Suppose two simple propositions A and B:
- A：张三吃掉了苹果。
- B：张三吃掉了香蕉。
There exist two basic sentential connectives in logic and natural language, i.e., disjunctive connective “or” (“或” in Mandarin Chinese) and conjunctive connective “and” (“和” in Mandarin Chinese). The basic functions of the two connectives are to combine the two simple propositions A and B to a disjunctive statement, A or B (“A 或 B” in Mandarin Chinese) and a conjunctive statement A and B (“A 和 B” in Mandarin Chinese) respectively:
- 合取句：张三吃掉了苹果和香蕉。
- 析取句：张三吃掉了苹果或香蕉。
Importantly, when combined by different connectives, the mental status of the two simple propositions changes: When combined by the conjunctive connective “and”, the propositions A and B describe something that is actually happened in the actual world. When combined by the disjunctive connective “or”, however, the same propositions A and B are only descriptions of something that is possibly but not actually happened in the actual world.
The remaining questions is how the described difference is neurobiologically differed by the human brain, or in more broad sense how the so called fact and possibility are differed by the human brain. This project intends to explore these questions. Some possible neuromarkers are N400, Neuroal oscillations mu, etc.