Is there a relationship between symbolic logic and other fields of study such as digital electronics and computer programming? Did digital electronics and computer programming borrow concepts from symbolic logic?

In symbolic logic, there are logical operators for negation, conjunction, disjunction, and so on.

Computer programs have some operators that correspond to the logical operators in symbolic logic.

In the field of digital electronics, there are electronic devices called, "logic gates", that perform the same function as the logical operators in symbolic logic. For example, the "AND" logic gate performs the same function as the conjunction operator in symbolic logic. If this logic gate receives voltage on all of the inputs, then the output will have voltage. If this logic gate does not have voltage on all of the inputs, then the output will not have voltage. The "OR" logic gate performs the same function as the disjunction operator in symbolic logic. This logic gate will have voltage on the output as long as there is voltage on at least one of the inputs.

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Curt Hayashida
member, Community Bible Church (Non-denominational)
Vallejo, CA

Hello Curt,

Computers and computer programing find their origin in the study of modern (symbolic) logic. The motivation for this was the study of formal systems (the propositional calculus is an example of one such system). Certain meta-mathematical questions began to arise regarding these systems including questions of computibility. For instance, if you are given some formal system and a formula in the language of that system, can you determine whether or not that formula is a theorem of the system in a discrete, finite step-by-step process? Questions like these motivated Allen Turing to come up with his Turing Machine - the forunner to all computers.

Brian

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Brian Bosse
Faith Community Church
Tucson, Arizona