Newbie Help Please

Jumper

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Jul 12, 2003, 10:24:22 AM7/12/03

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I'm trying to read papers on logic as a hobby.
I am a BIG time newbie here!
I can understand the english words that people can look up in
dictionaries just fine.

When I run into these symbols, I have NO CLUE what they are supposed
to stand for.

Not only that, but nobody seems to bother commenting on what they're
supposed to stand for, when these papers are written.

I can't find a website on these symbols either.

Does anyone know of a web site that explains these symbols in very
plain language?

There appears to be a standardized language for logical symbols that
is used in academia. I'm assuming this to be the case because these
weird symbols are thrown around in every paper I encounter, without
the author bothering to explain them or provide web links to
interpret them.

It would seem very odd to me if there is not a web site for these
symbols. Why? Because all of these great philosophy sites from
arounbd the world seem to be dying for papers that can help solve some
of the current stumpers.

Somehow I'm missing something in my web searches, because it seems
absurd to me that there would be no major site on the web devoted only
to this subject.

Thank you much for the help in advance!

William Elliot

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Jul 13, 2003, 1:16:44 AM7/13/03

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On Sat, 12 Jul 2003, Jumper wrote:

> When I run into these symbols, I have NO CLUE what they are supposed
> to stand for.
>

Neither do we, we don't know what you're seeing.
If you're reading papers, your expected to have sufficient backgroud.
Books, on the other hand, usually explain all their terminology.

~ not
& and
v or
-> implies
<-> equivalent
(Ax) for all x
(Ex) some x with

Jumper

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Jul 13, 2003, 2:22:10 AM7/13/03

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On Sat, 12 Jul 2003 22:16:44 -0700, William Elliot <ma...@xx.com>
wrote:

Thank you for the response. These symbols are not the type that I
encounter on a regular basis. I'm a bit perturbed that you feel
content in suggesting that I am 'expected' to have a sufficient
backround in order to read a paper on semantics or logic of
philosophy.

Is this your way of saying that logical symbols are patented and
cannot be learned unless you spend thousands of dollars in the
university setting?

Again, this seems rather absurd. It can't be THAT difficult to have a
web page that lists the 100+ or so commonly used logical symbols with
little descriptors next to them like the way you organized it. I'm
actually a bit appaulled at how difficult such a compendium has been
to locate on the web. Don't these sites realize that this elusiveness
sort of makes them look completely hypocritical? I'm talking about
the APA (American Philosophical Association) site and others of that
caliber.

You would think if this topic is so important as they seem to suggest
it is to them, that they'd have a HUGE link on the front page,
introducing the standard symbols of logic and their descriptors!!

Am I just missing where this information is located on the web, or is
there some sort of nefariousness going on here, or are they just plain
stupid? I think these are valid questions considering...

I'm not talking about symbols you can type on the keyboard with a
normal font here. I don't see any of the symbols you highlighted in
the papers that I've been attempting to decypher. The symbols I see
are WEIRD, and VERY COMMONLY used!! I'm sure someone here knows what
I'm referring to!

Thx =)

LookinBob

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Jul 13, 2003, 2:26:13 AM7/13/03

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Try searching Google for "symbolic logic."

Jumper

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Jul 13, 2003, 2:43:49 AM7/13/03

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On Sun, 13 Jul 2003 06:26:13 GMT, rb...@att.net (LookinBob) wrote:

>Try searching Google for "symbolic logic."

I finally found a vein thanks to your suggestion!
I was using web ferret before, which happens to have google, with no
luck. *shrug*

http://www.alanwood.net/demos/symbol.html
http://www.earlham.edu/~peters/writing/logicsym.htm

Paul Holbach

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Jul 13, 2003, 6:15:20 PM7/13/03

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> just...@msn.com (Jumper) wrote in message news:<
> 3f10173c...@news.anonymousnewsfeed.com>...

> I'm trying to read papers on logic as a hobby.
> I am a BIG time newbie here!
> I can understand the english words that people can look up in
> dictionaries just fine.
>
> When I run into these symbols, I have NO CLUE what they are supposed
> to stand for.
>
> Not only that, but nobody seems to bother commenting on what they're
> supposed to stand for, when these papers are written.
>
> I can't find a website on these symbols either.
>
> Does anyone know of a web site that explains these symbols in very
> plain language?

See 'Introduction to Logic' (Oxford University):
http://logic.philosophy.ox.ac.uk

Regards
PH