PHIL 120& OL: Symbolic Logic (5 Credits, Item # 6944 and 6945)

Everett Community College, Spring Quarter 2019

ProfessorInstructor: Mike VanQuickenborne; ‘Mike’ will be fine

Contact Info: Preferred pronouns: He / Him / His Office: Gray Wolf Hall 311 Message/Office Phone: (425) DUTYFUL* Office Hours: As arranged (Please email for an appointment) 1

Email for logic questions: mvanquickenborne@everettcc.edu* Email for technical issues: elearning@everettcc.edu Prerequisite: MATH 086 with a grade of C or higher OR eligibility for MATH 096 via a math assessment OR instructor permission OR MATH 096, MATH 092, MATH 098 or MATH 099 with a grade of C or higher.

Distribution Information: This course counts for the Quantitative Skills requirement, the Natural Science (Non-Lab) requirement, and the Transfer Elective requirement.

Required Text: Hurley, Logic: The Essentials, 1st ed., with an access code for MindTap

Required Website: logiconline.weebly.com

Required class meetings: We will meet in GWH 386/388 at 5:30 on five Mondays this quarter (see below for the specific dates and times we will meet).

Website where you will only find your grades and read announcements: https://everettcc.instructure.com If you’re new to Canvas go to https://everettcc.instructure.com/courses/855657

The Course: Welcome to Logic. The course is a study of the methods and principles used to distinguish correct from incorrect reasoning. After establishing a few basic concepts, the course will proceed to investigate three types of symbolic logic: Categorical, Propositional, and Predicate.

*Email is my preferred method of communication. I will respond via email within 24 hours on days when the college is in session. Responding via phone is not a routine occurrence.

Course Goals: Broadly stated, I expect that at the conclusion of this course you will be able to:

• analyze the structure of arguments • demonstrate through identification and analysis an understanding of key concepts such as: validity, soundness, deduction vs. induction, premises, and conclusions

• demonstrate why arguments are valid or invalid using three forms of symbolic logic: Categorical, Propositional, and Predicate logic

Requirements: Your grade will be based solely on your performance on four exams and two quizzes. The quizzes will be closed-book-and-notes and for the four exams you will be able to use a note sheet, as long as you follow the guidelines described on the Logic Exam Guidelines handout which is posted at the bottom of the “Before the First Exam” tab on our website. When I have finished grading your quizzes and exams I will post the score to Canvas, and you will have an opportunity to look at (but not keep) your exams on the next day we meet. To prepare you for the exams a practice exam will posted to the course website before you take the exam. The practice exams will have the same types of problems that you will encounter on the actual exams and it will have an answer key to check your results. You will not have to turn in your practice exams, they are for your benefit only.

Points: Assignment Possible Points

• Exam 1: 146 points • Quiz 1: 5 points • Exam 2: 90 points • Quiz 2: 18 points • Exam 3: 125 points • Exam 4: 116 points TOTAL: 500 points

Grades:

A course grade is...an inadequate report of an inaccurate judgement by a biased and variable judge of the extent to which a student has attained an undefined level of mastery of an unknown proportion of an indefinable material. –Paul Dressel

Your grade is based solely on the quantity and quality of your work done on time, not your intentions, personality, or even how hard you worked on a particular exam. I will not curve the course in any way. The grading scale is as follows (in points):

Overall Course Grading Scale:

A: 463-500 C: 363-382 Basic Translation: A-: 448-462 C-: 348-362 (An “A” indicates “excellent” coursework) B+: 433-447 D+: 333-347 (A “B” indicates “good” coursework) B: 413-432 D: 313-332 (A “C” indicates “average” coursework) B-: 398-412 F: 0-312 (A “D” indicates “minimally passing” coursework) C+: 383-397 (An “F” indicates “failing” coursework)

(NOTE CAREFULLY!) Missed Quizzes or Exams:

If you miss class the day of a quiz or exam, you cannot make it up, except in cases of an emergency. Note that an unexpected request to work during class is not an emergency. You have to make a choice between making school or work the higher priority. Your chances for succeeding in this class will increase if you make school the higher priority. If you feel ill or there is an emergency I will require two things: 1) you, or someone who is acting on your behalf, must contact my office (via email or voicemail) on the same day that you have missed class, and 2) when you return to class you must provide written documentation supporting your claim. If you fail to meet either of these conditions, I will not allow you to take a make up, or give you credit for your assignment. DO NOT COME TO CAMPUS IF YOU ARE FEELING ILL.

