Logic

1. Logic The Science (or Art) of Evaluating Arguments

2. The Basics of Argument Argument; �a series of statements, one or more of which (premises) are claimed to provide support for one of the others (the conclusion). In a �good� argument, the premise(s) provide(s) support for the conclusion In a �bad� argument the premises do not support the conclusion.

3. A �statement� is: A declarative sentence or clause that contains a falsifiable representation of fact. E.g. Wenzel has terrible taste in clothes. It is imperative that the U.S. build a missile defense system. Canada is in Eastern Europe. Water is a universal solvent.

4. Non �statements� include: Questions: Where did you get that awful haircut? Proposals: Let�s find a stylist that can undo some of the damage. Suggestions: I suggest you fix that before you let yourself be seen in public. Commands: My husband�s home, hide in the closet.

5. Two categories of statements Premises � statements of fact that provide evidence or reasons. Conclusions � a statement that the evidence or reason is supposed to support or imply.

6. A simple argument: The possibility of nuclear weapons in the hands of rouge states poses great danger to the safety of the United States. An anti-ballistic missile system offers protection from the threat of ballistic missiles. Therefore, the nation must build a missile defense system.

7. Conclusion Indicators Therefore Wherefore Thus Consequently Accordingly We may conclude that so Entails that Hence It follows that Implies that As a result

8. Premise indicators Since As indicated by Because For In that May be inferred form As Given that Seeing that For the reason that Inasmuch as Owing to

9. Evaluating a Simple Argument The possibility of nuclear weapons in the hands of rouge states poses great danger to the safety of the United States. An anti-ballistic missile system offers protection from the threat of ballistic missiles. Therefore, the nation must build a missile defense system. P1: The possibility of nuclear weapons in the hands of rouge states poses great danger to the safety of the United States. P2: An anti-ballistic missile system offers protection from the threat of ballistic missiles. C: Therefore, the nation must build a missile defense system.

10. Analyzing Simple Arguments I Since the good, according to Plato, is that which furthers a person�s real interests, it follows that in any given instance when the good is known, men will seek it. As the denial or perversion of justice by the sentences of courts, as well an in any other manner, is with reason classed among the just causes of war, it will follow that the federal judiciary ought to have cognizance of all causes in which the citizens of other countries are concerned. (Hamilton, The Federalist No. 80. ) Punishment, when speedy and specific , may suppress undesirable behavior, but it cannot teach or encourage desirable alternatives. Therefore, it is crucial to use positive techniques to model and reinforce appropriate behavior that the person can use in place of the unacceptable response that has been suppressed. (Mischel and Mischel, Essentials of Psychology) To every existing thing God wills some good. Hence, to love any thing is nothing else than to will good to that thing, it is manifest that God loves everything that exists. (Aquinas, Summa Theologica) Poverty offers numerous benefits to the nonpoor. Antipoverty programs provide jobs for middle-class professionals in social work, penology and public health. Such workers� future advancement is tied to the continual growth of bureaucracies dependent on the existence of poverty. (Palen, Social Problems)

11. Analyzing Simple Arguments I (cont) If a piece of information is not �job relevant,� then the employer is not entitled qua employer to know it. Consequently, since sexual practices, political beliefs, associational activities, etc., are not part of the description of most jobs, that is, since they do not directly affect one�s job performance, the are not legitimate information for an employer to know in the determination of the hiring of a job applicant. (Brentken, �Privacy, Polygraphs and Work�) Anyone familiar with our prison system knows that there are some inmates who behave little better than brute beasts. But the very fact that these prisoners exist is a telling argument against the death penalty. If the death penalty had been a truly effective deterrent, such prisoners would long ago have vanished. (�The Injustice of the Death Penalty,� America) Since the secondary light [from the moon] does not inherently belong to the moon, and is not received from any star or from the sun, and since in the whole universe there is no other body left but the earth, what must we conclude? What is to be proposed? Surely we must assert that the lunar body (or any other dark and sunless orb) is illuminated by the earth. (Galilei, The Starry Messenger) Neither a borrower not a lender be, For loan oft loses both itself and friend, And Borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry. (Shakespeare, Hamlet) The possibility of nuclear weapons in the hands of rouge states poses great danger to the safety of the United States. An anti-ballistic missile system offers protection from the threat of ballistic missiles. Therefore, the nation must build a missile defense system.

