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Old 09-21-2008, 02:48 AM   #24 (permalink)
reason
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Induction is not deduction, by definition.
Deduction: the logical content of the conclusion is a subset of the logical content of the premises.
Induction: the logical content of the premises is a proper subset of the logical content of the conclusion.
The set relation between the logical contents is reversed, and therefore, if induction was deductive, then there would be no induction, only deduction. However, inductive arguments are invalid, that is, the conclusion of an inductive inference can be false even when the premises are true, whereas deductive inferences are valid, that is, the conclusion must be true if the premises are true. In other words, there is a distinct, and important, difference between inductive and deductive inferences, which is qualitive and nontrivial.

I have spent way too long thinking about this, btw.
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