A Preface and an Introductory Article to the Re-edition of the Work of Platon Sergeevich Poreckiy «Solving General Tasks in Probability Theory by Using Mathematical Logic»

A preface and introduction article presents an article by Platon Sergeevich Poreckij which is a record of his lecture delivered on October 25, 1886. The preface contains short historical reference about P. S. Poreckij’s works in the field of mathematical logic and its application to other science, including the probability theory. The introduction article has the main goal to show how the beginning of logic-and-probabilistic method (LPM) was created at the end of the XIX century. LPM essence was in valid transition from logic equation between the events to algebraic equality between their probabilities. The article shows that LPM further development is connected to the necessity of evaluation of digital circuits reliability as well as structurally complex systems reliability and safety in 1960s. Scientific disputes and the possibility of combining mathematical logic and the probability theory do not stop in the XIX century. There are regular seminars and conferences held on this subject. We discuss the complex mathematical and philosophical question about the nature of fundamentally different concepts - the probabilistic logic (PL) and the logic of probability (LP).