12. Simple Arguments II University administrators know well the benefits that follow notable success in college sports: increased applications for admissions [sic], increased income from licensed logo merchandise, more lucrative television deals, post-season game revenue and more successful alumni fund drives. The idea that there is something ideal and pure about the amateur athlete is self-serving bunk. (anon letter to and editor) College is a time in which a young mind is supposed to mature and acquire wisdom, and one can only do this by experiencing as much diverse intellectual stimuli as possible. A business student may be a whiz at accounting, but has he or she ever experienced the beauty of a Shakespearean sonnet or the boundless events of Hebrew history? Most likely not. While many of these neoconservatives will probably go on to be financially successful, they are robbing themselves of the true purpose of collegiate academics, a sacrifice that outweighs future salary checks. (Griffith, �Conservative College Press.�) At a time when our religious impulses might help heal the pains and strains in our society, today�s television pulpiteers preach intolerance, censure, and discrimination. They package a �believer life-style,� and rail against everyone who doesn�t fit it � homosexuals, communists, Jews, and other non-Christians, sex educators and so on. Such intolerance threatens to undermine the pluralism that marks our heritage, The packaging of that intolerance in slick Hollywood programming or under the guise of patriotic fervor is skillfully accomplished on many fronts. That, however, does not make it right. (Kreitler, �TV Preachers� Religious Intolerance�)

13. Simple Arguments II Most of the environmental Problems facing us stem, at least in part, from the sheer number of Americans. The average American produces three quarters of a ton of garbage every year, consumes hundreds of gallons of gasoline and uses large amounts of electricity (often from a nuclear power plant, coal burning, or a dam). The least painful way to protect the environment is to limit population growth. (anon, letter to an editor)

14. Identifying Arguments Conditions for the presence of an argument: �One of the statements must claim to present evidence of something.� �There must be a claim that the alleged evidence provides support for or the implication of something.� For our purposes, the truth value of the statements is immaterial. All that matters is that a claim be made or implied.

15. Types of Claims Factual � Condition 1 on the preceding slide. Relatively easy to identify. Inferential � Condition 2 on the preceding slide. More difficult to isolate. The passage expresses a reasoning process, that one or more elements in the passage supports a conclusion.

16. Types of Inferential Claims Explicit � Usually asserted by a premise or conclusion indicator. E.g. The human eye can see a source of light as faint as an ordinary candle at a distance of 27 kilometers, through a non-absorbing atmosphere. Thus, a power searchlight directed from a new moon should be visible on earth to the naked eye. (Papalia and Olds, Psychology) Implicit � May not include indicator words. E.g. The price reduction[seen with the electronic calculator] is the result of of a technological revolution. The calculator of the 1960s used integrated electronic circuits that contained about a dozen transistors or similar components on a single chip. Today, mass produced chips, only a few millimeters square, contain several thousand such components. (Biokess and Edelson, Chemical Principles) Identify the premises and conclusions in each. How?Identify the premises and conclusions in each. How?

17. Arguments that Aren�t The mere presence of indicator words in a sentence does not guarantee that an argument is present. Compare Since Edison invented the phonograph, there have been many technological advances. Since Edison invented the phonograph, he deserves credit for a major technological development. Since in a temporal sense. Since in the logical sense.Since in a temporal sense. Since in the logical sense.

18. Types of Non-Arguments Simple Non-Inferential Passages (lack a claim of proof) Warnings � unsupported expressions intended to put someone on notice of a possible danger Be careful on the train to Comiskey Park. Advice � recommendations for future conduct If you take a course from Wenzel get several sets of earplugs and stock up on NoDoz.

19. Simple Non-Inferential Passages (cont). Statements of opinion � unsupported statements of the author�s (or someone else�s) belief(s). A nation with a high moral tradition has an obligation to ensure that education is available to all of its citizens. Loosely Associated Statements � generally related but lack an assertion of proof. Not to value men of worth will keep people from contention; not to value goods that are hard to come by will keep them from theft; not to display what is desirable will keep them from being unsettled of mind. (Lao-Tzu, Thoughts from Tao Te Ching)

20. Simple Non-Inferential Passages (cont). Reports � simple provision of information E.g. A brush fire raging in mountains above Moreno Valley, California is threatening a number of homes including that of a former dean of the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences. Can serve as premises for an argument, but because no supportive linkage is claimed, no argument exists.

