Simple Statements and Compound Statements

 A simple statement is a statement that conveys a single idea. The truth value of a simple statement is
either true (T) or false (F).
 A compound statement is a statement that conveys two or more ideas. The truth value of a compound
statement depends on the truth value of its simple statements and its connectives.
 A truth table is a table that shows the truth value of a compound statement for all possible truth values
of its simple statements.
 George Boole used symbols such as p, q, r, and s to represent simple statements and the symbols , ,
, , and  to represent connectives. See Table 1.

Table 1. Logic Connectives and Symbols

Statement Connective Symbolic form Type of statement
not p not p negation
p and q and pq conjunction
p or q or pq disjunction
If p, then q If … then pq conditional
p if and only if q If and only if pq biconditional

Example 2: Write the negation of each statement.

1. Ellie Goulding is an opera singer.
2. The dog does not need to be fed.

Example 3: Consider the following simple statement.

p: Today is Friday. q: It is raining. r: I am going to a movie. s: I am not going to the basketball game.

Write the following compound statement in symbolic form.

a. Today is Friday and it is raining.
b. It is not raining and I am going to a movie.
c. I am going to the basketball game or I am going to a movie.
d. If it is raining, then I am going to the basketball game.
e. I am going to the movie if and only if it is raining.

Example 4: Consider the following statement.

e: All men are created equal. t: I am trading places. a: I get Abe’s place. g: I get George’s place.
Write each of the following symbolic statements in words.
a. e t b. a t c. e → t d. t ↔ g

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Compound Statements and Grouping Symbols
 If a compound statement is written in symbolic form, then parentheses are used to indicate which
simple statements are grouped together. Table 2 illustrates the use of parentheses to indicate
groupings for some statements in symbolic form.
 If a compound statement is written in an English sentence, then a comma is used to indicate which
simple statements are grouped together. Statements on the same side of a comma are grouped
together. See Table 3.

Table 2
Symbolic form The parentheses indicate that:
p(q r) q and  r are grouped together.
( p q) r p and q are grouped together. Table 3
( pEnglish
r ) (r s) sentence p and The comma
q are indicates
grouped that:
together.
p, and q or not r. r and s qare
and r are together.
grouped grouped together because they are both on the same side of the
comma.
p and q, or r. p and q are grouped together because they are both on the same side of the
comma.
If p and not q, then r or s. p and q are grouped together because they are both to the left of the comma.
r and s are grouped together because they are both to the right of the comma.

Truth Value of a Conjunction

 The conjunction p q is true if and only if both p and q are true.
P q pq
T T T
T F F
F T F
F F F

Truth Value of a Disjunction

 The disjunction p q is true if and only if p is true, q is true, or both p and q are true.
P q pq
T T T
T F T
F T T
F F F

Quantifiers and Negation

 In a statement, the word some and the phrases there exists and at least one are called existential
quantifiers. Existential quantifiers are used as prefixes to assert the existence of something.
 In a statement, the words none, no, all, and every are called universal quantifiers. The universal
quantifiers none and no deny the existence of something, whereas the universal quantifiers all and
every are used to assert that every element of a given set satisfies some condition.
 Recall that the negation of a false statement is a true statement and the negation of a true statement
is a false statement.

Table 5. Quantified Statements and their Negations

Statement Negation
All X are Y. Some X are not Y.
No X are Y. Some X are Y.
Some X are not Y. All X are Y.
Some X are Y. No X are Y.

TRUTH TABLES, EQUIVALENT STATEMENTS, AND TAUTOLOGIES

Truth Tables
Negation Conjunction Disjunction
p ~p p q p q p q p q
T F T T T T T T
F T T F F T F T 2
F T F F T T
F F F F F F
Example 1: Construct a table for ( p q ) q .

p q p q q
T T T T
T F F F
F T T T
F F F F

Example 2: Construct a truth table for ( p q ) ( r q)

p q r q
T T T
T T T
T F F
T F F
F T T
F T T
F F F
F F F

Equivalent Statements
 Two statements are equivalent if they both have the same truth value for all possible truth values of
their simple statements. Equivalent statements have identical truth values in the final column of their
truth values.

Example 3: Show that ( p q )∧ p q are equivalent statements .

p q p p q
T T T
T T F
F F T
F F F

Tautologies and Self-Contradictions

 A tautology is a statement that is always true. A self-contradiction is a statement that is always false.

Example 4: Show that p ( p q ) is a tautology .

Example 5: Show that p( p q) is a self-contradiction.

p p q p p q
T T T T
T F T F
F T F T
F F F F

THE CONDITIONAL AND RELATED ARGUMENTS

Equivalent Forms of the Conditional

 Every conditional statement can be stated in many equivalent forms. It is not even necessary to state
the antecedent before the consequent. The table below lists some of the various forms that may be
used to write a conditional statement.

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 Every conditional statement p  q can be written in
the following equivalent forms.
If p, then q. Every p is a q.
If p, q. q, if p.
p only if q. q provided that p.
p implies q. q is a necessary condition for p.
Not p or q. p is a sufficient condition for q.

The Converse, the Inverse, and the Contrapositive

 Every conditional statement has three related statements. They are called the converse, the inverse,
and the contrapositive.

Statements related to the conditional statement

The converse of p  q is q  p.
The inverse of p  q is p   q.
The contrapositive of p  q is  q   p.

The above definition show the following:

 The converse of p  q is formed by interchanging the antecedent p with the consequent q.
 The inverse of p  q is formed by negating the antecedent p and negating the consequent q.
 The contrapositive of p  q is formed by negating both the antecedent p and the consequent q and
interchanging these negated statements.

