Logic: Language and Information

This subject is not offered in 2013.

an average of 8 hours each week.

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For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry.The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

Our world is saturated with information, but we aren't always good at handling it. What are the best ways to represent and manipulate information? What kinds of relationships hold between pieces of information? How can you show that a conclusion doesn't follow from the information you've got? How do you show that a different conclusion does follow from that information? Answers to these questions use the tools of modern logic. The logic that was developed to analyse the structure of our reasoning, our thought and our language has been found to play an important role in designing the hardware and software of our digital devices and the Internet in the 21st Century.

This subject is an introduction to logic and its applications in language, computation, engineering, mathematics and philosophy. We cover central techniques in propositional and predicate logic, which is a key part of the foundation of many academic disciplines. We will draw on the different ways these techniques are motivated and applied. This gives students an understanding of the different ways we can represent information with clarity and precision, and provide the tools to reason effectively.

Students who successfully complete this subject will have:

• examined critically, synthesised and evaluated knowledge across a broad range of disciplines
• expanded their analytical and cognitive skills through learning experiences in diverse subjects
• the capacity to participate fully in collaborative learning and to confront unfamiliar problems

Homework tasks equivalent to 1,000 words 15% (completed throughout the semester ). Two group work project tasks, one completed mid-semester and one completed at the end of semester 20%. A written test 10% (mid-semester). workshop participation 5%. and a 3 hour written exam 50% (examination period).

This subject has a minimum hurdle requirement of 75% workshop attendance. Regular participation in workshops is required. Assessment submitted late without an approved extension will be penalised at 10% per day. After 5 working days, late assessment without an approved extension will not be marked. In-class tasks missed without approval will not be marked. All pieces of written work must be submitted to pass this subject.

Greg Restall, Logic (Routledge 2006). A collection of other texts will be made available online.

This subject potentially can be taken as a breadth subject component for the following courses:

• Bachelor of Arts
• Bachelor of Biomedicine
• Bachelor of Commerce
• Bachelor of Environments
• Bachelor of Music
• Bachelor of Science
• Bachelor of Engineering

You should visit learn more about breadth subjects and read the breadth requirements for your degree, and should discuss your choice with your student adviser, before deciding on your subjects.

Upon completion of this subject, students should:

• Be able to think critically and to organise information in clear and precise ways
• Have developed analytical skills through participation in lecture, tutorial and other assignments
• Have improved skills in formal reasoning
• Have developed an appreciation of and a familiarity with cross-disciplinary techniques
• Have developed experience and skills in working in a group