10/18/2020 Syllabus

SYLLABUS

Introduction to Logic (Web course)

Phil A101

William Jamison

THEME: Analyzes argumentation and informal fallacies; introduces deductive logic, and examines
inductive evidence in scientific and practical reasoning.

TEXTS: Introduction to Logic, Copi and Cohen, 11th ed. Prentice Hall
http://www.prenhall.com/copi/ (Note that if you purchase a used copy of the text and the access
code packet is either missing or already used you must purchase a new access packet through the
book store to use the eLogic site by this method. Summer 2003 MetaText Course ID Code is 2192.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:

100% of the grade will be from tests based on the chapter exercises on the eLogic site.
There are 14 chapters each worth 7.14 points for a total of 100 points.

90 – 100 points is an A.
80 – 89 points is a B.
70 – 79 points is a C.
60 – 69 points is a D.

This is a distance-delivered course; a college-level course that includes web presentations as an

-- to read, in your copy of Introduction to Logic, Irving Copi’s comprehensive Introduction to Logic;

-- to see explanations on the web;

-- to do exercises yourself through the quizzes and tests on the web on those concepts;

-- to reflect on the whole conversation including the views of all participants (the Lecture Notes
should help you do this);

-- to understand the place that Logic has in our lives.

Components for the Course:

My Lecture Notes, which will take you week by week through the concepts that provide the basis for
this course;

The textbook Introduction to Logic, which contains a broad selection of the most important tools in
the history of logic to provide the background you will need to understand how we have come to
view logic the way that we do;

The online web page called "eLogic" that includes exercises and all the tests you will need to
complete this course.

To complete this course successfully, you are obligated to complete the following assignments:

100% of the grade will be from tests on the chapter exercises that are on the eLogic page. It
is very important that you insure a copy of each quiz and end of chapter test has the
instructors email address filled in so the instructor receives a copy. (See this note.)

OFFICE: Contact by e-mail is the most efficient way to communicate with the instructor. This course
is a technology-delivered course, not a traditional course supplemented with online content. If you
need to see the instructor personally office hours are only by appointment in Room 219, Building K,
UAA or check my Current Schedule. You may also feel free to telephone the instructor at 694-1023.

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CLASS: There are no class meetings or on-site requirements. The course work is done by reading
the text and doing the exercises in the text and online on the eLogic web page, following the links on
the syllabus, and using e-mail. All requirements for this course can be met through use of the
Internet, e-mail, and the text. Please disregard general requirements for ATS courses that imply on-
site exams are part of this course. No on site exam is required. Follow the links on this syllabus for
all the assignments. There are no on-site requirements or meetings.

Phone: 694-1023 (home), ATS office: 786-4488, Philosophy Department Secretary 786-4455. The
best way to get a message to me is via e-mail. Please feel free to call my home phone. My main
web page is located at http://wsjamison.uaa.alaska.edu/ and my e-mail address is
[email protected].

SCHEDULE and LECTURE LINKS:

You can take this course at your own pace! However, if you want an idea of how much to do
per week of a 15 week semester, you can think of the sections as going by the following
weeks:

Week 1: Introduction to the course, description of course requirements and overview.

Week 2: Chapter 1

I. LOGIC AND LANGUAGE.

1. Basic Logical Concepts.

What Logic Is. Propositions and Sentences. Arguments, Premisses, and Conclusions. Analyzing Arguments.
Recognizing Arguments. Arguments and Explanations. Deduction and Validity. Induction and Probability. Validity and
Truth. Complex Argumentative Passages. Reasoning.

Week 3: Chapter 2

2. The Uses of Language.

Three Basic Functions of Language. Discourse Serving Multiple Functions. The Forms of Discourse. Emotive Words.
Kinds of Agreement and Disagreement. Emotively Neutral Language.

-- Basic Argument Analysis with the Monty Python

Week 4: Chapter 3
3. Definition.

Disputes, Verbal Disputes, and Definitions. Kinds of Definition and the Resolution of Disputes. Extension and Intension.
Extensional Definitions. Intensional Definitions. Rules for Definition by Genus and Difference.