SYMBOLIC ARGUMENTS

Arguments
 An argument consists of a set of statements called premises and another statement called the
conclusion.
 An argument is valid if the conclusion is true whenever all the premises are assumed to be true. An
argument is invalid if it is not a valid argument.

Table 1. Standard Forms of Four Valid Arguments

Modus Ponens Law of Syllogism Modus Tollens Disjunctive Syllogism
(Direct reasoning) (Transitive reasoning) (Contrapositive reasoning) (Disjunctive reasoning)
p pq pq pq pq
pq qr q p q
q pr p qp

Table 2. Standard Forms of Two Invalid Arguments

Fallacy of the converse Fallacy of the inverse
pq pq
q p
p q

Arguments and Truth Tables

The following truth table procedure can be used to determine whether an argument is valid or invalid.
1. Write the argument in symbolic form.
2. Construct a truth table that shows the truth value of each premise and the truth value of the
conclusions of truth values of the simple statements.
3. If the conclusion is true in every row of the truth table in which all the premises are true, the argument
is valid. If the conclusion is false in any row in which all of the premises are true, the argument is
invalid.

Fallacies
 Logical fallacies refers to faulty reasoning in logic of an argument. It is advantageous to know logical
fallacies in order to avoid them in an argument.

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 There are different types of fallacies that we might use to present our position. The following list of
common types of fallacies with their corresponding examples.
1. Appeal to Authority (or Argumentum Ad Verecundiam). It is an argument that occurs when we accept
or reject a claim merely because of the sources or authorities who made their positions on a certain
argument.
Example: The government should impose death penalty. Many respected people, such as the former
Secretary of Justice have publicly stated her opposition to it.

2. Appeal to Force (or Argumentum Ad Baculum). It is an argument which attempts to establish a

conclusion by threat or intimidation.
Example: If you don’t believe in God, you won’t go to heaven.

3. Appeal to Ignorance (or Argumentum Ex Silentio). It is an argument supporting a claim merely because
there is no proof that it’s wrong.
Example: Since time people have been trying to prove that God exists. But no one has yet been able to
prove it. Therefore, God does not exist.

4. Appeal to Pity (or Argumentum Ad Misericordiam). It is an argument that involves an irrelevant or

highly exaggerated appeal to pity to get people to accept a conclusion by making them feel sorry for
someone.
Example: Mark has worked hard on his research project, and he will be depressed if he fails. For these
reasons, you must give him a passing grade.

5. Appeal to the People (or Argumentum Ad Populum). It is an argument that the opinion of the majority
is always valid.
Example: Most Filipino like soda. Therefore, soda is good.

6. Argumentum Ad Hominem (Latin for “to the man”). It is an attack on the character of a person of his
opinions or arguments. It is a tactic used by an adversary when they do not have a logical counter-
argument.
Example: You can’t believe that Presidential candidate is going to lower taxes. He’s a liar.

7. Circular Argument (or Petitio Principii). If a premise of an argument presupposes the truth of its
conclusions; meaning, the argument takes for granted what it’s supposed to prove.
Example: Senator Chiz Escudero is a good communicator because he speaks effectively.

8. Equivocation. It is an argument used in two or more different senses/meanings within a single

argumemt.
Example: Giving financial support to charity is the right thing to do. So charities have the right to our
finances.

9. Fallacy of Division. A reasoning which assumes that the characteristic of a group is also the
characteristic of each individual in the group.
Example: Your family is crazy. That means that you are crazy, too.

10. False Dilemma. It is an argument which implies one or two outcomes is inevitable and both have
negative consequences, but actually there could be more choices possible.
Example: If you don’t vote for this candidate, you must be antichrist.

11. Hasty Generalization. It is an argument that a general conclusion on a certain condition is always true
based on insufficient or biased evidence.
Example: My cousin said that mathematics subjects were hard, and the one I’m enrolled in is hard, too.
All mathematics classes must be hard.

12. Red Herring. It is an argument which introduces a topic related to the subject at hand. It is diversionary
tactic to avoid key issues, often way of avoiding opposing argument rather than addressing them.
Example: I know I forget to clean the toilet yesterday. But nothing I do pleases you.

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 13. Slippery Slope (or snowball/domino theory). It is an argument which claims a sort of chain reaction,
usually ending in some extreme and after ludicrous will happen, but there’s really not enough evidence
for such assumption.
Example: If I fail in Algebra, I won’t be able to graduate. If I don’t graduate, I probably won’t be able to
get a good job, and may very well end up like a beggar.

14. Strawman Fallacy. It is an argument that misrepresents position of the opponent in an extreme or
exaggerated form or attacking the weaker and irrelevant portion of an argument in order to make it
appear weaker than it actually is. The objective is to refute the misrepresentation of the position, and
conclude that the real position has been refuted.
Example: Congressman who does not support the proposed national minimum wage increase hates
the poor.

Arguments and Euler Diagrams

 Many arguments involve sets whose elements are described using the quantifiers all, some, and none.
 A symbolic argument consists of a set of premises and conclusion, and we generally denoted by
symbolic form to determine its validity.
 The mathematician Leonhard Euler used diagrams to determine whether the arguments that involved
quantifiers were valid or invalid.
 An Euler diagram is a method to determine whether argument is valid or is a fallacy which uses circles
to represent sets in syllogistic arguments. This method is similar to Venn diagram, where circles are
used to denote a set, with overlap indicating shared elements, disjoint circles indicating no shared
elements and a circle contained within another circle indicating a subset.

Examples: Use an Euler diagram to determine whether the following argument is valid or invalid.
a. All lawyers drive BMWs.
Susan is a lawyer.
 Susan drives a BMW.

b. Some SSCians are smart.

Helen is an SSCian.
 Helen is smart.

c. No mathematics professors are good-looking.

All good-looking people are models.
 No mathematics professor is a model.