Spring 2012
MAT 7670-001
Meets in John Barry Hall 211 on Tuesdays, 6:15 - 8:45 PM.
List of suggested presentation topics
Course Home Page: http://www.csc.villanova.edu/~japaridz/GradLogic/
Instructor: Dr. G. Japaridze
Textbook:
"Language, Proof and Logic" By
Dave Barker-Plummer, Jon Barwise and John Etchemendy. CSLI
Publications, 2011. ISBN 978-1-57586-632-1.
NOTE: Do not purchase a used textbook, because the accompanying software is not
reusable.
Description and goals: Logic is the study of the laws of truth and the fundamental principles of correct reasoning. As such, it forms the very basics of mathematics, at the same time being highly relevant to a wide range of other disciplines, most notably computer science (artificial intelligence, computability theory, etc.). For this reason, this course could be equally interesting for mathematics and computer science students, as well as anyone with mathematical and theoretical inclinations. Meant to be an introductory course to the exciting subject of logic, it is going to be fully self-contained, with no formal or informal prerequisites.
Grading: Term grades will be based on the following four components:
1. Homework [35%]: In the form of electronic submissions, every week during the first half of the semester and perhaps less regularly during the second half. Each submission is due before the start of the class. Late submissions will only receive 50% of the score, and submissions overdue more than one week will receive 0%.
2. Quizzes [30%]: 5 to 10 quizzes will be given throughout the semester without warning, during the first few minutes of the class. Missed quizzes cannot be made up no matter what the reason was. One quiz with the lowest grade, however, will be automatically forgiven. All quiz questions will come from among the questions posted under "Quiz" on the Homework page.
3. Examination [35%]: Will be comprehensive, given during the last week of the semester.
4. Each student will also be expected to make a 10-40
min. presentation on a topic of his/her choice otherwise not covered during the
course. See the
list of suggested topics.
Presentations will not contribute toward your cumulative score; however, an
outstanding presentation can increase your letter grade by 1/2 (say, from "B" to
"B+"), and a very poor presentation can decrease it by 1/2 (say, from "B" to
"B-").
When deriving final grades, a few additional points may be occasionally awarded (purely at the instructor’s discretion) for being an active listener, willing to answer and/or ask questions and participate in discussions. All instructors greatly appreciate this, and the present one is no exception.