Questions tagged [logic]

Questions pertaining to logical constructs

Filter by
Sorted by
Tagged with
0 votes
2 answers
73 views

Term for a false implication trap like "if you're smart you'd agree with me"?

I hear this kind of false implications pretty often, e.g.: If you're smart you'd agree with me People who understand the situation would all agree that ... Anyone who says something else must be ...
Leo Jiang's user avatar
  • 191
-2 votes
2 answers
36 views

Use "and" and "or" in a single sentence to enable three options. Please parse [closed]

So I am trying to parse the following sentence structure: X must provide A and B or C. No commas are present and two coordinating conjunctions are present with no hints as to how to parse. I have ...
Thomas Craig's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
145 views

Specific type of deception or logic error

The word I'm looking for should describe a case where, during a logical argument, a person uses a word with multiple definitions in sense (1) in one part of the argument, but in another part of the ...
bielawski's user avatar
  • 163
1 vote
3 answers
229 views

Difference between "provided that" and "unless"?

Do these two sentences mean the same? Nothing is an offence which is done by a person who, at the time of doing it, is, by reason of intoxication, incapable of knowing the nature of the act, or that ...
Ramkay's user avatar
  • 47
0 votes
1 answer
112 views

Definition and usage of "Non-reciprocal"

What is the precise meaning of "non-reciprocal?" Two definitions of "reciprocal" taken from the Merriam-Webster dictionary are: shared, felt, or shown by both sides serving to ...
Emmy B's user avatar
  • 1
1 vote
0 answers
51 views

Shouldn't the answer to this question be not given? [closed]

Here is a link to the full passage: https://ieltsfever.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/ieltsfever-general-reading-practice-test-3-pdf.pdf There's a question in the IELTS reading section. Here is the ...
Elsheemi Mahmoud's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
53 views

Is this an ambiguous use of "prior to" to convey logical precedence? [closed]

Consider the following sentence: Volcanic eruptions could not account for the high rate of the global collapse of ecosystems prior to the K-T extinction event. The usage of "prior to" is ...
Zongshu Wu's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
54 views

"The associations between x and y " vs "The associations of x with y"

When conducting and reporting a statistical analysis, is it more correct to state: "The associations between x and y " "The associations of x with y"? Or are both equally correct?...
SPet's user avatar
  • 1
-1 votes
1 answer
35 views

What is the best way to understand a sentence that has multiple "not"s thrown into it? [closed]

I'm studying for the GMAT, and the Critical Reasoning section has options such as Joe's Snack Shack will NOT become more popular UNLESS its exterior and interior are updated significantly. Is there ...
IhatetheGMAT's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
30 views

Is it correct to say that "sympathy" is a special case of "empathy"? [duplicate]

empathy = to understand someone else's feeling sympathy = to share someone's sorry/sad feeling In case of "empathy", one can understand someone's happy & sad feelings, while in "...
iammilind's user avatar
  • 317
0 votes
2 answers
59 views

If you know that all of something is true, is saying some of them is true, incorrect? [duplicate]

For example, suppose that it is a known fact that all the pens I have are blue. Statement 1: All my pens are blue Statement 2: Some of my pens are blue Similarly, Statement 1: All dogs are animals ...
nubprog's user avatar
  • 11
0 votes
0 answers
53 views

What does "they both can't be selected" mean? [duplicate]

The sentence "They both can't be selected", does that mean (1) None of them can be selected or (2) They both can't make it at the same time, only one of them can ? If I, for example, want to ...
Shafe's user avatar
  • 29
1 vote
0 answers
110 views

How can I convert logical operations to simple text [closed]

I am working on a software project that allows users to formulate logical statements in order to filter data. E. g. a user might set their filter as: (size = 100 and weight < 50) or (area > 200 ...
Moritz_st's user avatar
1 vote
3 answers
132 views

Potentially ambiguous sentence/understanding

I was reading the Monty Hall problem to discuss it with a friend. The problem is defined as: Suppose you're on a game show, and you're given the choice of three doors: Behind one door is a car; ...
StudentInFinance's user avatar
-1 votes
1 answer
55 views

"Between" meaning "against"

Fowler reads The regular or ‘weak’ form thrived has won the centuries-old battle between irregular or ‘strong’ throve as past tense and thriven as past participle. Is this usage of between ...
GJC's user avatar
  • 2,423
1 vote
0 answers
85 views

How to express "at least one" or "at least some" (of a countable or uncountable collection respetively), as in antivacuous statements?

Discrete (countable) case example: All/Some of the trees on this block are oak. [And there is at least one oak tree on the block, but possibly two or more.] Continuous (uncountable) case example: All/...
11qq00's user avatar
  • 150
1 vote
1 answer
86 views

Is there a word for the bias of not knowing what came before?

