Logic in Pictures: An Examination of Diagrammatic Representations, Graph Theory and Logic

Abstract

This thesis explores the various forms of reasoning that are associated with diagrams. It does this by a logical analysis of diagrammatic symbols. The thesis is divided into three sections dealing with different aspects of diagrammatic logic. They are (1) The relevance of diagrammatic symbols and their role in logic, (2) Methods of formalizing diagrammatic symbols, such as subway maps and Peirce's Existential Graphs through the means of Graph theory, (3) The conception of inference in diagrammatic logic systems.