AN AXIOMATIC APPROACH TO FREE AMALGAMATION

We use axioms of abstract ternary relations to define the notion of a free amalgamation theory. These form a subclass of first-order theories, without the strict order property, encompassing many prominent examples of countable structures in relational languages, in which the class of algebraically closed substructures is closed under free amalgamation. We show that any free amalgamation theory has elimination of hyperimaginaries and weak elimination of imaginaries. With this result, we use several families of well-known homogeneous structures to give new examples of rosy theories. We then prove that, for free amalgamation theories, simplicity coincides with NTP2 and, assuming modularity, with NSOP3 as well. We also show that any simple free amalgamation theory is 1-based. Finally, we prove a combinatorial characterization of simplicity for Fraïssé limits with free amalgamation, which provides new context for the fact that the generic Kn-free graphs are SOP3, while the higher arity generic $K_n^r$-free r-hypergraphs are simple.

A CLASSIFICATION OF 2-CHAINS HAVING 1-SHELL BOUNDARIES IN ROSY THEORIES

We classify, in a nontrivial amenable collection of functors, all 2-chains up to the relation of having the same 1-shell boundary. In particular, we prove that in a rosy theory, every 1-shell of a Lascar strong type is the boundary of some 2-chain, hence making the 1st homology group trivial. We also show that, unlike in simple theories, in rosy theories there is no upper bound on the minimal lengths of 2-chains whose boundary is a 1-shell.

Thorn-forking in continuous logic

We study thorn forking and rosiness in the context of continuous logic. We prove that the Urysohn sphere is rosy (with respect to finitary imaginaries), providing the first example of an essentially continuous unstable theory with a nice notion of independence. In the process, we show that a real rosy theory which has weak elimination of finitary imaginaries is rosy with respect to finitary imaginaries, a fact which is new even for discrete first-order real rosy theories.

Stable types in rosy theories

We study the behaviour of stable types in rosy theories. The main technical result is that a non-þ-forking extension of an unstable type is unstable. We apply this to show that a rosy group with a þ-generic stable type is stable. In the context of super-rosy theories of finite rank we conclude that non-trivial stable types of Uþ-rank 1 must arise from definable stable sets.

Characterizing rosy theories

We examine several conditions, either the existence of a rank or a particular property of þ-forking that suggest the existence of a well-behaved independence relation, and determine the consequences of each of these conditions towards the rosiness of the theory. In particular we show that the existence of an ordinal valued equivalence relation rank is a (necessary and) sufficient condition for rosiness.