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There is an infinite number of words - "ONE", "TWO", "THREE"... etc. Every word has a definition. Every definition consists of letters. There is a finite number of arrangement of letters; thus there is a finite number of definitions. Thus there is at least one word that doesn't have a definition. Paradox?
Why do you say that the
Jonathan Westphal
November 10, 2024
(changed November 10, 2024)
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Why do you say that the number of words is infinite? The OED has only about 600,000, and the number of languages around the world is finite.
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On the case of Bill Cosby's release from prison, I heard the news commentator on television (CNN) saying, quote, "we don't have justice system in this country, we have legal system". This raises the following question: Isn't the legal system built to implement justice (at least in the minds of those who participated in forming the legal system) or is there another logic, or better to say, alongside the acclaimed logic of justice, other social considerations to have been prevalent? Ali , Tehran, Iran
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Jonathan Westphal
May 22, 2022
(changed May 22, 2022)
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On the case of Bill Cosby's release from prison, I heard the news commentator on television (CNN) saying, quote, "we don't have justice system in this country, we have legal system". This raises the following question: Isn't the legal system built to implement justice (at least in the minds of those who participated in forming the legal system) or is there another logic, or better to say, alongside the acclaimed logic of justice, other social considerations to have been prevalent? Ali , Tehran, Iran
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Jonathan Westphal
May 22, 2022
(changed May 22, 2022)
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First: I think every question has a logical answer. is it correct? Second: If the answer to my first question is yes, then what is the logical answer to the question why a cow has four legs?
I’m guessing that what you
Allen Stairs
October 16, 2021
(changed October 16, 2021)
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I’m guessing that what you think is that every question has a satisfying answer — an answer that explains what we wanted explained or tells us what we wanted to know. And so my question is: why do you think that?
For the record, I don’t think it’s true, or at least... Read more
Hello. I read on the internet that Buddhism teaches solipsism. I want to ask: Do the teachings and doctrines of all the official schools of Buddhism in China, Japan, South Korea, and Vietnam allow Buddhists, Buddhas, and Bodhisattvas to believe that other people have individual minds, consciousnesses, feelings, emotions, and thoughts? Thank you
My understanding is that
Allen Stairs
October 13, 2021
(changed October 13, 2021)
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My understanding is that Buddhism teaches the doctrine of anatta — "no self." This doesn't mean that there aren't people in the ordinary sense. It means that there is no underyling metaphysical substance that amounts to the self. But I'm not aware of anything in Buddh... Read more
Hello! I'd like to ask about syllogisms. I have a particular problem when understanding this certain syllogism: Some girls are single. Some girls are sad. Therefore, some girls are single and sad. While I think it is valid, I cannot fully make an accurate explanation as to why it is. Hoping somebody could help me. Thanks!
The syllogism in question is
Stephen Maitzen
September 30, 2021
(changed September 30, 2021)
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The syllogism in question is not valid. Nothing logically guarantees that the set of single girls and the set of sad girls overlap. Even if both sets have members, it does not follow that they have any members in common. Compare: Some polygons are squares.... Read more
First: I think every question has a logical answer. is it correct? Second: If the answer to my first question is yes, then what is the logical answer to the question why a cow has four legs?
I’m guessing that what you
Allen Stairs
October 16, 2021
(changed October 16, 2021)
Permalink
I’m guessing that what you think is that every question has a satisfying answer — an answer that explains what we wanted explained or tells us what we wanted to know. And so my question is: why do you think that?
For the record, I don’t think it’s true, or at least... Read more
I’m reading Terry Pinkard’s “German Philosophy 1760-1860 The Legacy of Idealism”, and on page 113, he writes: “Signing a check, hitting a home run, making an assertion, shopping at a sale are all other examples of normative activities that cannot be captured in a purely physical or “naturalistic description of them.” I’m not getting why hitting a home rim cannot be described as purely physical phenomena. Can somebody explain it to me?
Here's a way that might help.
Allen Stairs
August 15, 2021
(changed August 15, 2021)
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Here's a way that might help. Suppose there are two pieces of paper in front of you. One of them is a genuine $5 bill. The other is a perfect counterfeit. In fact, suppose that it was illicitly created by the very same equipment that created the real bill. The... Read more
Do you think genetically stupid people should not have kids since the kids will also be like that and having a child would just be adding misery to it's life since it would never be able to be successful or achieve anything. S/he would spend all their life being inferior to other and it would just be a lifetime of pain.
When I was a young man, I
Allen Stairs
August 15, 2021
(changed August 15, 2021)
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When I was a young man, I knew someone who was, in the phrase that might have been used at that time, "mildly retarded." He was married. And he understood his condition. And he struck me as a happy man. He certainly wasn't leading a life of misery.
In the neighborhood... Read more
Could someone help me clear up a paradox? Let’s say there’s a woman who says “I cannot say no to you” and the woman she is speaking with responds “well then, say ‘no’”. Is this really a paradox? In my opinion it isn’t: When the woman says that “she can’t say ‘no’” there are one of two interpretations of that phrase. She either means “I cannot deny your requests” or literally “I cannot utter the word ‘no’”. If it’s the former, then asking her to just “say no” wouldn’t put her in a paradox, since simply uttering the word “no” isn’t denying a request, it’s just making an empty utterance. It’s like how saying “I declare bankruptcy” doesn’t actually do anything, it’s just making noise. If it’s the latter example, and she cannot “say no”, then she technically never said she cannot deny a request—she just can’t use the specific word “no” in her statement. She can still say “I refuse” or “I will not do that” and then not have to say “no”. Am I wrong about this?
If the woman meant (a) "I can
Stephen Maitzen
August 12, 2021
(changed August 12, 2021)
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If the woman meant (a) "I can't utter the word no in response to any request from you," then she can't abide by her companion's request (to say "no") without falsifying what she has just said. Still, I agree with you that there's no paradox here. The woman... Read more