Is there a word or phrase for the bias of not knowing what came before? Of thinking that an idea under consideration is truly new? I'm looking for a word to describe the bias that comes from this ...
Raydot's user avatar
  • 213
-2 votes
1 answer
69 views

Must sentences that declare truth be declarative syntatically? [closed]

I'm reading a book about discrete math written by Kenneth H.Rose and in it he states that in mathematical logic, A proposition is a declarative sentence (that is, a sentence that declares a fact) ...
lmn32's user avatar
  • 1
0 votes
1 answer
50 views

Use of recurring words - 'somebody who' [closed]

Think of somebody who takes you for granted, somebody who is treating you with disgust, somebody who thinks about you as a thing to use. Is that sentence well written? I mean the recurring part '...
Melissa's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
105 views

Ambiguous question

I came across a whatsapp message a few years ago about a question framed in a manner that no matter what the person answers they will be considered that thing they want to deny being. Unfortunately, I ...
Saifur Rahman Mohsin's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
88 views

Evaluating a sequence of logical clauses that are chained using "and" and "or" [duplicate]

How do you evaluate a logical statement that has multiple condition clauses "If A or B and C"? From method 1 & 2 below, which is the correct/common interpretation? If A is true, or both ...
Lukman's user avatar
  • 1,244
0 votes
2 answers
84 views

Does "Either must die at the hand of the other" imply both that A can only be killed by B and that B can only be killed by A?

The prophesy made by Professor Trelawney about Harry Potter includes the phrase "Either must die at the hand of the other", speaking of Harry and Lord Voldemort. Does this mean that both ...
mherzl's user avatar
  • 153
0 votes
0 answers
50 views

"Between each" and Other Constructions with Fewer than Two Objects

Page 112 of Garner's fourth edition reads ✳Between each and Other Constructions with Fewer than Two Objects This phrasing is a peculiar brand of illogic, ✳between each house/speech,instead of, ...
GJC's user avatar
  • 2,423
0 votes
1 answer
51 views

What is a "contingent argument" (outside of law or theology)?

I heard John McWhorter use this term and as best I could tell he was referring to an argument based on a something existing in the world rather than on logic. E.g., I feel offended, so therefore what ...
Jimmy Bernstein's user avatar
0 votes
3 answers
93 views

How to ask a question and correctly tell its logic in the following case?

My question is about logic in English. (In my native language (it's Russian) the logical words used in this case may differ, I'm not sure.) Available variants of the question are: How to list all ...
whyer's user avatar
  • 111
2 votes
4 answers
503 views

Phrase that encapsulates flawed logic in making the excuse "everyone does it"?

I heard someone use a phrase that I thought perfectly captures this but can't remember it. It was used in a situation where what someone did was clearly wrong, but they pointed out that everyone else ...
Jimmy Bernstein's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
61 views

many a: distributive idiom

According to Garner's fourth edition, there is many a person is the correct verbal agreement because many a is a distributive rather than aggregate idiom. What does the author refer to by the ...
GJC's user avatar
  • 2,423
0 votes
2 answers
91 views

Is there any single word in English to represent domain of "logic and science" together?

Is there any single word in English to represent domain of "logic and science" together? Background Some of my friends are going to start an online movement whose main purpose would be ...
Sazzad Hissain Khan's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
54 views

Grammatical Rules of Construction or Logic to Resolve Some Seemingly Contradictory Legislation

One of the things attorneys, such as myself, do often is argue over the meaning of a statute. Often this comes down to grammatical arguments about the location of commas, the use of conjunctions, etc. ...
Jim Simson's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
153 views

Why is the clause "They filled me in on all the latest news from Cambridge" correct?

Why is it not like the following: They filled the latest news from Cambridge in me.
Harshit's user avatar
  • 127
4 votes
1 answer
443 views

Is there a word in logic, or science, that means getting the right conclusion from the wrong set of presumptions?

Is there a word in logic, or science, that means getting the right conclusion from the wrong set of presumptions? Or alternatively, something is correct, but the explanation of why is incorrect. Is ...
Eric's user avatar
  • 41
1 vote
1 answer
384 views

Is there a word to describe a plausible but incorrect explanation? [duplicate]

I'm thinking of something where somebody (with no malicious intention) offers a very plausible and scientific-sounding explanation (not a theory but something presented as a series of facts) such that ...
user avatar
-1 votes
1 answer
133 views

Can (or should) "prevalent" be gradable? [closed]

Well, that's all. Can it? Is it not illogical to say that something is "more prevalent"? Is "prevalent" not, by definition, superlative? Is it not like saying that something is "more best"?
Jules Cocovin's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
178 views

