[comp.ai.philosophy] AGAINST FORMALISM

ISSSSM@NUSVM.BITNET (Stephen Smoliar) (06/18/91)

In article <1991Jun17.032758.14030@aifh.ed.ac.uk> cam@aifh.ed.ac.uk (Chris
Malcolm) writes:
>
>The unfortunate problem with logic is not that it is deficient as a
>system of reasoning, but that there are so few collections of english
>language propositions about the world to which it can be usefully
>applied. Usually it just gives silly results, as in the above example.

Actually, the unfortunate problem resides not in logic, itself, but in the
confused minds of those who really do not understand it.  The heart of the
confusion lies in the assumption that a tool which provides EXPLANATORY
value can also provide PREDICTIVE value.  Given something which we are
willing to accept as reasoning, the "logical approach" allows us to abstract
our evidence and distill it down to symbolic representations and operators.
(Note that I am not saying anything about Aristotle's syllogisms or Boole's
"laws of thought"--perhaps one of the most damaging phrases in human
intellectual history.  If Walid's "logic of Cheo Wawa" does the trick,
it is as good as any other system.)  However, all the distilled explanations
of all the intelligent behavior we can ever hope to observe is not necessarily
going to provide the stuff from which we can build a new intelligent agent to
go out there and survive in our world.  In other words if we wish to explain
the conclusions Walid draws about knowledge of Sam's pregnancy, then logic is
one way in which to summarize the evidence we have of Walid's beliefs;  but if
we need a mechanism to tell us all the things Walid believes about Sam upon
being told that Sam is pregnant, then, as Chris has put it, we cannot hope
for anything better than "silly results."

===============================================================================

Stephen W. Smoliar
Institute of Systems Science
National University of Singapore
Heng Mui Keng Terrace, Kent Ridge
SINGAPORE 0511

BITNET:  ISSSSM@NUSVM

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