Philosophy

Philosophy

Division and Classification: A Lecture in Logic

Posted Mon, 07/11/2011 - 13:41 by admin
“EVERYTHING IS IN PLACE and a place for everything”
          Our mind is a repository of wealth of information that needs methodical and and easy-to-use tool in accessing what we need to use in our everyday conversation, decision making, and for just simple mental recall. As rational beings, we most of the times need to organize our thoughts. Besides definition, we have another method of making our ideas clear in order to arrive at a better understanding of their meaning: the method of division and classification ...
 

10 Ethical Theses of Confucius

Posted Sat, 06/25/2011 - 15:27 by admin
MUCH OF CONFUCIUS’ TEACHING is directed toward the maintenance of three interlocking kinds of order: aesthetic, social, and moral. Though Confucius, as a teacher, emphasizes the “Six Arts”—ritual, music, archery, chariot-riding, calligraphy, and computation, he regards morality as the most important subject.
            The following are 10 of Confucius’ ethical theses.

1. Moral education is important because it is the means by which one can rectify a nation’s unpleasant situation and restore meaning to language and values to society.
 
2. Ethics must be practical and more concerned with earthly matters, such as good manners, treating others kindly, and enhancing family relations ...
 

Some Epistemological Distinctions

Posted Sat, 06/11/2011 - 15:46 by admin

Epistemology is a branch of knowledge which deals with the study of scope, limits, and validity of knowledge. This terminology originated from two Greek words episteme which means to know and logos which means study. Practically speaking, almost all of  epistemological claims in whatever line of inquiry – whether be it social or behavioral sciences or pure or applied mathematics, three fundamental questions must be satisfied: the first is What can I know? The second question is How can I know? And the third question is Why do I have to know?


The first question deals with the scope and possible limitation of what man can know as far as knowledge of the external world is concerned; the second question deals with the methodology or manner of acquiring knowledge ...
 

LOGIC: A Syllabus

Posted Mon, 05/30/2011 - 13:13 by admin
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WEEK 1

I. SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES:
To state the importance of Logic in communication and in man’s being social

II. TOPICS/SUBJECT MATTER:
‘LOGIC IN COMMUNICATION’; ‘Language is Logic’; Logic in good usage; The 2 kinds of reasoning; Validity & probability (brief orientation)

III. READING/S:
Internet article: “‘Logically’ Social (I)” & “‘Logically’ social (II)”
site: www.OurHappySchool.com (*the articles can be found by typing their title in the site’s own search engine) ...
 

The Categorical Proposition in Logic

Posted Mon, 05/30/2011 - 12:51 by admin
IN LOGIC, the statement that relates two classes or “categories” is called a categorical proposition. The classes in question are denoted respectively by the subject term and the predicate term. In effect, this type of proposition gives a direct assertion of agreement or disagreement between the two terms. The proposition asserts that either all or part of the class denoted by the subject term is included in or excluded from the classes denoted by the predicate term. Here are some examples of categorical statement.

1. All dogs are mammals.
2. No acids are bases.                                                                                 
3. Some philosophers are mathematicians.
4. Some Americans are not cheaters.
                                               
         The first example asserts that the whole class of dogs are included in the class of mammals; the second declares that the entire class of acids are excluded from the class of bases; the third states that a part of philosophers are included in the class of mathematicians; and the last one claims that a part of the class of Americans are excluded from the class of cheaters ...

On Judgment, Proposition, and Sentence: A Lecture in Logic

Posted Mon, 05/30/2011 - 12:34 by admin
IN LOGIC, term represents idea or concept. Ideas are the raw materials of knowledge but they cannot be said to be true or false in themselves. Only after we compare or contrast two or more ideas, or express relations, or an agreement or disagreement between them that we can speak of truth or falsity. The mental operation involved here is called judgment.
          Judgment is an act in which the mind pronounces the agreement or disagreement of ideas among themselves. It is an act in which the intellect affirms or denies one idea of another. For instance, our intellect may relate the ideas this dog and Dalmatian and affirm, This dog is a Dalmatian. This is an example of a judgment expressed in a proposition. The proposition therefore is the oral or written expression of the judgment. Often used interchangeably with statement, it as a verbal expression proclaiming a truth or falsity ...
 

On Definition: A Lecture in Logic

Posted Mon, 05/30/2011 - 12:24 by admin
DEFINITION IS A STATEMENT that gives the meaning of a term or explains what a term means. As it clarifies the limits by which a word or term should be used and understood, definition helps eliminate confusion and ambiguity in the use of terms, thereby minimizing, if not totally eradicating, misunderstanding and misconception in communication.
          Definition comprises two elements: the definiendum or the term to be defined; and the definiens or the defining term. In the definition, “Mathematics is the study of the relationships among numbers, shapes, and quantities,” Mathematics is the definiendum and the study of the relationships among numbers, shapes, and quantities is the definiens ...
 

The TERM in Logic

Posted Mon, 05/30/2011 - 12:11 by admin
BASICALLY, THE SUBJECT MATTER in studying Logic is argument. Argument comprises statements or propositions and propositions necessarily contain terms. Hence, studying Logic formally starts with the study of term.

Concept, idea, word, and term
One of our basic mental operations is simple apprehension. Our intellect apprehends or abstracts the nature or essential qualities (essence) of the things we perceive. The product of this mental function is called concept. Hence, we have a concept of a dog, for instance, which refers to our intellectual image or grasp of an animal called dog.
            Though some logicians and epistemologists regard concept and idea as synonymous, the two have distinct meanings in the sense that concept is made up of ideas.
            A word is the simplest unit of written or spoken language. It is the fundamental medium of communication. Without words, sentences and statements cannot be constructed. When employed to express an idea or group of ideas (concept), a word or group of words (phrases) is called term. A term is the oral or written representation of an idea or group of ideas (concept). It is also the basic component of a statement ...
 

ETHICS: A Syllabus

Posted Mon, 04/11/2011 - 20:40 by admin
WEEK 1
I. SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES:
          To state the significance of moral problem in philosophical thought; to review historical developments in Ethics as a philosophical discipline; to define some basic terms in Ethics

II. TOPICS/SUBJECT MATTER:
LESSON 1: ETHICS: AN INTRODUCTION
          The Significance of moral problem in philosophical thought; A ‘Review of Related Literature’; Definition of some terms in Ethics

III. READING/S:
          Internet article: “Ethics 101: A primer”
          site: www.OurHappySchool.com (the article can be found by searching its title through the site’s own search engine)
          And (Optional): Professor’s introductory lecture

IV. ACTIVITIES: (Professor’s discretion)
V. EVALUATION: (Professor’s discretion) ...
 

Fighting for ‘nothing’

Posted Sat, 04/02/2011 - 09:48 by admin

... Some philosophers of language dismiss each use of the nothing as nonsense, and here I beg to disagree with them. One proof that the use of the nothing is nothing less than sensible is the fact that it practically makes sense to verbally sketch some political crises by using the different usages of the term nothing. Here is my example:

          “There was nothing for it but for the government to admit its guilt, some critics say. The government officials accordingly are nothing if not culpable. Nevertheless, some are alarmed, for it’s positively not for nothing that the President, with all of these hubbubs, is apparently doing nothing ...
 
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