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Module-1 Third Part

The document outlines the concept of valid arguments in propositional logic, where premises lead to a conclusion. It introduces rules of inference, which are essential for constructing valid argument forms without using tedious truth tables. Several key rules of inference are listed, along with examples demonstrating their application in establishing the validity of arguments.

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3 views10 pages

Module-1 Third Part

The document outlines the concept of valid arguments in propositional logic, where premises lead to a conclusion. It introduces rules of inference, which are essential for constructing valid argument forms without using tedious truth tables. Several key rules of inference are listed, along with examples demonstrating their application in establishing the validity of arguments.

Uploaded by

hahhsjj
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© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

RULES OF INFERENCE

An argument in propositional logic is a sequence of


propositions. All but the final proposition in the argument
are called premises and the final proposition is called the
conclusion. An argument is valid if the truth of all its
premises implies that the conclusion is true.

Consider a valid argument of the form


(p1  p2  p3  …  pn)  q.
Here, n is a positive integer, the statements p1, p2, p3,…, pn
are called the premises of the argument and the
statement q is the conclusion for the argument.
From the definition of a valid argument form we see that the
argument form with premises p1, p2, p3,…, pn and conclusion q
is valid, when (p1  p2  p3  …  pn)  q is a tautology.
Note: We can always use a truth table to show that an
argument form is valid. We do this by showing that whenever
the premises are true, the conclusion must also be true.
However, this can be a tedious approach. For example, when
an argument form involves 10 different propositional variables,
to use a truth table to show this argument form is valid
require 210 = 1024 different rows. Fortunately, we do not have
to resort to truth tables. Instead, we can first establish the
validity of some relatively simple argument forms, called rules
of inference. These rules of inference can be used as building
blocks to construct more complicated valid argument forms.
Rules of Inference for Propositional Logic

We will now introduce the most important


rules of inference in propositional logic:
1. Rule of detachment or Modus ponens

2. Rule of syllogism
3. Modus Tollens

4. Rule of Disjunctive Syllogism


5. Rule of Disjunctive Amplification

6. Rule of Conjunctive Simplification

7. Rule of Conjunction
8. Rule of Resolution

Remark: There are many rules of inference. In the


above we have considered only most important rules of
inference in propositional logic.
Examples:
Establish the validity of the following argument:
1 --- pq Given Premise
2 --- qs Given Premise

3 1and 2 ps Rule of syllogism

4 3 sp By Contrapositive
5 --- pr Given Premise

6 4 and 5 sr Rule of syllogism


7 --- rs By Contrapositive

Hence, the given argument is valid argument.


Establish the validity of the following argument:

1 --- pq Given Premise


2 --- pr Given Premise
3 --- rs Given Premise
4 1 qp By Contrapositive
5 2 pr By Conditional law
6 3 rs By Conditional law
7 4 and 5 qr Rule of syllogism
8 7 and 6 qs Rule of syllogism

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