Week 5: Chapter 4
4. Fallacies.

What Is a Fallacy? Fallacies of Relevance. Fallacies of Presumption. Fallacies of Ambiguity.

Here is an interesting online page for Fallacies.

Week 6: Chapter 5

II. DEDUCTION.

5. Categorical Propositions.

The Theory of Deduction. Categorical Propositions and Classes. Quality, Quantity, and Distribution. The Traditional
Square of Opposition. Further Immediate Inferences. Existential Import and the Interpretation of Categorical
Propositions. Symbolism and Diagrams for Categorical Propositions.

Week 7: Chapter 6

6. Categorical Syllogisms.

Standard-Form Categorical Syllogisms. The Formal Nature of Syllogistic Argument. Venn Diagram Technique for Testing
Syllogisms. Syllogistic Rules and Syllogistic Fallacies. Exposition of the 15 Valid Forms of the Categorical Syllogism.
Deduction of the 15 Valid Forms of the Categorical Syllogism.

Here is an interesting online tool for Syllogisms.

Week 8: Chapter 7
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7. Arguments in Ordinary Language.

Syllogistic Arguments in Ordinary Language. Reducing the Number of Terms in a Syllogistic Argument. Translating
Categorical Propositions into Standard Form. Uniform Translation. Enthymemes. Sorites. Disjunctive and Hypothetical
Syllogisms. The Dilemma.

Week 9: Chapter 8

8. Symbolic Logic.

The Symbolic Language of Modern Logic. The Symbols for Conjunction, Negation, and Disjunction. Conditional
Statements and Material Implication. Argument Forms and Arguments. Statement Forms and Material Equivalence.
Logical Equivalence. The Paradoxes of Material Implication. The Three “Laws of Thought.”

Here is an interesting online tool for Arguments.

Week 10: Chapter 9

9. The Method of Deduction.

Formal Proof of Validity. The Rule of Replacement. Proof of Invalidity. Inconsistency.

Week 11: Chapter 10

10. Quantification Theory.

Singular Propositions. Quantification. Traditional Subject-Predicate Propositions. Proving Validity. Proving Invalidity.
Asyllogistic Inference.

Week 12: Chapter 11

11. Analogy and Probable Inference.

Argument by Analogy. Appraising Analogical Arguments. Refutation by Logical Analogy.

Week 13: Chapter 12

12. Causal Connections: Mill's Methods of Experimental Inquiry.

Cause and Effect. Mill's Methods. Critique of Mill's Methods.

Week 14: Chapter 13

13. Science and Hypothesis.

The Values of Science. Explanations: Scientific and Unscientific. Evaluating Scientific Explanations. Seven Stages of
Scientific Investigation. Scientists in Action: The Pattern of Scientific Investigation. Crucial Experiments and Ad Hoc
Hypotheses. Classification as Hypothesis.

Week 15: Chapter 14

14. Probability.

Alternative Conceptions of Probability. The Probability Calculus. Probability of Joint Occurrences. Probability of
Alternative Occurrences. Expected Value.

Tests: All tests are set up on the eLogic web page. Go to this link and register for the course on the
eLogic page using the access code on the card that accompanied your new textbook. When you go
to the eLogic page you should click on the picture of the 11th edition of the book. In the dialogue box
that comes up and asks, "Have you checked to see if your instructor has created a course in eLogic
before entering your access code?" select "Yes I have, continue."

This page is maintained by William S. Jamison. It was last updated August 20, 2002. All links on
these pages are either to open source or public domain materials or they are marked with the
appropriate copyright information. I frequently check the links I have made to other web sites but
each source is responsible for their own content.

Please e-mail me if you find anything amiss or have ideas to make these pages more useful.

This page is maintained by William S. Jamison. It was last updated August 14, 2012. All links on these pages are
either to open source or public domain materials or they are marked with the appropriate copyright information. I
frequently check the links I have made to other web sites but each source is responsible for their own content.

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