Contemporary syllogisms are part of modern day quantificational logic, which is widely regarded as an improvement upon the approach originally described by Aristotle about 2,400 years ago. This essay discusses the contemporary approach to syllogisms.
Saving the Many or the Few: The Moral Relevance of Numbers
Many claim that, when those you can help are innocent strangers with similar interests at stake, you’re required to save the greater number. Is this claim justified? This essay reviews some doubts.
Classical Syllogisms
This essay introduces the classical Aristotelian approach to syllogisms.
Philosophy of Space and Time: What is Space?
An introduction to the philosophy of space and time, focusing on the question, "What is space?"
The Ethics of Mozi: Social Organization and Impartial Care
An introduction to the ethics of Mo Di, or Mozi, (墨子, c. 470 – c. 391 BCE), the founding figure of Mohism, a philosophical, social, and self-defense movement during the Warring States era (479–221 BCE) in China.
Condorcet’s Jury Theorem and Democracy
This essay explains Marquis de Condorcet’s "jury theorem" and how philosophers have used it as an argument for democracy.
What Is Misogyny?
"Misogyny" refers to systems that uphold gender-based oppression against women and girls. What those systems are, and how they operate, is a subject of philosophical debate. Here we explain two prominent accounts of these systems and discuss whether misogyny can be understood independently of broader systems of oppression.
Gricean Conversational Implicature: What We Say and What We Mean
Author: Thomas Hodgson Category: Philosophy of Mind and Language Word count: 997 Alex and Chris are making cabbage soup and realize that there isn’t any cabbage in the kitchen. Alex states ‘there is a market nearby’. Chris takes Alex to have said that there is a market nearby. Alex also meant that cabbage can be … Continue reading Gricean Conversational Implicature: What We Say and What We Mean
Formal Logic: Symbolizing Arguments in Quantificational or Predicate Logic
Author: Timothy Eshing Category: Logic and Reasoning Word count: 1000 Editor’s note: for many readers, this essay would be more profitably read after reading Formal Logic: Symbolizing Arguments in Sentential Logic by Thomas Metcalf. There are many varieties of formal logic of varying complexity. Here we survey one that’s somewhat more complex than sentential or … Continue reading Formal Logic: Symbolizing Arguments in Quantificational or Predicate Logic
Philosophy of Space and Time: Are the Past and Future Real?
An introduction to the Philosophy of Space and Time. Are the Past and Future Real?