Subject: comments about the glossary

From: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 23 APR 93 14:43 N

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\subsection{About ``Temporally-indeterminate event''}

We agree with Immanuel Kant who recommended to avoid the definition of new terms
unless it is strictly necessary, that is, to carefully verify if existing terms
can be used to denote the concepts we have in mind before introducing new terms.
In our opinion, this is the case of the concept expressed by the term
``temporally-indeterminate event''. Even more, we believe that it is possible to
provide a finer characterizations of the involved concept(s) by means of
standard temporal logic machinary (cf., for instance, N. Rescher and A.
Urquhart, Temporal Logic, Springer Verlag, 1971).

Temporal logics allow us to distinguish between chronologically definite and
chronologically indefinite statements.

{\em Chronologically definite statements} are statements whose truth-value does
not vary, because it does not depend on their assertion (utterance) time. An
example of a chronologically definite statement is: ``Jack was killed on
xx/xx/1990''.  As a general rule, chronologically definite statements include
explicit temporal qualifications, referring to a given temporal domain
conventionally chosen as the common reference system, that allow one to
univocally determine the relevant temporal position(s), e.g. dates.

On the contrary, {\em chronologically indefinite statements} are statements
whose truth-value may vary, because it depends on their assertion (utterance)
time. An example of a chronologically indefinite statement is: ``Michelle was
born yesterday''.  As a general rule, chronologically indefinite statements are
temporally qualified with respect to the current time instant (in the example,
``today'') which is left implicit.

It is worth noting that according to a model-theoretic perspective assertion
(utterance) times can be interpreted as the times at which statements
(better, their logical counterparts, i.e. formulae) are evaluated. Furthermore,
notice that chronological definiteness/indefiniteness are qualifications of the
statements, rather than of the events they denote.

Our proposal is to replace the entry ``temporally-indeterminate event'' with
``chronologically indefinite statement'' and to add the entry ``chronologically
definite statement''.

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(to be continued)

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Comments are obviously welcome

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\noindent
Angelo Montanari, Barbara Pernici

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Dipartimento di Matematica e Informatica
Via Zanon, 6
33100 Udine (Italy)
ph. +39 432 272 218/206
fax +39 432 510755
[email-masked]
[email-masked]
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