Modern Logic 404-01 Fall 2005   Instructor: Dr. Joe Salerno Office: 207, Humanities Bldg. Office Hours: Tuesday 1:00-3:00, or by appointment Phone: 977 3152 Email: salernjr@slu.edu Text: Logic Primer, by Colin Allen and Michael Hand Internet Resources: Daemon Proofchecker and Quizmaster, by Colin Allen and Chris Menzel

Syllabus Subject to Change

Gottlob Frege: Published the first complete predicate logic in 1879

Here's a book I wrote about how Frege got there. Serves nicely as an introductory text in the philosophy of language

Course Objectives: The course is a study of classical propositional and predicate logic (with identity). We develop a theory of valid inference adequate to evaluate most deductive reasoning found in actual use. We study the concepts of consistency, contradiction, validity, proof, logical truth, logical meaning, semantic equivalence, and related notions. The student should emerge from the course with reliable tools for constructing and evaluating deductive arguments.

Grading: Grading will be based upon the performance on the 10 quizzes (2% each) and 2 exams (40% each), with such things as improvement or serious deterioration in performance, class participation, and willingness to seek help with course material being taken into account where appropriate. Exams will be graded on roughly the following 0-100 point scale:

A: 90-100
B: 80-89
C: 70-79
D: 60-69
F: 0-59

This grading scale was designed to fit the following interpretation of the various grades:

A: A solid performance that reveals no fundamental shortcomings either in understanding or ability to discuss the material.
B: A few serious shortcomings (or perhaps a number of minor ones) but still clearly above a minimally acceptable performance.
C: A minimally acceptable performance, probably revealing a good number of serious shortcomings.
D: Unacceptable performance but with some evidence that something has been learned.
F: Inexcusable.