Combining Texts

Ideas for 'fragments/reports', 'Nature's Metaphysics' and 'W.V. Quine'

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2 ideas

4. Formal Logic / D. Modal Logic ML / 4. Alethic Modal Logic
S4: 'poss that poss that p' implies 'poss that p'; S5: 'poss that nec that p' implies 'nec that p' [Orenstein]
     Full Idea: The five systems of propositional modal logic contain successively stronger conceptions of necessity. In S4 'it is poss that it is poss that p' implies 'it is poss that p'. In S5, 'it is poss that it is nec that p' implies 'it is nec that p'.
     From: Alex Orenstein (W.V. Quine [2002], Ch.7)
     A reaction: C.I. Lewis originated this stuff. Any serious student of modality is probably going to have to pick a system. E.g. Nathan Salmon says that the correct modal logic is even weaker than S4.
4. Formal Logic / D. Modal Logic ML / 7. Barcan Formula
The plausible Barcan formula implies modality in the actual world [Bird]
     Full Idea: Modality in the actual world is the import of the Barcan formula, and there are good reasons for accepting the Barcan formula.
     From: Alexander Bird (Nature's Metaphysics [2007], 1.2)
     A reaction: If you thought logic was irrelevant to metaphysics, this should make you think twice.