In
logic
Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from prem ...
and
mathematics
Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
, statements
and
are said to be logically equivalent if they have the same
truth value
In logic and mathematics, a truth value, sometimes called a logical value, is a value indicating the relation of a proposition to truth, which in classical logic has only two possible values ('' true'' or '' false'').
Computing
In some pro ...
in every
model. The logical equivalence of
and
is sometimes expressed as
,
,
, or
, depending on the notation being used.
However, these symbols are also used for
material equivalence
Material is a substance or mixture of substances that constitutes an object. Materials can be pure or impure, living or non-living matter. Materials can be classified on the basis of their physical and chemical properties, or on their geologic ...
, so proper interpretation would depend on the context. Logical equivalence is different from material equivalence, although the two concepts are intrinsically related.
Logical equivalences
In logic, many common logical equivalences exist and are often listed as laws or properties. The following tables illustrate some of these.
General logical equivalences
Logical equivalences involving conditional statements
:#
:#
:#
:#
:#
:#
:#
:#
:#
Logical equivalences involving biconditionals
:#
:#
:#
:#
Examples
In logic
The following statements are logically equivalent:
#If Lisa is in
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
, then she is in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
(a statement of the form
).
#If Lisa is not in Europe, then she is not in Denmark (a statement of the form
).
Syntactically, (1) and (2) are derivable from each other via the rules of
contraposition and
double negation
In propositional logic, double negation is the theorem that states that "If a statement is true, then it is not the case that the statement is not true." This is expressed by saying that a proposition ''A'' is logically equivalent to ''not ( ...
. Semantically, (1) and (2) are true in exactly the same models (interpretations, valuations); namely, those in which either ''Lisa is in Denmark'' is false or ''Lisa is in Europe'' is true.
(Note that in this example,
classical logic
Classical logic (or standard logic or Frege-Russell logic) is the intensively studied and most widely used class of deductive logic. Classical logic has had much influence on analytic philosophy.
Characteristics
Each logical system in this class ...
is assumed. Some
non-classical logics do not deem (1) and (2) to be logically equivalent.)
Relation to material equivalence
Logical equivalence is different from material equivalence. Formulas
and
are logically equivalent if and only if the statement of their material equivalence (
) is a tautology.
The material equivalence of
and
(often written as
) is itself another statement in the same
object language as
and
. This statement expresses the idea "'
if and only if
'". In particular, the truth value of
can change from one model to another.
On the other hand, the claim that two formulas are logically equivalent is a statement in
metalanguage
In logic and linguistics, a metalanguage is a language used to describe another language, often called the ''object language''. Expressions in a metalanguage are often distinguished from those in the object language by the use of italics, quota ...
, which expresses a relationship between two statements
and
. The statements are logically equivalent if, in every model, they have the same truth value.
See also
*
Entailment
*
Equisatisfiability
*
If and only if
In logic and related fields such as mathematics and philosophy, "if and only if" (shortened as "iff") is a biconditional logical connective between statements, where either both statements are true or both are false.
The connective is bic ...
*
Logical biconditional
*
Logical equality
*
≡ the iff symbol (U+2261 ''IDENTICAL TO'')
*
∷ the ''a'' is to ''b'' as ''c'' is to ''d'' symbol (U+2237 ''PROPORTION'')
*
⇔ the
double struck biconditional (U+21D4 ''LEFT RIGHT DOUBLE ARROW'')
*
↔ the bidirectional arrow (U+2194 ''LEFT RIGHT ARROW'')
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Logical Equivalence
Mathematical logic
Metalogic
Logical consequence
Equivalence (mathematics)