24.241  Logic I

Practice final exam for Logic I

There is a practice final exam posted on the Stellar site under "Materials." It's a lot like the real thing. The real thing will be on Monday the 17th at 9 a.m. Also there will be a revuew session Friday at 6:30 in 32-D461.

Announced on 11 December 2018  2:36  p.m. by Vann McGee

PS11 is due December 6.

Announced on 02 December 2018  11:06  a.m. by Vann McGee

PS 1O. Really bad typo.

There was a really bad typo in the problem set due November 29. In part II,there are three caveats. The third one should read “c does not appear in ψ (psi),” and not “c does not appear in Δ (delta)..” I apolgize for the error. I hope it didn’t cause you to waste too much of your time. (Thanks to Patrick McKee for pointing it out.)

Announced on 28 November 2018  9:06  a.m. by Vann McGee

PS6 Corrected date

The copies of PS6 I handed out on Thursday listed the due date as Thursday, November 5. I can't wait that long. November 5 won't fall on a Thursday until 2022. I meant to make it due this Thursday, October 25. Sorry about the confusion.

Announced on 20 October 2018  8:46  p.m. by Vann McGee

General class information

An introduction to the aims and techniques of formal logic. Logic is the science of correct argument, and our study of logic will have both theoretical and practical goals. The theoretical aim is to understand what makes a correct argument good. What is it about the structure of a correct argument that guarantees that, if the premisses are all true, the conclusion will be true as well? Our subject will be truth and proof, and the connection between them. The practical aim is to help you learn to reason better, with greater clarity and precision, so that you’ll produce good arguments and you’ll scorn bad arguments when you’re confronted with them.

The text for the course will be a manuscript I wrote, entitled Logic: The Art of Persuasion and the Science of Truth. I’m still tinkering with it. The text is available on-line at the class Stellar site, https://stellar.mit.edu/S/course/24/fa18/24.241/ , under “Materials.” We’ll study the topics that appear there, in the order in which they’re listed under “Materials.” (There’s also a version of the text on OpenCourseWare, but it’s out-of-date.) Homework assignments, homework answers, announcements, and so on on will also be posted on the Stellar site. If, for some reason, you are not now officially enrolled in the class, please send me an e-mail and let me know, so that I can add your name to the class list, giving you immediate full access to the site.

There will be weekly problems sets. In calculating grades, I’ll throw out the lowest homework score. I encourage you to work together on the problems, but when you sit down to write up your final answers, please do it by yourself, without looking at anyone else’s work. This is important, since the scores on the problem sets are the biggest component of your final grade.

There will be a mandatory 3-hour final exam, which will carry the same weight as three problem sets. It will be a closed-book exam, althouh you’ll be allowed to have a crib sheet.

You will be required to attend class. Attendance will be taken, and cumulative attendance will count the same as one pset. The last time I taught the class, which was three years ago, I required attendance, and I was amazed how much better people did on the final exam that they did in earlier years.

My reuular office hours will be Tuesdays right after clss, upstairs in32-D931, but other times can be arranged if you have questions. E-mail: vmcgee@mit.edu. Phone: 617-253-6394.

Announced on 06 September 2018  3:50  a.m. by Vann McGee