By: Muhammad Luqman Qadir

With Question/Answer Animations

Logic in Mathematics
• Logic in mathematics refers to the systematic study
of the principles of valid inference and correct
reasoning. It is used to evaluate whether a
statement is true or false, based on the logical
structure and relationships between propositions
(statements that can be true or false).
Example
Consider the following statements:
• Statement 1 (Proposition P): "If it rains, then the ground will be wet."
• Statement 2 (Proposition Q): "It is raining."
Using logic, we can deduce the truth of a third statement:
• Conclusion (Proposition R): "The ground is wet."
This is an example of a logical implication:
• If P, and P is true, then Q must also be true.
In logical notation:
• P → Q (If P, then Q)
• P is true Therefore, Q is true
In this case:
• P: "It rains“ Q: "The ground will be wet“
• Since P is true, Q must also be true, meaning "The ground is wet."
Importance of Logic
• It has practical applications to the design of computing machines, to
the specification of systems, to artificial intelligence, to computer
programming, to programming languages, and to other areas of
computer science.
• The rules of logic give precise meaning to mathematical statements.
• These rules are used to distinguish between valid and invalid
mathematical arguments.
• These rules are used in the design of computer circuits, the
construction of computer programs, the verification of the
correctness of programs.
Propositions
⚫ Basic building blocks of logic—propositions
⚫ A proposition is a declarative sentence that is either true or false.
⚫ Examples of propositions:
a) The Moon is made of green cheese.
b) Trenton is the capital of New Jersey.
c) Toronto is the capital of Canada.
d) 1 + 0 = 1
e) 0 + 0 = 2
⚫ Examples that are not propositions.
a) Sit down!
b) What time is it?
c) x+1=2
d) x + y = z
Propositional variables
• Propositional variables (or sentential variables), that is,
variables that represent propositions, just as letters are used
to denote numerical variables.
• The conventional letters used for propositional variables are
p, q, r, s.
Truth Value
• In logic, the truth value of a statement (or proposition) refers to its
status as being either true (T) or false (F). Every proposition must
have one of these two truth values.
• Example:
• Statement 1: "2 + 2 = 4"
• Truth Value: True (T)
• Statement 2: "The moon is made of cheese."
• Truth Value: False (F)
Types of Propositions
Simple Proposition:
• A proposition that does not contain any other proposition as a component.
• Example: "3 is a prime number."

Compound Proposition:
• A proposition formed by combining two or more propositions using logical
connectives.
• Example: "3 is a prime number and 2 is an even number."

Tautology:
• A proposition that is always true, regardless of the truth values of its
components.
• Example: "P ∨ ¬P" (Either P is true, or P is not true).

Contradiction:
• A proposition that is always false, regardless of the truth values of its
components.
• Example: "P ∧ ¬P" (P cannot be true and false simultaneously).
Types of Propositions
Contingent Proposition:
• A proposition whose truth value depends on the truth values of its
components; it can be either true or false.
• Example: "It is raining" (This statement can be true or false depending on the
weather).

Universal Proposition:
• A proposition that asserts something about all elements in a given set.
• Example: "For all x in ℕ, x + 1 > x."

Existential Proposition:
• A proposition that asserts the existence of at least one element in a given set
that satisfies a certain condition.
• Example: "There exists an x in ℕ such that x is even."

Biconditional Proposition:
• A proposition where two statements are true or false simultaneously;
expressed as "P if and only if Q."
• Example: "x is even if and only if x is divisible by 2."
Types of Propositions
Atomic Proposition:
• Propositions that cannot be expressed in terms of simpler propositions are
called atomic propositions.
• An atomic proposition is a basic statement or proposition that cannot be
broken down into simpler components.
• It is indivisible and does not contain any logical connectives (such as AND,
OR, NOT, etc.).
• In other words, an atomic proposition is a simple statement that asserts a
single fact.
Example:
"The sky is blue.“
This statement is a single, simple assertion without any further logical structure.
"5 is a prime number.“
This is an atomic proposition because it asserts a specific fact about the
number 5.
"The Earth orbits the Sun.“
This statement is an indivisible assertion regarding a specific physical
phenomenon
Propositional calculus
• The area of logic that deals with propositions is called the
propositional calculus or propositional logic.
• It was first developed systematically by the Greek philosopher
Aristotle more than 2300 years ago.
• Methods for producing new propositions were discussed by the
English mathematician George Boole in 1854 in his book “The Laws
of Thought.”
Logical Connectives
Basic Logical Operations
Compound Propositions: Negation
⚫ Reverses the truth value of a single proposition.
⚫ The negation of a proposition p is denoted by ¬p and has
this truth table:
p ¬p
T F
F T

⚫ Example: If p denotes “The earth is round.”, then ¬p

denotes “It is not the case that the earth is round,” or
more simply “The earth is not round.”

