The Logical Status of Diagrams

"I will conclude by offering general praise for a work that really does deserve praise. Even more, it deserves to be read by those mathematicians and logicians who adhere to the general prejudice against diagrams. Shin has gone much farther than anyone in showing how a diagrammatic system can hold its own as a medium for reasoning...this book is clear and convincing...Shin's mastery and manipulation of her technical tools is always thorough and lucid. All in all, this is a very impressive, valuable piece of work." Modern Logic "The book is refreshing in its clarity and modesty, and in its regular return to historial precedents. It will give welcome reassurance to all those logicians for whom pictures seem indisputably the simplest way for the mind to comprehend syllogistic reasoning." M. Schiff, Choice "...The author's style is nice, very precise and approachable. The soundness and completeness of Venn systems provide a legitimate reason why logicians should be interested in nonlinguistic representation systems. Undoubtedly, this will be one of the rare inspiring sources motivating others to work in the field of visual representation systems." Branislav Boricic, Mathematical Reviews "Shin has shown that sysytems of diagrams can be developed that precisley parallel axiomatic formal systems for monadic predicate logic...Shin correctly points out what diagram systems and verbal systems can both do...that realistic pictures...can't." Phillip L. Peterson, Philosophy in Review