Theories of Meaning: From Formal Logic to Cognitive Models
Chapter 1: What Is Semantics?
1.1 Definition and Scope
Semantics: The study of meaning as encoded in language. It is concerned with semantic knowledge – what speakers know about word and sentence meaning.
Linguistic Components:
- Phonology: The sound system of a language.
- Syntax: Sentence structure.
- Semantics: Meaning.
1.2 Semantics vs. Semiotics
Semiotics: The general study of signs (developed by Charles Sanders Peirce).
- Icon: A sign that resembles its object (e.g., a portrait).
- Index: A sign with a causal
Key Philosophical Systems: Empiricism and Rationalism
Core Principles of Empiricism
Empiricism is the denial of any innate knowledge. Each of our ideas, however abstract it may seem, must have an empirical basis and result from the action of the subject over the world. Understanding is like a tabula rasa (a blank slate) in which nothing is written before contact with experience. Understanding cannot spontaneously occur from any idea.
- We cannot go beyond the data provided to us by way of what is called a vacuous metaphysics of speculative construction
Essential English Grammar Rules and Writing Techniques
English Verb Tenses
Present Simple
- General truths: The Earth orbits the Sun.
- Habits: They always ask silly questions.
- Instructions: First, cut the carrot into pieces.
- Timetables: The train leaves at 17:30.
- Storytelling: So… it’s 3 PM, I enter the pub and see him.
- Permanent facts: I am 29. Winnipeg is in Canada.
Present Continuous
Form: am/is/are + -ing
- Actions happening now: She is studying right now.
- Future arrangements: I am meeting the clients at 5.
- Temporary situations: I am living in Madrid.
- Trends:
Criminal Sentences: Structure, Consistency, and Res Judicata
Criminal Sentences: Definition and Function
Sentences always end the process. The Law of Criminal Procedure (LECrim) states that sentences are the resolutions that conclude the process and explicitly incorporate the Law.
Judgments are typically issued only in specific cases:
- To resolve an appeal.
- To resolve an appeal (repetition noted in original text).
In all other instances, the court issues orders.
Types of Criminal Sentences
Criminal sentences can have two statements:
- Acquittals: These sentences are
Strategic Marketing Fundamentals and Business Growth
Branding: Concept and Significance
Meaning and Concept
Branding is the process of creating a unique name, symbol, design, or identity for a product or company that distinguishes it from competitors and builds a lasting image in the minds of consumers.
Importance and Significance
- Product Identification: Helps consumers easily identify and differentiate a product from similar offerings in the market.
- Customer Loyalty: Strong brands encourage repeat purchases and develop customer loyalty.
- Premium Pricing:
Evolution, Speciation and Ecology: Questions & Answers
Evolution, Speciation and Ecology Q&A
Fixism and diversity of living things (4 marks)
Question: How does Fixism explain the diversity of living things?
Answer: Fixism claims that species were created as they are now and that they do not change. Therefore, the diversity we find today is the diversity that has always existed.
Convergent evolution: similar wings in birds & butterflies (4 marks)
Question: Explain why two very different species, such as birds and butterflies, can have similar wings
Read MoreHistorical Vocabulary: Segregation, Sharecropping, and Migration Terms
Vocabulary: Historical & Social Terms
Chipping
Definition: cutting, striking, or flaking off a small, usually thin and flat piece (as of wood or stone).
Synonyms / Translations: flake off, flake out / desprenderse, romper / déchiquetage, ébréchure, écaillage, s’effriter.
Example: The paint was constantly peeling from the thin walls.
Disrepair
Definition: the state of being in need of repair.
Translations: désolation / deterioro, en mal estado / délabrement, en mauvais état.
Example: The fence,
Read MoreBusiness Law Foundations: Key Concepts and Vocabulary (Chapters 1-10)
Business Law Foundations: Chapters 1–10 Summary
Chapter 1: Legal & Constitutional Foundations
U.S. law originates from four primary sources: constitutional law (derived from federal or state constitutions), statutory law (laws passed by legislatures), administrative law (rules set by agencies like the EPA), and case law (judge-made law based on precedent). Common law relies on stare decisis to ensure consistency.
Substantive law defines rights, while procedural law enforces them. Civil law resolves
Read MoreRights Issue, Bonus Shares & Debentures: SEBI Rules and Accounting
Rights Issue
A rights issue allows a company to raise capital by offering existing shareholders the opportunity to purchase additional shares at a discounted price, proportional to their current holdings. Typically used to fund expansion or debt reduction, shareholders receive rights entitlements which they can exercise by paying for new shares within a limited period, renounce by selling them on the market, or let expire. This maintains proportional ownership and prevents dilution for participating
Read MoreFoundational Concepts in Psychology and Neuroscience
Chapter 1: Psychological Perspectives and Research Methods
Major Schools of Thought
- Structuralism (Wundt, Titchener): Identify the basic structures of the conscious mind.
- Functionalism (James, Darwin): Describe how conscious minds adapt to an environment.
- Psychoanalytic Theory (Freud): Understand how unconscious thoughts cause psychological disorders.
- Gestalt Psychology (Wertheimer, Kohler): Study subjective perceptions as a unified whole.
- Behaviorism (Watson, Skinner): Describe behavior response to environmental