Tautology (logic)

In logic, a tautology (from the Greek word ταυτολογία) is a formula that is true in every possible interpretation.

Philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein first applied the term to redundancies of propositional logic in 1921. (It had been used earlier to refer to rhetorical tautologies, and continues to be used in that alternate sense.) A formula is satisfiable if it is true under at least one interpretation, and thus a tautology is a formula whose negation is unsatisfiable. Unsatisfiable statements, both through negation and affirmation, are known formally as contradictions. A formula that is neither a tautology nor a contradiction is said to be logically contingent. Such a formula can be made either true or false based on the values assigned to its propositional variables. The double turnstile notation is used to indicate that S is a tautology. Tautology is sometimes symbolized by "Vpq", and contradiction by "Opq". The tee symbol is sometimes used to denote an arbitrary tautology, with the dual symbol (falsum) representing an arbitrary contradiction; in any symbolism, a tautology may be substituted for the truth value "true," as symbolized, for instance, by "1."

Logic

Logic (from the Ancient Greek: λογική, logike) is the branch of philosophy concerned with the use and study of valid reasoning. The study of logic also features prominently in mathematics and computer science.

Logic was studied in several ancient civilizations, including Greece, India, and China. In the West, logic was established as a formal discipline by Aristotle, who gave it a fundamental place in philosophy. The study of logic was part of the classical trivium, which also included grammar and rhetoric. Logic was further extended by Al-Farabi who categorized it into two separate groups (idea and proof). Later, Avicenna revived the study of logic and developed relationship between temporalis and the implication. In the East, logic was developed by Hindus, Buddhists and Jains.

Logic is often divided into three parts: inductive reasoning, abductive reasoning, and deductive reasoning.

The study of logic

The concept of logical form is central to logic. The validity of an argument is determined by its logical form, not by its content. Traditional Aristotelian syllogistic logic and modern symbolic logic are examples of formal logic.