"No accident is too severe to ignore" vs "No accident is too trivial to ignore"

etymology - How does a word come to have two completely opposite meanings? - English Language & Usage Stack Exchange specifically with the case of words taking on their opposite meanings, a ...
user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
285 views

What or which before plural noun

Is "What things are safe?", instead of "which things are safe?", grammatical and good usage? Here is an example in a (simplified) context: In this formula, we use predicate Psafe, ...
Blaisorblade's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
5k views

What is the opposite of the word "Not"? [closed]

We are working on a technical manual and we'd like to have a word that is opposite to the word "Not". Generally, the accepted way to address this is to omit the word itself. In this case however, it ...
Eric Kigathi's user avatar
  • 1,273
0 votes
2 answers
158 views

Word for logical AND-or-OR-ness property

Suppose I have a set of criteria used in digital searches (such as "year is earlier than 1900", "name begins with S"). The user can choose whether to search for records matching ALL of their criteria, ...
equin0x80's user avatar
  • 593
3 votes
2 answers
137 views

Is the sentence logical?

It had been sunny for a week when the storm broke out. Is this sentence logically valid and sound? If I think of it, it looks like it means when the storm broke out, it was sunny. There couldn't be ...
Let's user avatar
  • 235
1 vote
1 answer
64 views

A footnote refers to the wrong document - what is a word to describe this kind of mistake?

Well, the title question says it all I think: A footnote refers to the wrong document - what is a word to describe this kind of mistake? Words like "discrepancy", "incongruence", "fallacy", or ...
Notabot's user avatar
  • 23
1 vote
1 answer
2k views

Is the usage "all ... are not" always the same as "not all ... are"?

Is it true that both the following lines are identical in English? All dogs are animals. All animals are not dogs. All dogs are animals. Not all animals are dogs. In some other languages, (1) and (2)...
nonopolarity's user avatar
  • 3,023
1 vote
0 answers
381 views

without X and without Y

I want to express absence of 2 things. For example: It was a pretty day without rain and without snow. Logically: (not X) and (not Y), which is equivalent to: not (X or Y) Therefore, I guess the ...
Christian's user avatar
  • 111
0 votes
1 answer
76 views

What's it called when you use a hypothetical claim to disprove another claim?

So what I'm asking is probably niche, but it's one of those things that I'm not sure what to call it by, so apologies if the title seems off. I think the best way to describe it is to use an example: ...
Shadowtail's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
432 views

What is the word for knowing you are in someone's thoughts?

"Knowing you are in someone's thoughts" - is there a word for it? The concept comes from Epistemic logic and the psychology of wellbeing depending on knowing someone's else thinking of you.
mosh's user avatar
  • 101
0 votes
1 answer
117 views

Using argumentum ad verecundiam as a verb

When referring to logical fallacies in code mixed sentences, I typically see them used as nouns: "Of course I'm cool, my mom says I'm cool!" "That appears to be an argumentum ad verecundiam." If ...
Vivian's user avatar
  • 476
2 votes
1 answer
103 views

What is the difference between these two sentences? "If A is true, then B is true" and "Since A is true, B is true"

Consider the following two sentences: If A is true, then we can conclude that B is true. Since A is true, we can conclude that B is true. I have two questions: What is the difference ...
iwbtrs's user avatar
  • 159
0 votes
2 answers
66 views

What is the average reader most likely to guess that “If they don’t have A or both B and C” was exactly intended to mean?

There is a sentence saying "If they don't have A or both B and C," I interpret it means "If they have no A or if they have neither B or C". Am I correct? The condition seems to me that having only B ...
sumomo's user avatar
  • 1
1 vote
3 answers
301 views

Trying to understand the logic behind this sentence: The lecture will be given if at least ten people are there

I am not really sure whether my question is suitable here, but I will give it a try. Consider the following sentence: The lecture will be given if at least ten people are there. From the perspective ...
iwbtrs's user avatar
  • 159
2 votes
2 answers
58 views

Logical implications of 'than they would be if …'? [closed]

Given: Proof-of-concept technologies, although important, are less valuable than they would be if they were supported by careful experiments that identify key attributes of the design or ...
user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
139 views

Is ‘the reason why’ somehow objectionable?

It has just come to my attention that some consider ‘the reason why’ ungrammatical or otherwise unfortunate. David Crystal mentions it in his introduction to Fowler's Dictionary of Modern English ...
Toothrot's user avatar
  • 1,052
15 votes
6 answers
5k views

Term for the "extreme-extension" version of a straw man fallacy?

Take the most obvious, unimpeachable statement imaginable: Drinking water is good for humans. I am looking for a word that describes the action of taking the argument, applying some unreasonable ...
user1717828's user avatar
  • 2,955

1
2 3 4 5