General Theory
-a. If we interpret the sentence "All scientists are philosophers" so that it is correctly symbolized by , then why will "All scientists are philosophers" not imply "Some scientists are philosophers"?

b. If we interpret “All scientists are philosophers” so that it has existential import, then does “All scientists are philosophers” imply “Some scientists are philosophers” or not? (Defend your answer.)

Question

General Theory
-a.  If we interpret the sentence "All scientists are philosophers" so that it is correctly symbolized by  , then why will "All scientists are philosophers" not imply "Some scientists are philosophers"?

b.	If we interpret “All scientists are philosophers” so that it has existential import, then does “All scientists are philosophers” imply “Some scientists are philosophers” or not? (Defend your answer.)

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The Answer is a. Because when so interpreted, the truth of "All scientists are philosophers" might follow from the fact that the class scientists is empty, in which case "Some scientists are philosophers" will be false.
b. If we interpret the sentence to have existentential import, then we require the classes scientists and philosophers to have members (so "All scientists are philosophers" is not correctly symbolized as

a. Because when so interpreted, the truth of All scientists are philosophers might follow from the fact that the class scientists is empty, in which case Some scientists are philosophers will be false. b. If we interpret the sentence to have existentential import, then we require the classes scientists and philosophers to have members (so All scientists are philosophers is not correctly symbolized as , then All scientists are philosophers does imply Some scientists are philosophers , because if all scientists are philosophers, and there are scientists, then obviously some scientists are philosophers.

, then "All scientists are philosophers" does imply "Some scientists are philosophers", because if all scientists are philosophers, and there are scientists, then obviously some scientists are philosophers.

General Theory -A. If We Interpret the Sentence "All Scientists Are