Remark: The notation for the negation operator is not

standardized. Although ¬p and p are the most common
notations used in mathematics to express the negation of
p, other notations you might see are ∼p, −p, p′, Np, and !p.
Conjunction
⚫ The conjunction of propositions p and q is denoted
by p 𝖠 q and has this truth table:
p q p𝖠q
T T T
T F F
F T F
F F F

⚫ Example: If p denotes “I am at home.” and q denotes

“It is raining.” then p 𝖠 q denotes “I am at home and it
is raining.”
Disjunction
⚫ The disjunction of propositions p and q is denoted
by p ∨q and has this truth table:

p q p ∨q
T T T
T F T
F T T
F F F

⚫ Example: If p denotes “I am at home.” and q denotes

“It is raining.” then p ∨q denotes “I am at home or it is
raining.”
The Connective Or in English
⚫ In English “or” has two distinct meanings.
⚫ “Inclusive Or” - In the sentence “Students who have taken CS202 or
Math120 may take this class,” we assume that students need to have taken
one of the prerequisites, but may have taken both. This is the meaning of
disjunction. For p ∨q to be true, either one or both of p and q must be true.
⚫ “Exclusive Or” - When reading the sentence “Soup or salad comes with this
entrée,” we do not expect to be able to get both soup and salad. This is the
meaning of Exclusive Or (Xor). In p ⊕ q , one of p and q must be true, but
not both. The truth table for ⊕ is:

p q p ⊕q
T T F
T F T
F T T
F F F
Tautologies and contradictions
• A tautology is an assertion of Propositional Logic
that is true in all situations; that is, it is true for all
possible values of its variables.
• A contradiction is an assertion of Propositional
Logic that is false in all situations; that is, it is false
for all possible values of its variables.
• A contingency is and assertion is sometimes true
and sometimes false, so it is neither a tautology nor
a contradiction.
Determine weather the following condition is
Tautology or contradiction p ∨ ¬(p ∧ q)

Conclusion: This equation is tautology

Implication
⚫ If p and q are propositions, then p →q is a conditional statement or
implication which is read as “if p, then q ” and has this truth table:
p q p →q
T T T
T F F
F T T
F F T

⚫ Example: If p denotes “I am at home.” and q denotes “It is

raining.” then p →q denotes “If I am at home then it is raining.”
⚫ In p →q , p is the hypothesis (antecedent or premise) and q is
the conclusion (or consequence).
Understanding Implication
⚫ In p →q there does not need to be any connection
between the antecedent or the consequent. The
“meaning” of p →q depends only on the truth values of
p and q.
⚫ These implications are perfectly fine, but would not be
used in ordinary English.
⚫ “If the moon is made of green cheese, then I have more
money than Bill Gates. ”
⚫ “If the moon is made of green cheese then I’m on
welfare.”
⚫ “If 1 + 1 = 3, then your grandma wears combat boots.”
Understanding Implication (cont)
⚫ One way to view the logical conditional is to think of
an obligation or contract.
⚫ “If I am elected, then I will lower taxes.”
⚫ “If you get 100% on the final, then you will get an A.”
⚫ If the politician is elected and does not lower taxes,
then the voters can say that he or she has broken the
campaign pledge. Something similar holds for the
professor. This corresponds to the case where p is true
and q is false.
Different Ways of Expressing p →q

if p, then q p implies q
if p, q p only if q
q unless ¬p q when p
q if p q when p
q whenever p p is sufficient for q
q follows from p q is necessary for p