Communication and interaction with me

When will you see me? I will meet with you in person on the following days: from 5:30-6:30 on April 8th for Orientation, from 5:30-7:00 on April 29 for Exam 1, from 5:30-7:05 on May 13 for the Quiz on the Truth Tables for the Logical Operators and Exam 2, from 5:30-7:20 on June 3 for Exam 3 and the Quiz on the 18 Rules of Inference and Replacement, and 5:30-7:20 on June 17 for Exam 4 (our last exam which will only cover Chapter 7 in our text). I will be available to talk to you immediately following our Orientation, and will plan to be in our classroom 15-30 minutes before each of the exams for questions and to give you the opportunity to see your previous exam. Of course we can also meet in my office, just contact me to arrange a time.

How do you contact me? I encourage you to email me at mvanquickenborne@everettcc.edu rather than through Canvas, or through the class website where a link is provided to do so, or just by clicking here: mvanquickenborne@everettcc.edu. I will respond to your email within 24 hours on days when the college is in session. You may also call my office phone, (425) DUTYFUL, and if I’m not in my office, your voicemail will be forwarded to my email. Having said that, I am more likely to respond to you quickly if you email me.

How can I help you via email? I have a program on my iPad that allows me to write on my screen and record my voice. So, if you have a question about a specific problem in Aplia or the text, or somewhere else, you can send me a screenshot, take a picture of the problem on your

phone, or just write it out in your email, and I can talk you through how to solve the problem and send you a video of my explanation.

How will I get feedback on my exams and quizzes? I will be providing you with text or audio feedback on your exams. I am also glad to sit down with you in my office to discuss your exams, or answer questions about your exam at the following exam meeting. When it comes to the two quizzes, a simple score should suffice to give you a sense of how well you memorized the material, and you can get your quizzes back at the following exam date, or in my office.

Plagiarism & Penalties: From the NY Times, July 5, 2010 “To Stop Cheats, Colleges Learn Their Trickery”: “In surveys of 14,000 undergraduates over the last four years, an average of 61 percent admitted to cheating on assignments and exams.” Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 10th ed., defines “plagiarism” as “to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own.” Plagiarism is completely unacceptable and any student who cheats on an assignment will receive a score of zero for that assignment and all future assignments in the course. I will also report the incident to the Behavioral Intervention Team which may take further disciplinary action.

Statement of Disability Accommodation: If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, if you have emergency medical information to share with me, or if you need special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please talk to me today, or make an appointment to see me soon.

Mental Health Statement: An article entitled “Mental Health Needs Seen Growing at Colleges,” published in the NY Times on Dec. 19, 2010 and written by Trip Gabriel, stated that: “Forty-six percent of college students said they felt “things were hopeless” at least once in the previous 12 months, and nearly a third had been so depressed that it was difficult to function, according to a 2009 survey by the American College Health Association.” If you find yourself feeling that things are hopeless, please know that things are never hopeless and I am glad to talk to you. We also have professional counselors employed at the college who are there to serve all students. They can be contacted by phone: 425.388.9263 or email: counseling@everettcc.edu.

For Further Reading (both are available in the EvCC library):

Labyrinths of Reason by William Poundstone is an engaging and well-written book of puzzles and explanations of the logic and philosophical theories behind those puzzles.

Logicomix by Apostolos Doxiadis and Christos Papadimitriou is a graphic novel about the history of logic and mathematics.

The Gallery: