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8. |
COURSE OUTLINE |
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1.0 |
BASIC CONCEPTS. Arguments, Premises, and Conclusions. Recognizing Arguments. Deduction and Induction. Validity, Truth, Soundness, Strength, Cogency. Argument Forms: Proving Invalidity. Extended Arguments. |
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LECTURE OVER BASIC CONCEPTS AND TERMS WRITING ASSIGNMENTS EXPLAINED: An argument is a form of expression that is intended to prove something. The statement that is supposed to be proved is the conclusion, and the statements that accomplish the proving are the premises. These topics are covered in the first chapter of A Concise Introduction to Logic, and we will use many of the principles developed there in writing arguments. The writing exercises that follow this section give practice in writing basic arguments. They consist of a brief description of a situation involving human interaction, a conclusion that your argument must support, and a set of facts that pertain to this situation. Only certain of these facts are relevant to the designated conclusion. In working the exercises, you should follow this four-step procedure: 1. Read the exercise and the accompanying facts. 2. Eliminate the facts that are irrelevant to the designated conclusion. 3. Supplement the remaining facts with additional facts drawn from your own experience and inferences that these facts imply. 4. Using these facts as premises, write an argument that supports the designated conclusion. TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES FOR PRESENTATIONS - Internet, CD-ROM, and Powerpoint information. QUIZ over terms.
Logic and critical thinking - exercise one. |
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2.0 |
LANGUAGE: MEANING AND DEFINITION. Varieties of Meaning. The Intension and Extension of Terms. Definitions and Purposes. Definitional Techniques. Criteria for Lexical Definitions. |
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Lecture over terms. Writing assignment 1 due. Critical thinking exercise 2.Discussion about written research paper and presentations. Writing assignment two issued on definitional techniques. Logic Quiz 2 . |
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3.0 |
INFORMAL FALLACIES. Fallacies in General. Fallacies of Relevance. Fallacies of Weak Induction. Fallacies of Presumption, Ambiguity, and Grammatical Analogy. Fallacies in Ordinary Language. |
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Lecture over Informal Fallacies. Critical thinking exercise 3. Class to explore examples of fallacies in news media. Demonstrate how to create PowerPoint for project presentations. Logic quiz 3.Essay Test One issued. |
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4.0 |
CATEGORICAL PROPOSITIONS. The Components of Categorical Propositions. Quality, Quantity, and Distribution. Venn Diagrams and the Modern Square of Opposition. Conversion, Obversion, and Contraposition. The Traditional Square of Opposition. Venn Diagrams and the Traditional Standpoint. Translating Ordinary Language Statements into Categorical Form. |
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Lecture over categorical propositions. Lecture over Venn diagrams using PowerPoint. Essay test one due. More PowerPoint tips for presentation. Lecture over internet research. Logic quiz 4& 5.Writing assignment three issued. Review of Essay test one. |
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5.0 |
CATEGORICAL SYLLOGISMS. Standard Form, Mood, and Figure. Venn Diagrams. Rules and Fallacies. Reducing the Number of Terms. Ordinary Language Arguments. Enthymemes. Sorties. |
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Lectures over categorical syllogisms. Writing assignment four issued. Rough draft for research paper due. Critical thinking exercise 4. |
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6.0 |
PROPOSITIONAL LOGIC. Symbols and Translation. Truth Functions. Truth Tables for Propositions. Truth Tables for Arguments. Indirect Truth Tables. Argument Forms and Fallacies. |
| Lectures over propositional logic. Writing assignment five. Logic quiz 6&7. Research papers due. Essay test two issued. |
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7.0 |
NATURAL DEDUCTION IN PROPOSITIONAL LOGIC. Rules of Implication I. Rules of Implication II. Rules of Replacement I. Rules o f Replacement II. Conditional Proof. Indirect Proof. Proving Logical Truths. |
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Lectures over natural deduction in propositional logic. Essay test two due. Logic quiz 8. Critical thinking exercise five. Student presentations over research papers start (students to use PowerPoint.) |
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8.0 |
PREDICATE LOGIC. Symbols and Translation. Using the Rules of Inference. Change of Quantifier Rule . Conditional and Indirect Proof. Proving Invalidity. Relational Predicates and Overlapping Quantifiers. Identity. |
| Lectures over predicate logic. Student presentations over research papers start (students to use PowerPoint.) Logic quiz 9&10. Final Essay test issued. |
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9.0 |
INDUCTION. Analogy and Legal and Moral Reasoning. Causality and Mill's Methods. Probability . Statistical Reasoning. Hypothetical/Scientific Reasoning. Science and Superstition. |
| Lecture and summary of course. Final essay due. Student presentations over research papers start (students to use PowerPoint.) |