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From: tedrick@ernie.berkeley.edu (Tom Tedrick)
Newsgroups: net.math,net.philosophy
Subject: Tarski's definition of truth
Message-ID: <12411@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>
Date: Sat, 15-Mar-86 19:32:05 EST
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Posted: Sat Mar 15 19:32:05 1986
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Reply-To: tedrick@ernie.berkeley.edu (Tom Tedrick)
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Can someone explain Tarski's definition of truth to me?
I never quite understood it.

In the last graduate course in mathematical logic that I
took, many years ago (which convinced me that mathematical
logic was not the field for me), I remember Prof. Vaught
walking up and down in front of the class, saying
"The statement 'Grass is green' is true iff grass is green",
and smiling a funny smile.

Is it possible for someone to clue me in as to what is going
on, or is this as difficult to explain as a koan ...

It was especially disturbing to me because I had spent a month
the previous summer convincing myself that I could prove that
it was impossible to define truth ...

	     -Tom
	      tedrick@ernie.berkeley.edu