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Subsection 7.3.1 Introduction

Table 7.3.1.
Talking Approximate number of words a moderately fast-talking English speaker can utter per minute: 160
Wifi Approximate number of words a not very state-of-the-art wifi connection can transmit per minute: 30,000,000

English evolved to support talking, not wifi, communication. So:

  • In the interest of efficiency, English arguments leave out a lot.  We assume that the people to whom we’re talking (or writing) share much of our understanding of the world around us.

  • We’re also often sloppy.  Again, we assume that the people we’re communicating with will be able to figure out, from what we literally say, what we actually mean.

But the language of logic doesn’t allow this.  In order to use it to represent the intended meanings of English sentences, we must first determine exactly what those meanings are. And then we must be very careful as we map those meanings into logical statements.