Implications from propositions A => B, A <=> C and C => B

  • Context: Undergrad 
  • Thread starter Thread starter x-is-y
  • Start date Start date
Join the discussion
Registration is free. Ask a follow-up in this thread, or start your own.
3 replies · 3K views
x-is-y
Messages
5
Reaction score
0
I'm not 100% sure what this is in English so I'll try to describe it. Gives that:

A: x^2 < 16
B: -4 < x
C: -4 < x < 4

I'm supposed to put out every possibility for => and <=> between A,B and C. The key says that A => B, A <=> C and C => B. I can understand this, but isn't it true for every proposition (I think that it's called this) that A <=> A. That is, every proposition implies itself?
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Suppose you have three propositions, A, B and C and want to prove that they are equivalent. That means that
A <=> B, B <=> C and A <=> C
which can also be written as
A => B, B => A, A => C, C => A, B => C, C => B.
In words: if you know that one of them is true/false, they must all be true/false.
Obviously, A <=> A is always true and it's not included in the list.

You can prove all 6 of them consecutively, but that would be a lot of work. Therefore we find a shortcut:
suppose you would be able to prove half of them, namely that A => B, B => C and C => A.
Then because B implies C and C implies A, B also implies A so you automatically get B => A and therefore A <=> B.
Similarly, C => A and A => B so C also implies B (via A) hence B <=> C.
So proving these three statements will prove all six of them.

This is what the key suggests. It is wrong though, in claiming that A => B, A <=> C and C => B suffices. For example, you cannot get B => A (there is no premise starting with B).
 
x-is-y said:
I'm supposed to put out every possibility for => and <=> between A,B and C. The key says that A => B, A <=> C and C => B.
Probably then I got confused by the formulation.
What is meant by "put out every possbility"?
And I don't think I see the relevance of the question in the first part of the post to the question "isn't it true for every proposition ...".

So I apologize if I mislead you x-is-y, perhaps you can try to rephrase the question (or if someone else understands it, explain it to my numb mind)?