a necessary condition for p is q

a sufficient condition for q is p
Converse, Contrapositive, and Inverse
⚫ From p →q we can form new conditional statements .
⚫ q →p is the converse of p →q
⚫ ¬q → ¬ p is the contrapositive of p →q
⚫ ¬ p → ¬ q is the inverse of p →q
Example: Find the converse, inverse, and
contrapositive of “It raining is a sufficient condition for
my not going to town.”
Converse, Contrapositive, and Inverse
⚫ From p →q we can form new conditional statements .
⚫ q →p is the converse of p →q
⚫ ¬q → ¬ p is the contrapositive of p →q
⚫¬p→¬q is the inverse of p →q
Example: Find the converse, inverse, and contrapositive of
“It raining is a sufficient condition for my not going to
town.”
Solution:
converse: If I do not go to town, then it is raining.
inverse: If it is not raining, then I will go to town.
contrapositive: If I go to town, then it is not raining.
Biconditional
⚫ If p and q are propositions, then we can form the biconditional
proposition p q , read as “p if and only if q .” The biconditional
p q denotes the proposition with this truth table:

p q p q
T T T
T F F
F T F
F F T

⚫ If p denotes “I am at home.” and q denotes “It is raining.” then

p q denotes “I am at home if and only if it is raining.”
Expressing the Biconditional
⚫ Some alternative ways “p if and only if q” is expressed
in English:

⚫ p is necessary and sufficient for q

⚫ if p then q , and conversely
⚫ p iff q
Show that (p → q) ∧ (q → p) is logically
equivalent to p q.
Show that the assertion (P&(¬Q∨¬R))⇒(P⇒¬Q)
is neither a tautology nor a contradiction
Logic and Bit Operations
• Computers represent information using bits.
• A bit is a symbol with two possible values,
namely, 0 (zero) and 1 (one).
• This meaning of the word bit comes from binary
digit, because zeros and ones are the digits used
in binary representations of numbers.
• The well-known statistician John Tukey
introduced this terminology in 1946.
• A bit can be used to represent a truth value,
because there are two truth values, namely, true
and false.
• As is customarily done, we will use a 1 bit to
represent true and a 0 bit to represent false.
• That is, 1 represents T (true), 0 represents F
(false). A variable is called a Boolean variable if its
value is either true or false.
Bit Operations
• Computer bit operations correspond to the logical connectives. By
replacing true by a one and false by a zero in the truth tables for the
operators ∧, ∨, and ⊕.
• We will also use the notation OR, AND, and XOR for the operators ∨,
∧, and ⊕.
Truth Tables For Compound Propositions

⚫ Construction of a truth table:

⚫ Rows
⚫ Need a row for every possible combination of values for
the atomic propositions.
⚫ Columns
⚫ Need a column for the compound proposition (usually
at far right)
⚫ Need a column for the truth value of each expression
that occurs in the compound proposition as it is built
up.
⚫ This includes the atomic propositions
 a composition of three

Example Truth Table (atomic) propositions:

p, q, r

⚫ Construct a truth table for

p q r r pq p  q → r
T T T F T F
T T F T T T
T F T F T F
T F F T T T
F T T F T F
F T F T T T
F F T F F T
F F F T F T
Equivalent Propositions
⚫ Two propositions are equivalent if they always have the
same truth value.
⚫ Example: Show using a truth table that the
implication is equivalent to the contrapositive.
Equivalent Propositions
⚫ Two propositions are logically equivalent if they always
have the same truth value. (notation A  B )
⚫ Example: Show using a truth table that the
implication is equivalent to the contrapositive.
Solution:
p q ¬p ¬q p →q ¬q → ¬ p
T T F F T T
T F F T F F
F T T F T T
F F T T T T

p →q  ¬q → ¬ p
Using a Truth Table to Show Non-
Equivalence
Example: Show using truth tables that neither the
converse nor inverse of an implication are not equivalent
to the implication.
Using a Truth Table to Show Non-
Equivalence
Example: Show using truth tables that neither the
converse nor inverse of an implication are not equivalent
to the implication.
Solution:
p q ¬p ¬q p →q q→p ¬ p →¬ q
T T F F T T T
T F F T F T T
F T T F T F F
F F T T T T T

NOTE: converse and inverse

are equivalent to each other
Extra exercise:
⚫ Prove that biconditional pq is equivalent to the
conjunction of implication p →q and its converse q → p,
which is (p →q) 𝖠 (q → p )

(p →q) 𝖠 (q → p )  p q
Problem
⚫ How many rows are there in a truth table with n
propositional variables?
Problem
⚫ How many rows are there in a truth table with n
propositional variables?

Solution: 2n We will see how to do this in Chapter 6.