21. Expository Passages Consist of a topic statement, followed by one or more sentences that elaborate on or develop the topic. If no attempt is made to prove a contention, no argument exists. There is a stylized relation of the artist to mass audience in sports, especially in baseball. Each player develops a style of his own � the swagger as he steps to the plate, the unique windup a pitcher has, the clean-swinging and hard-driving hits, the precision and grace of infield and outfield, the sense of surplus power behind whatever is done. (Lerner, America as a Civilization)

22. Expository Passages (cont.) In some cases expository passages can be treated as arguments. Skin and mucus membrane lining the respiratory and digestive tracts serve as mechanical barriers to entry by microbes. Oil gland secretions contain chemicals that weaken or kill bacteria on the skin. The respiratory tract is lined by cells that sweep mucus and trapped particles up into the throat, where they can be swallowed. The stomach has an acid pH, which inhibits the growth of many types of bacteria. (Mader, Human Biology) Add, American�s obsession with cleanliness is unhealthy. Add, American�s obsession with cleanliness is unhealthy.

23. Illustrations A statement on a topic accompanied by one or more references to examples of the subject phenomenon. At high speeds ordinary objects behave in unexpected ways. For example, tornados have been know to drive small twigs through homes� wood siding.

24. Explanations A group of statements that shed light on an event the existence of which is generally agreed upon as a matter of fact. The space shuttle Challenger exploded because an O-ring failed in one of the booster rockets. The United States won the battle of Midway because the Japanese Navy suffered from overconfidence. If the subject is not the focus of disagreement, the system is usually not an argument.If the subject is not the focus of disagreement, the system is usually not an argument.

25. Conditional Statements A statement in the form of �if [antecedent], then [consequent]� is not an argument. These may also be stated in the form, �[consequent] if [antecedent].� If you add water to a bucket it will weigh more than it did before. If both Saturn and Uranus have rings, then Saturn has rings. Can the second statement be stated in terms of an argument? How?

26. Conditional Statements (cont.) Conditional Statements can be related to arguments, either as premises, conclusions, or both. If fast food vendors warn of the dangers of hot coffee, consumers assume the risk of burning themselves if they drink coffee while driving. FF vendors put warning labels on coffee cups. Therefore, consumers assume the risk of burns. If power companies make bad investments, they will be threatened with bankruptcy. If power companies are threatened with bankruptcy, the taxpayers will be forced to bail them out. Therefore, if power companies make bad investments, the taxpayers will be forced to bail them out.

27. Conditional Statements (cont.) Rules for conditional statements A single conditional statement is not an argument A conditional statement may serve as the premise of an argument, the conclusion, or both. The inferential content of a conditional statement may be reexpressed to form an argument.

28. Induction and Deduction Deductive � an argument that contains premises that are presented in such a way that, if the premises are true, the conclusion must be true. Inductive � a probabilistic style of argument. The support provided by the premises (if true) makes it likely, but not necessary that the conclusion is true.

29. Deductive Arguments The Matterhorn is higher than Mount Whitney and Mount Whitney is higher than Mount Rainier. Therefore, the Matterhorn is higher than Mount Rainier.

30. Types of Deductive Arguments Arguments based on mathematics � E.g. a piece of property is measured to be 100 feet wide by 200 feet deep. The property contains 20000 square feet. Arguments from definitions � arguments based simply on the definition of one or more of the words in the premise or conclusion. E.g. George is obtuse because he is not terribly bright. Syllogisms � a form of argument consisting of two premises and one conclusion.

31. Syllogisms Three types Categorical � based on a quantification using terms such as �all,� �no,� or �some.� All women are short. Elena is a woman Therefore, Elena is short. Hypothetical � a syllogism having a conditional statement as one or both premises If quartz scratches glass, then quartz is harder than glass. Quartz scratches glass. Therefore, quartz is harder than glass. Disjunctive � a syllogism that incorporates a disjunctive term (an �either� � �or� statement) as a premise.

32. Inductive Arguments Predictions � a prediction of some future event based on knowledge of past events. E.g. forecasting the weather (see chaos theory) Arguments from analogy � a condition affect a known thing or situation is applied to a lesser known thing or situation because of attributes the two share. Joe�s Pinto is extremely fast. Therefore, Thomas� Pinto is also fast. Inductive generalization � generalizing to a group based on knowledge of a sample. See opinion surveys

33. Induction (cont.) Argument from authority � argument based on a statement or statements made by a authority on the subject. Causal inference � arguments that proceed from an understanding of cause and effect. If you know that a bottle of water was left in the freezer overnight you might conclude that it had frozen. The Case of the Phantom sprinkler.