From: tristan.wibberley+netnews2@alumni.manchester.ac.uk   
      
   On 10/01/2026 23:19, Richard Damon wrote:   
   > On 1/10/26 10:47 AM, olcott wrote:   
      
   >> Requiring the impossible is always an error.   
   >> Requiring an answer to a yes/no question that has no correct yes/no   
   >> answer is an incorrect question that must be rejected.   
   >   
   > But then, insisting that things are possilbe to ask the question is an   
                                         ^^^^^^^^   
   "Possible" has a very strict technical meaning in modal logic, which is   
   dominant. Best to pick a different term.   
      
      
   > Thus, your logic only allows that asking of questions you already know   
   > that an answer exists.   
      
   Yes, that's correct. It's different from conversation in which the   
   non-existence contingency is implied, in formal logic, generally, you   
   ask something akin to:   
      
   Exactly if a correct answer exists what is the answer to ...?   
      
   Unless you already know that a correct answer exists or you have   
   formulated your logic so you do not need to (and so restricted your   
   logic so you can't ask some things or else the question must be posed in   
   a wildly unintuitive and complicated fashion - which might be important   
   for some applications).   
      
   Of course, we have to use the (Gödel's, IIRC) technical meaning of   
   "existence".   
      
   --   
   Tristan Wibberley   
      
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