⚫ Note that this means that with n propositional

variables, we can construct 2n distinct (i.e., not
equivalent) propositions.
Section 1.2
Applications of Propositional Logic: Summary

⚫ Translating English to Propositional Logic

⚫ System Specifications
⚫ Logic Puzzles
⚫ Logic Circuits
 Translating English Sentences
⚫ Steps to convert an English sentence to a statement in
propositional logic
⚫ Identify atomic propositions and represent using
propositional variables.
⚫ Determine appropriate logical connectives
⚫ “If I go to Harry’s or to the country, I will not go shopping.”
⚫ p: I go to Harry’s
⚫ q: I go to the country. If p or q then not r.
⚫ r: I will go shopping.
Example
Problem: Translate the following sentence into
propositional logic:
“You can access the Internet from campus only if you are
a computer science major or you are not a freshman.”
Example
Problem: Translate the following sentence into
propositional logic:
“You can access the Internet from campus only if you are
a computer science major or you are not a freshman.”
One Solution: Let a, c, and f represent respectively
“You can access the internet from campus,” “You are a
computer science major,” and “You are a freshman.”
a→ (c ∨ ¬ f )
System Specifications
⚫ System and Software engineers take requirements in
English and express them in a precise specification
language based on logic.
Example: Express in propositional logic:
“The automated reply cannot be sent when the file
system is full”
System Specifications
⚫ System and Software engineers take requirements in
English and express them in a precise specification
language based on logic.
Example: Express in propositional logic:
“The automated reply cannot be sent when the file
system is full”
Solution: One possible solution: Let p denote “The
automated reply can be sent” and q denote “The file
system is full.”
q→ ¬ p
Consistent System Specifications
Definition: A list of propositions is consistent if it is
possible to assign truth values to the proposition
variables so that each proposition is true.
Exercise: Are these specifications consistent?
⚫ “The diagnostic message is stored in the buffer or it is retransmitted.”
⚫ “The diagnostic message is not stored in the buffer.”
⚫ “If the diagnostic message is stored in the buffer, then it is retransmitted.”
Consistent System Specifications
•Definition: A list of propositions is consistent if it is possible to
assign truth values to the proposition variables so that each
proposition is true.
• Exercise: Are these specifications consistent?
⚫ “The diagnostic message is stored in the buffer or it is retransmitted.”
⚫ “The diagnostic message is not stored in the buffer.”
⚫ “If the diagnostic message is stored in the buffer, then it is retransmitted.”
•Solution: Let p denote “The diagnostic message is stored in the buffer.” Let
q denote “The diagnostic message is retransmitted”. The

specification can be written as: p ∨ q, ¬p , p→ q. When p is false and q

is true all three statements are true. So the specification is consistent.
⚫ What if “The diagnostic message is not retransmitted” is added?
Consistent System Specifications
•Definition: A list of propositions is consistent if it is possible to
assign truth values to the proposition variables so that each
proposition is true.
• Exercise: Are these specifications consistent?
⚫ “The diagnostic message is stored in the buffer or it is retransmitted.”
⚫ “The diagnostic message is not stored in the buffer.”
⚫ “If the diagnostic message is stored in the buffer, then it is retransmitted.”
•Solution: Let p denote “The diagnostic message is stored in the buffer.” Let
q denote “The diagnostic message is retransmitted”. The

specification can be written as: p ∨ q, ¬p , p→ q. When p is false and q

is true all three statements are true. So the specification is consistent.
⚫What if “The diagnostic message is not retransmitted” is added?
Solution: Now we are adding ¬q and there is no satisfying assignment.
So the specification is not consistent.
Logic Puzzles Raymond
Smullyan
(Born 1919)
⚫ An island has two kinds of inhabitants, knights, who always tell the
truth, and knaves, who always lie.
⚫ You go to the island and meet A and B.
⚫ A says “B is a knight.”
⚫ B says “The two of us are of opposite types.”
Puzzle : What are the types of A and B?
Logic Puzzles Raymond
Smullyan
(Born 1919)
⚫ An island has two kinds of inhabitants, knights, who always tell the
truth, and knaves, who always lie.
⚫ You go to the island and meet A and B.
⚫ A says “B is a knight.”
⚫ B says “The two of us are of opposite types.”
Puzzle : What are the types of A and B?
Solution: Let p and q be the statements that A is a knight and B is a
knight, respectively. So, then p represents the proposition that A is a
knave and q that B is a knave.
⚫ If A is a knight, then p is true. Since knights tell the truth, q must also be
true. Then (p 𝖠  q)∨ ( p 𝖠 q) would have to be true, but it is not. So, A is
not a knight and therefore p must be true.
⚫ If A is a knave, then B must not be a knight since knaves always lie. So, then
both p and q hold since both are knaves.
Logic Circuits
(Studied in depth in CS2209)
⚫ Electronic circuits; each input/output signal can be viewed as a 0 or 1.
⚫ 0 represents False
⚫ 1 represents True
⚫ Complicated circuits are constructed from three basic circuits called gates.

