by Albert Major

Introduction to Logic

What is logic?

An ARGUMENT is any collection of premises together with a conclusion

Example argument:

A good argument lets you “derive” the conclusion from the premises. A bad argument will not.

Arguments can be “bad” in two ways:

• Content: One or more premises are false
• Form: Conclusion does not follow from premises

This definition will be on the exam:

An argument is VALID if and only if it is impossible for all of its premises to be true and the conclusion false

Example of a valid argument: