Mathematics, Cul-

ture and Society

MODULE 2 :
LOGIC AND REASONING

2018
LOGIC AND REASONING

MATH 10 Module 2

Logic and Reasoning

Contents
Learning Outcomes
Introduction
1.0 Mathematical Statements and Connectives
1.1 Mathematical Statements
1.2 Operations on Statements : The Connectives
1.3 Truth Tables
1.4 Relations on Statements
2.0 Negation of Statements
2.1 Simple Statements
2.2 Compound Statements
2.3 Statements with Quantifiers
3.0 More on the Conditional
3.1 Equivalent Forms of the Conditional
3.2 The Inverse, Converse, and Contrapositive
4.0 Valid and Invalid Arguments
4.1 Euler Diagrams
4.2 Valid and Invalid Arguments
4.3 Valid Argument Forms
4.4 Fallacies
5.0 Problem Solving
5.1 Deductive and Inductive Reasoning
5.2 Problem Solving
Conclusion
References
Photo credits

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Introduction
Logic plays a a very important role in mathematics – it is the foundation on which the
discipline is built. Remember all the proofs you had to write to establish some theo-
rems in algebra and geometry? You start with the assumptions given, use definitions
and perhaps other definitions, and argue “logically” to establish the conclusion. We
consider mathematics as a language with its own symbols and “grammar”. These
symbols may represent various mathematical objects like numbers, sets, or func-
tions. The grammar will be the rules when combining these symbols. We apply logic
to deduce properties of these objects and rules based on some axioms. One cannot
overemphasize the importance of logic in mathematics, but logic, or logical reason-
ing, is just as important in our everyday life. In this era of fake news, post-truths,
false advertising, we must be able to discern what is true or false. We should be able
to determine if a certain argument is valid or not.

Learning Outcomes
After studying this module, you should be able to:
1. Determine whether a statement has truth value;
2. Negate simple and compound statements;
3. Describe the various forms of the conditional;
4. Use truth tables to determine the truth value of a statement;
5. Determine whether an argument is valid or invalid using Euler diagrams or
truth tables;
6. Illustrate deductive and inductive reasoning; and
7. Apply Pólya’s Four-Step Process in solving problems.

These desired learning outcomes are aligned with the following learning outcomes for
the Math 10 course:
CO2. Recognize the importance of mathematics in various human activities.
CO3. Relate the concepts of mathematics to their field/s of interest.

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1.0 Mathematical Statements and Connectives

In this section, we shall study a very basic object in mathematical logic, statements,
and operations and relations on statements. These will be important when we dis-
cuss valid and invalid arguments.

1.1 Mathematical Statements

A mathematical statement is a statement that can be assigned a truth value and
classified as true or false, but not both. Lowercase letters, p,q,r,s,...., are used to rep-
resent mathematical statements.

Example 1.1 The following are mathematical statements:

p:1+1=2
q:2+3=6
r : All roses are red.
s : The Philippines has more than 7,100 islands.

Note that p and s are true statements while q and r are false. Note that all the above
statements are declarative statements. In other words, mathematical statements are
declarative sentences which are either true or false, but not both.

We shall not consider declarative statements whose truth value is not clear or a mat-
ter of opinion as mathematical statements. Questions, exclamations, and imperatives
are not considered as mathematical statements as well, since these sentences do
not have a truth value.

Example 1.2 The following are NOT mathematical statements:

1) Happy Birthday!
2) Message me.
3) Can we be friends?
4) 5 + 1
5) x + 3 = 0
6) Mathematics is interesting.

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7) 7 is a lucky number.

The first three sentences do not have a truth value and note that they are not declar-
ative statements. The expressions “5 + 1” and “x + 3 = 0” may seem to be mathe-
matical statement because they involve mathematical symbols, but they have no
truth value, and in fact, have no meaning. However, “For all numbers x, x + 3 = 0” is
a mathematical statement which is false.

(6) and (7) are declarative statements but are not considered as mathematical state-
ments since they have no definite truth value. In particular, mathematics may be in-
teresting for some people, so it could be true for these people, but false for those
who find mathematics boring. In the same manner, some people might consider 7 as
their lucky number and some may think of this as false. In fact, the sentence is
vague since “lucky” has to be defined. However, the statement “7 is an odd number”
is a true mathematical statement. ”

EXERCISES 1.1
Determine whether the following are mathematical statements or not.

1. Math 10 is a GE course. 6. π is a special number.

2. What is your name? 7. The chairs are pink or the earth is round.
3. I am a UP student. 8. 3 + 4 – 5
4. x < y 9. If cats are mammals, then mice are reptiles.
5. Please open the door. 10. Let us dance.

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1.2 Operations on Statements: The Connectives

We consider the following operations on statements and their notations. These will
give us ways to combine two statements p and q:
1. Conjunction “p and q”
p∧ q
2. Disjunction "p or q"
p∨ q
3. Conditional "If p then q"
p→q

Statement p is called the premise and q is called the conclusion.

4. Biconditional "p if and only if q"
p↔q
The biconditional means p → q and q → p, that is, it is the conjunction of the p
→ q and q → p. In symbols, (p → q) ∧ (q → p).
5. Negation "not p "
~p
Except for the negation, all the operations are binary that is, they involve two state-
ments at a time.

Example1.3 The statements in Example1.1 can form the following compound state-
ments using connectives:
1. p ∧ q : 1 + 1 = 2 and 2 + 3 = 6.
2. r ∨ s : All roses are red or the Philippines has more than 7,000 islands.
3. p → s : If 1+1=2 then the Philippines has more than 7,000 islands.
4. q ↔ r : 2 + 3 = 6 if and only if all roses are red.
5. ∼p : 1+1 ≠ 2 ›

Are the resulting statements using the connectives still considered mathematical
statements? That is, do they have a truth value? For the operations on mathematical
statements to be "legitimate" or well-defined operations, the result must also be a

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mathematical statement that is, it must have a truth value. We now define when the
above are true and when they are false:
1. The conjunction p∧q is true if both p and q are true. Otherwise,it is false.

2. The disjunction p ∨ q is true if at least one statement (p, q, or both) is true.

It is false only if both
statements are false.

3. The conditional p → q is false only when the premise p is true and the con-
clusion q is false. Otherwise, it is true.

4. The biconditional p ↔ q is true if p and q have the same truth value, that is,
either p and q both true or both are false.

5. The negation ∼p is true if p is false. If p is true, ∼p is false.

Example1.4 In Example1.3, since p and s are true while q and r are false, we have
1. p ∧ q is false
2. r ∨ s is true
3. p → s is true
4. q ↔ r is true
5. ∼ p is false. ›

In cases of operations on compound statements, we use delimiters, ( ), { }, [ ], to

group statements together. For example, the statement ( p∧ q) ∨ (r → ∼q) is the
disjunction of the conjunction (p∧q) and the conditional (r → ∼q).

Example 1.5 Let p, q, r be true statements.

1. Determine the truth value of the following:
a. p ∨ (q ∧ r)
b. p → ∼q

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c. (∼p ∧ q) → ∼r
2. Determine the truth value of statement s if [( p ∧ q ) ↔ ( ~ r ∨ s)] is
false.

Solutions:
1. In evaluating statements with delimeters, we first evaluate statement inside the
delimeters.
a. Since q and r are true, the conjunction (q∧r) is true. Since p is also true
the disjunction p ∨(q∧r) is therefore TRUE.
b. Since q is true, ∼q is false. So the conditional p → ∼q is FALSE since the
premise p is true and the conclusion ∼q is false.
c. We first evaluate (p ∧ q). Since p is true, ∼p is false so the conjunction of
∼p and q is false. On the other hand, ∼r is also false so the conditional (∼p
∧ q) → ∼r is TRUE.
2. The statement ( p ∧ q ) is true. For the statement [( p ∧ q ) ↔ ( ~ r ∨ s)] to
be false, ( ~ r ∨ s) must be false (from the condition that both must have the
same truth value for “↔” to be true). Now, ~ r is false so for ( ~ r ∨ s) to be
false, statement s must be false

EXERCISES 1.2: Let p, q, r be true statements.

1. Determine the truth value of the following:
a. p ∨ (q ∧ r)
b. p → ∼q
c. p ↔ ∼q
d. (∼ p ∨ q) → ∼r
e. (∼ p ∧ q) ∨ ∼ (r → ∼q)
2. Determine whether the following statements can have the given truth value
(in parentheses) for some statement s, and specify the truth value of s when-
ever possible. Justify your answers.

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a. ( p ∨ q ) ∧ ~s (TRUE)
b. [(p ∧ s ) → ( q ∨ r)] (TRUE)
c. [( p ∧ q ) ↔ ( r ∨ s)] (FALSE)

1.3 Truth Tables

We can use truth tables to represent the truth values of the compound statements
discussed above. We consider all possible cases for p and q (True (T) or False (F)).
Note that there are four cases when two statements are considered:

p q

T T

T F

F T

F F

We present the truth tables for the conjunction, disjunction, conditional and bicondi-
tional. Recall when the statements resulting from connectives are either true or false.

1. Conjunction p ∧ q (true only when both p and q are true)

p q p∧ q

T T T

T F F

F T F

F F F
0.

2. Disjunction p ∨ q (false only when both p and q are false)

p q p∨ q

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T T T

T F T

F T T

F F F
0.

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3. Conditional p → q (false only when the premise is true and the conclusion is
false)

p q p→q

T T T

T F F

F T T

F F T

4. Biconditional p ↔ q (true only when p and q have the same truth value)

p q p↔q

T T T

T F F

F T F

F F T
0.

5. Negation ∼p

p ∼p

T F

T T
0.
1.

If there are two statements, as seen above, there are 4 = 22 rows in the table show-
ing all possible cases. If there are three statements, there are 23 = 8 cases. In gen-
eral, if there are n statements, there are 2n cases.

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Example 1.6 Construct a truth table for the following statements

1. p → ∼q
2. (∼p ∧ q) → ∼r

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Solutions:
1. For p → ∼q, we have

p q ~q p → ~q

T T F T

T F T F

F T F T

F F T T
0.

2. There are three (3) statements, p, q, r, so there are 23 = 8 possible cases for
all combinations of truth values of p, q, r.

p q r ~p (∼p ∧ q) ~r (∼p ∧ q) → ∼r

T T T F F F T

T T F F F T T

T F T F F F T

T F F F F T T

F T T T T F F

F T F T T T T

F F T T F F T

F F F T F T T
0.

Note that the first row of the given table (p, q, r are all true) corresponds to
Example 1.5 (3).

EXERCISES 1.3
Construct a truth table for the following statements.
1. p ↔ ∼q
2. ~q→~p

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3. (~ p ∨ q) ↔ (p → q)
4. p ∨ (q ∧ r)
5. (∼ p ∧ q) ∨ ∼ (r → ∼q)

1.4 Relations on Statements

In the previous section, we defined the possible operations on statements which are
used to construct compound statements. The resulting compound statement has a
truth value although it may or may not make sense. For example , the statement “If
all roses are red, then all violets are blue.” This is a true statement (F → F) but it is
not materially true (the two statements are not related). We have conditionals p → q
and biconditionals p ↔ q which actually make sense or are materially true. We con-
sider two relations on statements, implication and equivalence.

1. Implication. We know for a fact that all cats are mammals. This means that if an
animal is a cat, then it is a mammal. We can state this as “If it is a cat, then it is a
mammal.” This is not just a compound statement with the connective “ → “, rather
a material implication. So, if something is a cat, it is also true that it is also a mam-
mal. We call this relation an implication, denoted by “ ⇒ ” . Hence, if statement p
(materially) implies statement q, we denote this by “p ⇒ q ” (read as p implies q).
2. Equivalence. On the other hand, we may also have statements which are equiva-
lent. We usually see this in definitions and compound statements which may be
restated in another way. Consider the definition “A polygon is a triangle if and only
if it has three sides”. This actually means that the statements
p: A polygon is a triangle.
q: A polygon has three sides.
are equivalent. In this case, we may replace p with statement q. We denote the
equivalence of two statements p and q by p ⇔q.

In the following sections, we shall discuss further negation of statements and the
conditional and in these discussions, we can find more examples of equivalent com-
pound statements. Note that we can determine the equivalence of two compound
statements by comparing their truth tables. If they have the same truth value for each

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case, then they are equivalent.

Example 1.7 Using a truth table, show that ∼ ( p ∧ q ) ⇔ ∼ p ∨ ∼ q .

Solution: We consider the four cases for the truth values of p and q and if for each
case ∼ ( p ∧ q ) has the same truth value as ∼ p ∨ ∼ q, the two statements are
equivalent.

p q ~p ~q p∧q ∼(p∧q) ∼p∨∼q

T T F F T F F

T F F T F T T

F T T F F T T

F F T T F T T

Observe that for each case, the two statements have the same truth value so
∼ ( p ∧ q ) is equivalent to ∼ p ∨ ∼ q. This implies the negation of the conjunction
of p and q may be restated as the disjunction of the negation of p and the negation of
q. (See Section 2.2 for examples illustrating negation of compound statements.)

EXERCISES 1.4
1. Prove the following equivalences using truth tables:
a. ∼(p∨q)⇔∼p∧∼q
b. (p → q) ⇔ (~p ∨ q )
2. Activity: Give examples of implications and equivalences encountered in everyday
life.

2.0 Negation of Statements

Suppose someone claims that Brand X is both cheap and good and you would like to
disagree and state the opposite. Or your teacher tells you that if you work hard then

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you will get an excellent grade, and you know (from experience) that this is not true.
It is important to know how to determine the opposite of a statement , that is, to ne-
gate a given statement.

2.1 Negation of Simple Statements

To negate simple statements, we add the word “not”, as appropriate. Let us illustrate
this with the statements given in Example 1.1.

Example 2.1 Negate the statements given in Example 1.1:

Statement Negation

p : 1+1 = 2 ~p : 1+1 ≠ 2
q:2+3=6 ~q : 2 + 3 ≠ 6
r : All roses are red. ~r : Not all roses are red
s : The Philippines has more than 7,000 ~s : The Philippines has at
islands. most 7,000
islands

Remarks : Refer to the given statements in the above example.

1. Statement p: 1 + 1 = 2 reads “1 + 1 is equal to 2” so its negation ~ p is simply “1
+ 1 is not equal to 2” or in symbols “ 1+1 ≠ 2”.
2. In statement s, the word “all” is an example of a quantifier and it is negated as “
not all”. It is incorrect to negate this statement as “All roses are not red.” In Sec-
tion 2.3, we shall encounter other quantifiers and ways of negating them. More-
over, it is also incorrect to change the adjective “red” to another color, say pink.
In general, for statements with adjectives, replacing the adjective with its anto-
nym or another adjective is not equivalent to negating the statement.
3. Note that the phrase “more than” is negated as “at most” (see statement t above)
and NOT as “less than”. In our example, we can express the statement as an
inequality “7,000 < x” (or x < 7,000), where x is the number of islands in the
Philippines. To negate “<”, recall that given two numbers y and z, there are only
three possibilities: y < z, y = z, or y > z. So, the negation of “7,000 is less than x”

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(7,000 < x) is “7,000 is not less than x” (7,000 ). This means that either 7,000 is
equal to x (7000 = x) or 7,000 is more than x (7,000 > x) or simply 7,000 . This
is equivalent to x is at most 7,000.

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EXERCISES 2.1
Negate the following statements:
1. 100 is a multiple of 10.
2. x + y ≤ z
3. All trees are tall.
4. There are 12 months in a year.
5. Juan is at least 18 years old.

2.2 Negation of Compound Statements

To negate a conjunction or disjunction, we use the following equivalences:
1. ∼(p∧q)⇔ ∼p∨∼q
2. ∼(p∨q)⇔∼p∧∼q

The first equivalence was established using a truth table in Section 1.4 and the proof
of the second rule is left as an exercise.

Example 2.2 Negate the following statements:

1. The chairs are red and UP is at least 100 years old.
2. 1 + 1 < 5 or all roses are red.
3. Jose Rizal is both intelligent and nationalistic.

Answers:
1. The chairs are NOT red or UP is less than 100 years old.
2. 1+1 ≥ 5 and not all roses are red.
3. Jose Rizal is not intelligent or he is not nationalistic.
˜
EXERCISES 2.2 Negate the following statements:
1. The Philippines is an archipelago or cats are mammals.
2. 1 + 1 = 3 and 5 > 1.
3. I like watching movies and reading books.
4. p ∨ ( r ∧ q )
5. ( p ∨ q ) ∧ (∼ r ∨ ∼ s)

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2.3 Negation of Statements with Quantifiers

We can also negate statements with the quantifiers all, some, none. Let us consider
the following statements with quantifiers and their negation.

Example 2.3 Negate the following statements:

1. p: All roses are red.

2. q: Some roses are red.

3. r : No roses are red.

Answers:
1. The negation of the statement “All roses are red.” is simply
∼ p: Not all roses are red.

This is also equivalent to

∼ p : Some roses are not red.

2. Note that “Some roses are red” means there are roses which are red. The
negation is: there are no roses which are red, that is,
∼ q: No roses are red.
This is NOT equivalent to “Some roses are not red.” If some roses are red,
this could also mean that some roses are not red. So the negation should
be none are red.
3. The negation of “No roses are red” is
∼ p: Not all roses are red.

Exercises 2.3 Negate the following statements.

1. All cats are mammals.
2. Some of the islands are not inhabited.
3. No man is an island.
4. All UP students are honest or no politician is corrupt.

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5. Some violets are blue and no roses are violet.

3.0 The Conditional

Everyday we have to make decisions, as simple as which route to take in going to
school. The decisions we make normally depend on some conditions or premises or
information given. For example, it it rains, then you will not walk going to school or
not go to class at all. We also encounter a lot of conditional statements or “if –
then’s” in advertisements, instructions, arguments, and ordinary conversations.
Hence, it is important to understand the conditional and the many forms it takes and
statements which are not equivalent to a given conditional.

3.1 Equivalent Forms for the Conditional

The conditional p → q or "If p then q" is equivalent to the following statements:

q if p. q is necessary for p.

p only if q. All p are q.

p is sufficient for q. Either not p or q.

Example 3.1 Consider the conditional

If it is a bird then it flies.
The premise is the statement
p: It is a bird.
The conclusion is the statement
q: It flies.

The conditional p → q is equivalent to

1. q if p:
It flies if it is a bird.
2. p only if q:

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It is a bird only if it flies.

3. p is sufficient for q:
Being a bird is sufficient for it to fly.
4. q is necessary for p.
Flying is necessary for it to be a bird.
5. All p are q.
(This is referred to as a universal statement)
All birds fly.
6. Either not p or q.
Either is not a bird or it flies.

EXERCISES 3.1
1. Give five (5) equivalent statements for the following:
a) If you care for the environment, then you should recycle.
b) All animals are friendly.
c) No insect is useless.
2. Using the equivalent form “~p ∨ q” of the conditional, determine the negations
of p → q and verify this using a truth table.
3. State the negation of the statements in (1).

3.2 Negation of the Conditional

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3.3 The Converse, Inverse, and Contrapositive

A common mistake in restating conditionals is interchanging the premise and the
conclusion. Consider the conditional
p → q : If it is a bird then it flies.

Which of the following statements is equivalent to p → q?

q → p : If it is a bird then it flies.
~p → ~q : If it is not a bird then it does not fly.
~q → ~p : If it does not fly then it is a bird.

The correct answer is ~q → ~p which is called the contrapositive of p → q. Let us use

a truth table to compare the truth values of p → q, q → p, ~p → ~q, and ~q → ~p.

p q p→q q→p ~p → ~q ~q → ~p

T T T T T T

T F F T T F

F T T F F T

F F T T T T

Hence, we have the equivalent statements:

p → q ⇔ ~q → ~p
q → p ⇔ ~p → ~q

Definition : Given the conditional p → q, we call

1. ~p → ~q the contrapositive of p → ;
2. q → p the converse of p → q;
3. ~p → ~q the inverse of p → q.

Remark : From the above truth table, we have seen that the conditional is equivalent
to its contrapositive and not equivalent to its converse and inverse.

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Example 3.2 : Consider the statement:

All even numbers are divisible by two.
Formulate the statement as a conditional and give its converse, inverse and contra-
positive.

Answer:
Conditional : If it is an even number, then i is divisible by two.
Converse : If a number is divisible by two, then it is an even number.
Inverse : If it is not an even number then it is not divisible by two.
Contrapositive: If it is not divisible by two, then it is not an even number.

EXERCISES 3.2
1. Which of the following statements is/are equivalent to
“All Filipinos are law-abiding.”
A. If you are a Filipino, then you are law-abiding.
B. If you are not a Filipino, then you are not law-abiding.
C. If you are not law-abiding, then you are not a Filipino.
D. If you are law-abiding, then you are a Filipino.
E. You are law-abiding if you are a Filipino.
F. You are law-abiding only if you are a Filipino.
2. Which of the following statements is/are NOT equivalent to
“No gorilla is playful.”
A. If you are playful, then you are a gorilla.
B. If you are a gorilla, then you are not playful.
C. Either you are playful or you are a gorilla.
D. If you are not a gorilla, then you are playful
E. If you are playful then you are not a gorilla.
F. You are not playful only if you are a gorilla.
3. Give the contrapositive, inverse, and converse of the statements in Exercises
3.1.
4. Activity: Give five (5) examples of conditional statements coming from
advertisements (TV, radio, magazines or newspapers).

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4.0 Valid and Invalid Arguments

Charles Dodgson, author of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and better known as
Lewis Caroll, was not only a famous writer. He was also a mathematician and logi-
cian. He created numerous amusing puzzles with absurd implications and nonsensi-
cal statements to train people on logical reasoning. The following are puzzles by
Lewis Carrol:

Puzzle 1: All babies are illogical.

Nobody is despised who can manage a crocodile.
Illogical persons are despised.

Puzzle 2: No kitten that loves fish is unteachable.

No kitten without a tail will play with a gorilla.
Kittens with whiskers always love fish.
No teachable kitten has green eyes.
No kittens have tails unless they have whiskers.

The objective in each puzzle is to draw a conclusion based on all the premises
given. Logical reasoning is important in puzzle and problem solving, as it provides a
systematic way to come up with a solution. We are also regularly inundated by argu-
ments or reasoning which may seem nonsensical or puzzling. We also encounter
phrases like : God is love. Love is blind. Therefore, God is blind. This seems logical
or valid, but is it? Hence, logical reasoning should be applied when we discern the
validity or soundness of arguments.

In this section, we discuss valid and invalid arguments, common forms or valid argu-
ments and some examples of fallacies we could encounter in everyday life.

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4.1 Euler Diagrams

An Euler diagram represents statements, the way Venn diagrams represent sets. For
example, consider the statement
p: Jose is a UP student.

The statement involves inclusion in a set, that is, Jose is an element of the set of UP
students. We can use a circle to represent the set of UP students and if we let x rep-
resent Jose, the Euler diagram of statement p is given by :

UP students

We can also represent statements with the quantifiers all, some, and none.

Example 4.1 . Draw an Euler diagram for the following statements:

1. All cats are mammals.
2. Some dogs are hairy.
3. No even number is an odd number.

Answers:
1. All cats are mammals.
This statement involves two sets: set of cats and set of mammals, repre-
sented by circles. Since all cats are mammals, this means the set of cats is
contained in the set of mammals. The diagram is given by:

mammals

cats

The conditional "If it is a cat then it is a mammal" is equivalent to "All cats

are mammals" so it is represented by the same diagram.

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2. Some dogs are hairy.

This statement involves the set of dogs and the set of hairy things (which
may include animals). The quantifier "some" signifies that there may be
dogs which are not hairy and there may be hairy things which are not dogs.
This is represented by two intersecting sets and the region where they in-
tersect contains the set of dogs which are hairy.

dogs hairy
things

hairy dogs
3. No even number is an odd number.
We consider the sets of even numbers and odd numbers. The quantifier
"none" means the two sets must not intersect, otherwise, there will be
even numbers which are odd.

even odd
numbers numbers

In general, we have the following Euler diagrams for statements with quantifiers all,
some, or none involving members of two sets A and B:
All A are B. Some A are B.

A B

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No A is B.

A B

EXERCISES 4.1 Draw an Euler Diagram for the following statements:

1. Juan is a Math 10 student.
2. Maria is not a Filipino.
3. All actors are artists.
4. Some scientists are actors.
5. No professor is infallible.
6. Ducks are yellow.
7. If you are a Filipino, then you are honest.

4.2 Valid and Invalid Arguments

An argument consists of premises, say p , p , ..., p , and a conclusion q and con-
1 2 n

sider the conjunction p ∧p ∧... ∧p = p . The argument p→q is valid if the prem-
1 2 n

ises are assumed to be true, then the conclusion must also hold true. That is, the
statement p→q is an implication. We can use Euler diagrams to determine the valid-
ity of an argument. We construct a diagram which represents the premises. The ar-
gument is valid if the conclusion is satisfied by the Euler diagram representing
all premises. Note that the premises are assumed to be true although the state-
ments may not be true in the strict sense.

Example 4.2. Consider the argument:

All dogs are hairy. Cotton is a dog. Therefore, Cotton is hairy.

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To determine if it is valid, we draw an Euler diagram for the premises. The first prem-
ise is represented by two sets, the set of dogs is inside the set of hairy things:

hairy things

dogs

and the second premise, we have Cotton (represented by x) inside the set of dogs:

dogs

The premises, considered together, are represented by the following diagram:

hairy things

dogs
x

Since x is in the set of the smaller set (dogs), it follows that s is also in the set of
hairy things. This means the conclusion "Cotton is a dog" follows naturally from the
premises so the argument is valid. •

To show an argument is invalid, it suffices to exhibit an Euler diagram satisfying all the
premises but not the given conclusion.

Example 4.3. Determine the validity of the argument

All dogs are hairy. My pet Cotton is hairy. Therefore, Cotton is a dog.

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Answer:

The first premise is the same as the first premise in Exam-

ple so the Euler Diagram is the same. On the other hand,
the second premise “Cotton is hairy” represented by the di-
agram on the right (x represents Cotton).

Observe that the diagram below satisfies the two premises:

hairy things

dogs

However, the conclusion “Cotton is a dog” is contradicted in the diagram. This

means that being hairy does not automatically imply being a dog. One may be hairy
without being a dog. Hence, the argument is INVALID.

Remark: One may also show that an argument is invalid by exhibiting two different
diagrams representing the premises. In the above example,
we have the two diagrams:

hairy things hairy things

dogs dogs
x x

which both satisfy the two premises given but give two possible conclusions. In the
diagram on the left, Cotton (x) is a dog and also hairy, but in the second diagram,
Cotton is hairy but is not a dog. If an argument is valid, there should only be one
possible conclusion.

Let us look at more examples.

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Example 4.4. Determine the validity of the following arguments:

1. All dogs are hairy. My pet Donut is not hairy. Therefore, Donut is not a
dog.
2. All cats are mammals. My pet Donut is not a cat. Therefore, Donut is not
a mammal.
3. All cats are mammals. All mammals are animals. Therefore, all cats are
animals.
4. All parrots are birds. Some birds are colorful. Therefore, some parrots are
colorful.
5. All parrots are birds. Some parrots fly. Therefore, some birds fly.
6. All parrots are birds. All cats are mammals. No bird is a mammal. There-
fore, no parrot is a cat.

Solutions:
1. This argument is VALID. The two premises are represented by the follow-
ing diagram, with D representing Donut.

hairy things D

dogs

Since Donut is not in the set of hairy things, it follows that Donut is also not
in the set of dogs. Therefore, the conclusion is implied by the premises.

Take note that the premise given “All dogs are hairy” is not really a true
statement since some dogs are not hairy, but we evaluate the validity of
the argument and NOT the truth value of the conclusion.
2. The argument is INVALID. Although Donut is not a cat, it does not auto-
matically follow that Donut is not a mammal. This can be illustrated with a
diagram:

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mammals

cats D

which satisfies both premises but not the conclusion.

3. The two premises are represented by:

All cats are mammals. All mammals are animals.

animals
mammals
mammals
cats

The Euler diagram representing both premises is

given by: A
M
A - animals
C
M - mammals
C - cats

The diagram shows that any element of the set of cats is automatically an
element of the set of animals. Hence, the argument is VALID.

4. We have the two Euler diagrams for each premise

All parrots (P) are birds (B). Some birds (B)
are colorful (C).
B

P
B C

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LOGIC AND REASONING

If both premises are considered, we have the Euler diagram

P C

Which satisfies the two premises but not the conclusion. That is, it does
not follow that some parrots fly. Hence, the argument is invalid.

5. The following diagram represents the two premises:

All parrots (P) are birds (B). Some parrots (P)
fly (F).

P F

Since (F) intersects (P), it automatically intersects (B). That is, the parrots
which fly are the birds which fly. Hence, the argument is valid.

6. The premises are represented by the diagram

All parrots are birds. All cats are mammals. No bird is a mammal. Therefore,
no parrot is a cat.
All parrots (P) are birds (B). All cats (C) are mammals (M).

B M

P C

The diagrams, taken together, satisfy the third premise as well, that no bird
is a mammal. As can be seen, the conclusion that no parrot is a cat follows
from the three premises. Therefore, the argument is valid.

Remark: As mentioned in the first example, the argument may be valid even if the
premises are not universally true. That is, the argument is valid but not “sound”. In

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fact, we can have premises which may be meaningless, but the conclusion (which is
also meaningless) can still follow logically if the premises are assumed to be true. Let
us consider the following argument:

Example 4.5. All booms (B) are zooms (Z). All feeps (F) are meeps (M). No zoom is
a meep. Therefore, no boom is a feep.

The argument is valid. We have following diagram representing the premises:

Z M
B F

Note that since no zeep is a meep, this will ensure that no boom is a feep. This argu-
ment is actually in the same form as the argument given in Example 6 above.

EXERCISES 4.2
1. Determine if the following arguments are valid or invalid. Justify your an-
swers by drawing a diagram.
a. All Filipinos enjoy singing. Juan is a Filipino. Therefore, Juan enjoys
singing.
b. Some physicists are poets. Einstein is a physicist. Therefore, Einstein
is a poet.
c. All lions are animals. Some lions have manes. Therefore, some
animals have manes.
d. All parrots are birds. Some birds are colorful. Therefore, some parrots
are colorful.
e. All booms (B) are zooms (Z). All feeps (F) are meeps (M). No boom is
a feep. Therefore, no zoom is a meep.
2. Consider the following premises : Every sane person can do logic. No cat can
do logic. Those who are not sane cannot serve in the government. Which of
the following is not a valid conclusion?

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a) Cats cannot serve in the government.

b) No cat is sane.
c) Logical persons cannot serve in the government.
d) Those who serve in the government are not logical.
3. Consider the following premises: All physicists are scientists. Some scientists
are artists. All mathematicians are artists. Some physicists are mathematicians.
No scientist is illogical. Which is a valid conclusion?
a) No physicist is illogical.
b) Some mathematicians are illogical.
c) Some physicists are artists.
4. Find a valid conclusion for the following Lewis Carrol puzzles (HINT: Express
the given statements in conditional form):
a. Babies are illogical. Nobody is despised who can manage a crocodile.
Illogical persons are despised.
b. No ducks waltz.
No officers ever decline to waltz.
All my poultry are ducks.
c. No kitten that loves fish is unteachable.
No kitten without a tail will play with a gorilla.
Kittens with whiskers always love fish.
No teachable kitten has green eyes.
No kittens have tails unless they have whiskers.

4.3 Valid Argument Forms

Let us look at the valid arguments given in previous examples:
1. All dogs are hairy. Cotton is a dog. Therefore, Cotton is hairy.
2. All dogs are hairy. My pet Donut is not hairy. Therefore, Donut is not a dog.
3. All cats are mammals. All mammals are animals. Therefore, all cats are ani-
mals.
Arguments of the above form are always valid and satisfy valid argument forms
called modus ponens, modus tollens, and syllogism, respectively.

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To define the form of these arguments, recall that the conditional p → q is equivalent
to the universal statement “All p are q.” So we have can restate the above as

All p are q. p→q

All dogs are hairy. If it is a dog, then it is hairy.

All cats are mammals. If it is a cat, then it is a mammal.

All mammals are animals If it is a mammal, then it is an animal.

We have the following general forms:

Modus ponens

If it is a dog then it is hairy. p→q

Cotton is a dog. p

Therefore, Cotton is hairy ∴q

Modus tollens

If it is a dog then it is hairy. p→q

My pet Donut is not hairy. p

Therefore, Cotton is a dog. ∴q

Syllogism

If it is a cat, then it is a mammal. p→q

If it is a mammal then it is an animal. q→r

Therefore, if it is a cat, then it is an animal. ∴p→r

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We can use truth tables to show the validity of these arguments. In particular, we find
the truth value of the conditional whose premise is the conjunction of the premises
and the conclusion is the given conclusion in the argument, that is,
1. (Modus ponens) [(p →q) ∧ p] → q
2. (Modus tollens) [(p → q) ∧ ∼ q] → ∼ p.
3. (Syllogism) [(p →q) ∧ (q → r) ] → (p → r)

If the statement is true for each of the four cases in the truth table, then the argument
is valid. In this case, we call the statement a tautology and the conditionals given
are in fact, implications. We have the following truth tables:
1. Modus ponens

p q p→q (p → q ) ∧ p [(p →q) ∧ p] → q

T T T T T

T F F F T

F T T F T

F F T F T

2. Modus Tollens

p q p→q (p → q) ∧ ∼ q [(p → q) ∧ ∼ q] →∼ p

T T T T T

T F F F T

F T T F T

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LOGIC AND REASONING

F F T F T

3. Syllogism (Note we have three statements p, q, r.)

(p → q) ∧ [(p → q) ∧ (q→r)]
p q r p→q q→r p→r
(q→r) → (p→r)

T T T T T T T T

T T F T F F F T

T F T F T F T T

T F F F T F F T

F T T T T T T T

F T F T F F T T

F F T F T F T T

F F F F T F T T

Example 4.6. Verify that the following arguments are valid and determine if they are
of the given valid argument forms (modus ponens, modus tollens, or syllogism).
1. All UP students need to enroll in Math 10. Maria is a UP student. Therefore,
Maria has enroll in Math 10.
2. If I sing, then it rains. It is not raining. Therefore, I did not sing.
3. If you love cats, then you love animals. If you love animals, then you should be
kind to animals. Therefore, if you love cats, you should be kind to animals.
Answers: The given arguments are valid and this can be shown using Euler Dia-
grams (left as an exercise) . Arguments 1, 2, 3 are examples of a modus ponens,
modus tollens, and syllogism, respectively.
•
EXERCISES 4.3

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1. Verify that the following arguments are valid and classify according to the type
of valid argument form.
a) If it rains, I will sleep. I did not sleep. Therefore, it did not rain.
b) If it’s a reptile, then it’s cold-blooded. Barney is not cold-blooded. There-
fore, Barney is not a reptile.
c) All scientists are hardworking. If you are hardworking, then you contrib-
ute to our country’s economic growth. Therefore, all scientists contribute
to our country’s economic growth.
2. Using Euler Diagrams, establish the validity of the modus pones, modus tollens
and syllogism.

4.4 Fallacies
Consider the two invalid arguments previously discussed:
1. All dogs are hairy. My pet Cotton is hairy. Therefore, Cotton is a dog.
2. All cats are mammals. My pet Donut is not a cat. Therefore, Donut is not a
mammal.
These are examples of two invalid argument forms, the fallacy of the converse and
the fallacy of the inverse, respectively. In symbols, these are of the form:
Fallacy of the Converse Fallacy of the Inverse

p→q p→q

q ∼p

∴ p ∴ ∼q

Let us look at the truth tables for these two arguments. We consider the two condi-
tionals {[(p → q) ∧ q] → p} and { [(p → q) ∧ ∼ p] → ∼ q}.
1. (Fallacy of the Converse) [(p → q) ∧ q] → p

p q p→q (p → q ) ∧ q [(p →q) ∧ q] → p

T T T T T

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LOGIC AND REASONING

T F F F T

F T T T F

F F T F T
0.
2. (Fallacy of the Inverse) [(p → q) ∧ ∼ p] → ∼ q

p q p→q (p → q) ∧ ∼ p [(p → q) ∧ ∼ p] →∼ q

T T T F T

T F F F T

F T T T F

F F T F T
0.

Observe that unlike the valid argument forms, the arguments given above are not
tautologies since they are not true for each of the four cases. They are called falla-
cies. The argument {[(p →q) ∧ q] → p} is false when p is true and q is false, and {[(p
→ q) ∧ ∼ p] → ∼ q} is false when p is false and q is true.
Example 4.6. Verify that the following arguments are invalid and determine whether
the argument is an example of the fallacy of the converse or the fallacy of the in-
verse.
1. If you can add, then you can subtract. You cannot add. Therefore, you cannot
subtract.
2. All UP students are diligent. Maria is diligent. Therefore, Maria is a UP student.
3. If I sing, then it rains. If it does not rain, then birds sing. Birds are not singing.
Therefore, I am singing.
Answers: The above statements can be shown to be invalid using Euler diagrams.
Arguments 1 and 3 are fallacies of the converse while argument 1 is an example of a
fallacy of the inverse. In argument 3, the premise “Birds are not singing” implies that
it is raining (by the contrapositive of the second premise). If it rains, no conclusion
may be drawn since the given premise is “If I sing, then it rains.” •

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Other fallacies
We also have fallacies other than the forms given above. In fact, we probably en-
counter these fallacies more frequently:
1. Ad Hominem. The argument is based on the character of the opponent in-
stead of the argument itself. This may also involve insulting the opponent to
make opponent’s argument seem false.
Example: Maria wears leather shoes, so she cannot be a vegetarian.
2. Ad Populum. This fallacy occurs when an argument is assumed to be valid
since many people believe in it.
Example: Surveys indicate that 55% of the population believe that use of con-
traceptives is dangerous. Therefore, contraceptives should be banned.
3. Appeal to Authority. The argument is claimed to be valid because a fa-
mous or famous person, who is not an expert in the pertinent field, supports
it.
Example: Brand X is the best toothpaste since our president uses it.
4. False Cause. This fallacious argument correlates two events, even it unre-
lated.
Example: I get better grades when I play basketball regularly. So playing bas-
ketball
5. Hasty Generalization. In this fallacy, a generalization is made based on a
few examples supporting the claim.
Example: I don’t excel in tennis. I also don’t excel in volleyball. Therefore, I
don’t excel in sports.

Exercises 4.4
1. Verify that the following arguments are invalid and determine whether the ar-
gument is an example of the fallacy of the converse or the fallacy of the in-
verse:
a. All birds have feathers. I am not a bird. Therefore, I have no feathers.
b. If you are smart, then you are successful. You are successful. Therefore
you are smart.
2. Give your own example of the fallacies discussed.
3. Give at least three (3) other fallacies aside from the forms discussed in this
section and give an example for each. You may refer to these sources:

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LOGIC AND REASONING

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RyVj2FPGyg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDGp04CfM4M
http://www.don-lindsay-archive.org/skeptic/arguments.html
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/mario-livio/logical-fallacies_b_1932906.html
4. Activity: Give five (5) examples of fallacies found in advertisements or news-
paper/magazine articles and explain why these are fallacies and how they
are used to mislead.

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5.0 Problem Solving

Problem solving is done not only in formal mathematics courses or limited to mathe-
maticians and scientists. Almost any profession or discipline requires problem solv-
ing. In addition, if you love solving sudoku puzzles, rubiks cube, logic, or pattern
problems, these recreational activities are also forms of problem solving which basi-
cally involves finding a conclusion or answer from known facts. Correct reasoning is
important when we solve problems We discuss here two processes of reasoning, de-
ductive and inductive, and the basic steps in solving a problem.

5.1 Deductive and Inductive Reasoning

Deductive reasoning (or logical deduction) is the process of reasoning from a gen-
eral statement to a specific instance. We have seen this in the valid argument forms
given in the previous sections. The classic example of a deductive argument

All men are mortal. Socrates is a man. Therefore, Socrates is mortal.

is the primary form of deductive reasoning, which is the valid argument form modus
ponens. The statement “ All men are mortal” is a general statement and the conclu-
sion is deduced from this and the specific instance that Socrates is a man. The mo-
dus tollens and syllogism are also forms of deductive reasoning.

Inductive reasoning is the process of reasoning from specific instances to a gen-

eral statement.

The following is an example of an inductive argument:

2 is an even number. 12 is an even number. 22 is an even number. There-
fore, all numbers ending in 2 are even.

Although the conclusion drawn in this example is true, this is not always the case
when inductive reasoning is employed.

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Let us look at numbers of the form 2p- 1, where p is a prime number (p = 2, 5, 7, …).
We have
22 - 1 = 4 – 1 = 3
23 - 1 = 8 – 1 = 7
25 - 1 = 32 – 1 = 31

Note that 3, 7, 31 are prime numbers. By inductive reasoning, we can conclude that
2p- 1 is a prime number when p is a prime number. However, this is false. The num-
ber 211- 1 = 2048 – 1 = 2047 is not prime since it is the product of 23 and 89.

(Trivia: Prime numbers which can be expressed in the form 2p- 1 where p is a prime
number are called Mersenne primes, named after the French scholar Marin
Mersenne who took interest in prime numbers of this form. The search for Mersenne
primes continues and the largest known as of December 2017 is 277,232,917 – 1.)
Hence, When a general statement is concluded from specific examples using induc-
tive reasoning, this still has to be formally established or proved using kown facts, in
which case, deductive reasoning is necessary.

Exercises 5.1
1. Determine whether the following arguments use inductive or deductive reason-
ing.
a. All Filipinos are nationalistic. Jose Rizal is a Filipino. Hence, Jose Rizal
is nationalistic.
b. Math 10 is easy. Math 20 is easy. Therefore, all math courses are easy.
c. In a mystery case, it is known that Jose did it or Maria did it. Maria did
not do it. Therefore, Jose did it.
d. Ducks do not waltz. I can waltz. Therefore, I am not a duck.
2. Activity: Circles and Chords. Given a circle, if you mark n points on the circle,
what is the maximum number of chords (a chord is line joining two points on a
circle) that can be drawn? What is the maximum number of regions formed?
Investigate the case for n = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Can you generalize the results? Let
us illustrate, for n = 2, 3 and do the case for 1, 4, 5, 6

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LOGIC AND REASONING

Number of points (marked x) Max. no. of chords Max. no. of re-

gions

n=2
x
1 2
x

n=3
x x
3 4

0.

5.2 Problem Solving

In solving problems, the steps introduced here by the mathematician George Pólya,
can help us systematically find a solution. These general steps are useful not only for
problems encountered in mathematics, but in other disciplines as well. These steps,
known as Pólya’s Four-Step Process, are as follows:
Step 1. Understand the Problem
Step 2. Devise a plan.
Step 3. Carry out the plan.
Step 4. Look back.

Understanding the problem is the first step in solving any problem. This involves:
• Understanding all the terms in the problem and restating it in your own words
• Identifying the information given and what the goal is
• Determining if enough or too much information is given.

It is also important to recognize if the given problem is similar to a previous one you
have encountered. This usually makes solving the problem easier since you will
have a reference.

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After understanding the problem, you can now devise a plan which could include the
following strategies:
• Guessing and testing (trial and error)
• Finding a pattern
• Using variables
• Finding a formula which could be applied to the given problem
• Solving an equation or inequality
• Drawing a picture, graph, diagram or using a model
• Doing a simulation.

Once you have strategies in mind, implement the plan until the problem is solved or
a new strategy comes out of the trials. This seems such a simple process, but there
is no timeframe given in these steps. So you must give yourself time and you must
have patience. Failures should not discourage you but encourage you to keep on try-
ing and perhaps starting all over again. Successful scientists, engineers, mathemati-
cians, artists, enterpreneurs never give up.

Once you finally have a solution. do not rejoice yet and rest on your laurels. You
have to verify that your solution is correct and indeed answers the problem stated. If
solution is correct, you may even try finding an easier solution or extending your so-
lution to more general cases for future use?

Example 5.1. Place the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 in the circles in the figure below,
such that each side totals 12.

Solution: The problem involves writing the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 such that if you add
the numbers on one side of the triangle formed by the singles, the sum should be 12.
This is a problem where guess and test may be employed. However, if you just guess

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LOGIC AND REASONING

and write the numbers randomly, solving it might take some time until you “guess” the
correct solution. Since the sum is 12, you cannot place the smaller numbers 1, 2, 3 on
the same side. Moreover, to get a sum of 12, you will need exactly two of the higher
numbers 4, 5, 6, but not all three, on one side. Hence, 4, 5, 6 will be on the vertices of
the triangle and 1, 2, 3 may now be placed in the appropriate circles. The solution is

. 4

2 3

5 1 6

Example 5.2. Find the next number in the sequence 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, ?.

Solution: This problem, and in general, finding the next number in a sequence, in-
volves pattern finding. In this case, you could have observed that 1 + 1 = 2, 1 + 2 = 3,
2 + 3 = 5, 3 + 5 = 8. So the next nuber is obtained by adding the two previous numbers.
So the answer is 13. This sequence is called the Fibonacci sequence.

Exercises 5.2
Solve the following problems and explain how you arrived at your solution using
Polya’s process.
1. Find the next two (2) numbers, x and y, in the given sequences:
a. 1, 4, 9, 16, 25, x, y
b. 3, 9, 15, 21, 27, x, y
c. 3, 15, 75, x, y
d. 1, 6, 15, 28, 45, x, y
e. 2, 6, 22, 56, 114, x, y
2. Three school children Junie, Glory, and Mickey are sitting side by side. Junie
always tells the truth, Glory sometimes tells the truth and Mickey never tells the
truth. The child on the left says “Junie is in the middle”. The child in the middle
says “I’m Glory”, and the child on the right says “Mickey is in the middle”. De-
termine the seating arrangement of the three.
3. In a certain jungle, there are three tribes: Tribe T, Tribe L, Tribe X. Members of
Tribe T always tell the truth, Tribe L members never tell the truth and Tribe X
members sometimes tell the truth and they sometimes lie. If you meet one tribe

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LOGIC AND REASONING

member and he tells you, “I always lie,” which tribe does he come from? If you
meet another tribe member and he says, “I sometime lie,” which tribe can he
come from?
4. Jose must take a cat, a mouse, and a sack of rice across a river with his boat.
The boat to be used can only accommodate Juan and either the cat, mouse or
the sack of rice. However, if left together, the cat will eat the mouse. Also, if
the mouse is left alone with the rice, it will eat the rice. The cat does not eat
rice. The mouse and rice are safe when Jose is present. What is the minimum
number of times Jose needs to cross the river so he could get everything
across?
5. Four children, Amy, Susie, Tessie, and Eddie are lined up according to height,
each holding a balloon. The child in front (the shortest) is holding neither a red
nor blue balloon. Susie is holding a red balloon. Tessie sees exactly two bal-
loons in front of her. The child holding the blue balloon is right in front of the
child with the yellow balloon. Amy is in front of Tessie. One child is holding a
white balloon. Determine the arrangement of the four children (from shortest to
tallest) and the color of the balloon they are holding.
6. Activity: Give an example of a problem in your discipline and propose a way of
solving this problem using Pólya’s Four-Step Process

References
Mathematical Ideas, C.D. Miller, V. Heeren, J. Hornsby, C. Heeren, Pearson, 2015.
Mathematics in Life, Society, and the World, H. Parks, G. Musser, R. Burton,Hornsby
W. Siebler, Prentice Hall, 1977.
Mathematics: A Human Endeavor, H.R. Jacobs, W.H. Freeman and Co., 1977.
An Introduction to Mathematical Reasoning, P. Eccles, Cambridge University Press,
1998.

Sources from the web:

https://owlcation.com/humanities/Logical-Fallacies-Logical-Fallacies-and-How-They-
Are-Used
http://www.math.hawaii.edu/~hile/math100/logice.htm
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/mario-livio/logical-fallacies_b_1932906.html

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LOGIC AND REASONING

http://www.fallacydetective.com/articles/categoriescategory/fallacies/

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