Undergraduate Course: Logic 1 (PHIL08004)
Course Outline
| School | School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 8 (Year 1 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course is an introduction to what is known as formal or symbolic logic, requiring no prior knowledge of philosophy or mathematics. The core goal is to impart a skill: the ability to differentiate between "good" and "bad" arguments. Students will learn how to construct valid deductive arguments and how to identify and refute through counterexamples arguments that are invalid. The material is progressive, beginning with the basics of propositional logic and building up to (monadic) predicate logic. Asides will place the formal apparatus in context, motivating various technical developments and stressing points of contact with other modes of formal analysis, such a probabilstic reasoning and game theory. Formal developments will be illustrated with real world practical applications and argument analysis. |
| Course description |
Not entered
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | Priority will be given to Year 1 students, in particular those who need to take this course as a requirement of their degree programme. |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2026/27, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 0 |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 33,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 9,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
154 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
70 %,
Coursework
30 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Midterm take-home assignment - 30%
Exam (2 hours) - 70%
Weekly formative assignments - 0% |
| Feedback |
Not entered |
| Exam Information |
| Exam Diet |
Paper Name |
Minutes |
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| Main Exam Diet S2 (April/May) | Logic 1 Exam | 120 | |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Translate English sentences (and arguments) into the logical system.
- Construct derivations of valid arguments in predicate logic.
- Demonstrate the invalidity of an argument by constructing a countermodel.
- Understand the basic concepts of propositional and predicate logic.
- Assess any philosophical argument in terms of the logical systems learned for validity or invalidity.
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Additional Information
| Course URL |
https://uoe.sharepoint.com/sites/hss/ppls/PPLS-Undergraduate-Student-Hub-home/SitePages/Handbooks-%26-Course-Guides-Philosophy.aspx |
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
In this course, students will learn various methods for evaluating arguments. By the end of term, students will be able to skillfully analyze arguments in a more methodical/scientific way. This will enable them to communicate in writing more effectively and to read complicated texts more efficiently. The core concepts and theories of this course will play a big role in future philosophy courses. Every area of philosophy relies on logic.
Core skills gained on this course:
Critical analysis, deconstructing complex theories, reading technical texts, problem solving, decision making (which definition to use), using data systems, written and oral communication, resilience/perseverance. |
| Additional Class Delivery Information |
Lecturer:
Alistair Isaac
9 weeks of Logic Lab drop-in sessions. |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Alistair Isaac
Tel: (0131 6)51 5174
Email: A.M.C.Isaac@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Miss Claudia Kenyon
Tel:
Email: ckenyon3@ed.ac.uk |
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