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Formal logic isn't special in helping you think. It doesn't offer any tool that you can use in real life. You might just as well study chess or engine design de
by tgv 5y ago
Formal logic isn't special in helping you think. It doesn't offer any tool that you can use in real life. You might just as well study chess or engine design deeply. It's the studying and problem solving that trains thinking.
- keiferski 5y agoI found that studying symbolic logic, especially in a philosophical (language-based) context, helped me clarify my thinking. In other words, it helped me differentiate between concepts, trace arguments, and determine if something actually made sense. It’s not so much about solving problems, more about “organizing” the way you think.
- wildermuthn 5y agoAgreed. Even if all you learn is the difference between validity and truth, this is an especially worthwhile difference to hammer into your brain. A lot of poor thinking comes not from invalid reasoning, but from hidden assumptions that are untrue. Conversely, the identification of contradiction is a skill that can be practiced with formal logic, and most invalid and convoluted arguments are easiest to unravel by finding those contradictions.