⚫ The inverter (NOT gate)takes an input bit and produces the negation of that bit.
⚫ The OR gate takes two input bits and produces the value equivalent to the disjunction of the two
bits.
⚫ The AND gate takes two input bits and produces the value equivalent to the conjunction of the
two bits.
⚫ More complicated digital circuits can be constructed by combining these basic circuits to
produce the desired output given the input signals by building a circuit for each piece of
the output expression and then combining them. For example:
Section 1.3
Section Summary
⚫ Tautologies, Contradictions, and Contingencies.
⚫ Logical Equivalence
⚫ Important Logical Equivalences
⚫ Showing Logical Equivalence
⚫ Propositional Satisfiability
Tautologies, Contradictions, and Contingencies

⚫ A tautology is a proposition which is always true.

⚫ Example: p ∨¬p
⚫ A contradiction is a proposition which is always false.
⚫ Example: p 𝖠¬p
⚫ A contingency is a proposition which is neither a
tautology nor a contradiction, such as p

p ¬p p ∨¬p p 𝖠¬p
T F T F
F T T F
Logically Equivalent
⚫ Two compound propositions p and q are logically equivalent if p q
is a tautology.
⚫ We write this as p ⇔ q or as p ≡ q where p and q are compound
propositions.
⚫ Twocompound propositions p and q are equivalent if and only if the
columns in a truth table giving their truth values agree.
⚫ This truth table show ¬p ∨ q is equivalent to p → q.

p q ¬p ¬p ∨ q p→ q
T T F T T
T F F F F
F T T T T
F F T T T
De Morgan’s Laws
Augustus De Morgan
1806-1871
 De Morgan’s Laws
Augustus De Morgan
1806-1871

This truth table shows that De Morgan’s Second Law holds.

p q ¬p ¬q (p∨q) ¬(p∨q) ¬p𝖠¬q

T T F F T F F
T F F T T F F
F T T F T F F
F F T T F T T
Key Logical Equivalences
⚫ Identity Laws: ,

⚫ Domination Laws: ,

⚫ Idempotent laws: ,

⚫ Double Negation Law:

⚫ Negation Laws: ,
Key Logical Equivalences (cont)
⚫ Commutative Laws: ,

⚫ Associative Laws:

⚫ Distributive Laws:

⚫ Absorption Laws:
 More Logical Equivalences

These valid logical equivalences could be used as a valid argument form in proofs (later)
 More Logical Equivalences

p q p→ q p  (p→ q) (p  (p→ q)) → q

T T T T T
T F F F T
F T T F T
F F T F T

The tautology above is known as “Modus Podens” (one of the rules of inference)
It establishes validity of the following argument form:
if p and p→ q then q
(see other standard rules of inference in Table 1 on p.72)
Constructing New Logical Equivalences

⚫ We can show that two expressions are logically equivalent

by developing a series of logically equivalent statements.
⚫ To prove that we produce a series of equivalences
beginning with A and ending with B.

⚫ Keep in mind that whenever a proposition (represented by

a propositional variable) occurs in the equivalences listed
earlier, it may be replaced by an arbitrarily complex
compound proposition.
Equivalence Proofs
Example: Show that
is logically equivalent to
Equivalence Proofs
Example: Show that
is logically equivalent to
Solution:
Equivalence Proofs
Example: Show that
is a tautology.
Equivalence Proofs
Example: Show that
is a tautology.
Solution:
Propositional Satisfiability
⚫ A compound proposition is satisfiable if there is an
assignment of truth values to its variables that make it
true. When no such assignments exist, the compound
proposition is unsatisfiable.

⚫ A compound proposition is unsatisfiable if and only if

its negation is a tautology.
⚫ A compound proposition is unsatisfiable if and only if
it is a contradiction.