Process of elimination

Process of elimination is a

, it is a process of deleting options whereby the possibility of an option being correct is close to zero or significantly lower compared to other options. This version of the process does not guarantee success, even if only one option remains, since it eliminates possibilities merely as improbable. The process of elimination can only narrow the possibilities down, and thus, if the correct option is not amongst the known options, it will not arrive at the truth.

Method

The method of elimination is

.

In order for the method to work it is necessary to list all possible, even improbable, possibilities. Any omissions render the method invalid as a logical method.

Medicine

A process of elimination can be used to reach a diagnosis of exclusion. It is an underlying method in performing a differential diagnosis.

See also

• Disjunctive syllogism
• Law of excluded middle
• Philosophical razor
• Troubleshooting
• twenty questions Spoken word game using logic.

References

• Richard L. Burden, J. Douglas Faires (2000). Numerical Analysis, 7th ed. Brooks/Cole.
  ISBN 0-534-38216-9
  .