Finite satisfiability and ℵ0-categorical structures with trivial dependence

The main subject of the article is the finite submodel property for ℵ0-categorical structures, in particular under the additional assumptions that the structure is simple, 1-based and has trivial dependence. Here, a structure has the finite submodel property if every sentence which is true in the structure is true in a finite substructure of it. It will be useful to consider a couple of other finiteness properties, related to the finite submodel property, which are variants of the usual concept of saturation.For the rest of the introduction we will assume that M is an ℵ0-categorical (infinite) structure with a countable language. We also assume that there is an upper bound to the arity of the function symbols in M:s language and that, for every 0 < n < ℵ0 and R ⊆ Mn which is definable in M without parameters, there exists a relation symbol, in the language of M, which is interpreted as R; these assumptions are not necessary for most results to be presented, but it simplifies the statement of a result which I mention in this introduction.First we will consider ‘canonically embedded’ substructures of Meq. Here, a structure N is canonically embedded in Meq if N's universe is a subset of Meq which is definable without parameters and, for every 0 < n < ℵ0 and R ⊆ Nn which is ε-definable in Meq there is a relation symbol in the language of N which is interpreted as R; we also assume that the language of N has no other relation (or function or constant) symbols.

Provability with Finitely Many Variables

For every finite n ≥ 4 there is a logically valid sentence φn with the following properties: φn contains only 3 variables (each of which occurs many times); φn contains exactly one nonlogical binary relation symbol (no function symbols, no constants, and no equality symbol); φn has a proof in first-order logic with equality that contains exactly n variables, but no proof containing only n − 1 variables. This result was first proved using the machinery of algebraic logic developed in several research monographs and papers. Here we replicate the result and its proof entirely within the realm of (elementary) first-order binary predicate logic with equality. We need the usual syntax, axioms, and rules of inference to show that φn has a proof with only n variables. To show that φn has no proof with only n − 1 variables we use alternative semantics in place of the usual, standard, set-theoretical semantics of first-order logic.

A uniform method for proving lower bounds on the computational complexity of logical theories

In this chapter we present a method for obtaining lower bounds on the computational complexity of logical theories, and give several illustrations of its use. This method is an extension of widely used procedures for proving the recursive undecidability of logical theories. (See Rabin [1965] and Eršov et al. [1965].) One important aspect of this method is that it is based on a family of inseparability results for certain logical problems, closely related to the well-known inseparability result of Trakhtenbrot (as refined by Vaught), that no recursive set separates the logically valid sentences from those which are false in some finite model, as long as the underlying language has at least one non-unary relation symbol. By using these inseparability results as a foundation, we are able to obtain hereditary lower bounds, i.e., bounds which apply uniformly to all subtheories of the theory. The second important aspect of this method is that we use interpretations to transfer lower bounds from one theory to another. By doing this we eliminate the need to code machine computations into the models of the theory being studied. (The coding of computations is done once and for all in proving the inseparability results.) By using interpretations, attention is centred on much simpler definability considerations, viz., what kinds of binary relations on large finite sets can be defined using short formulas in models of the theory. This is conceptually much simpler than other approaches that have been proposed for obtaining lower bounds, such as the method of bounded concatenations of Fleischmann et al. [1977]. We will deal primarily with theories in first-order logic and monadic second-order logic.

An Interpolation Theorem

Lyndon's Interpolation Theorem asserts that for any valid implication between two purely relational sentences of first-order logic, there is an interpolant in which each relation symbol appears positively (negatively) only if it appears positively (negatively) in both the antecedent and the succedent of the given implication. We prove a similar, more general interpolation result with the additional requirement that, for some fixed tuple of unary predicates U, all formulae under consideration have all quantifiers explicitly relativised to one of the U. Under this stipulation, existential (universal) quantification over U contributes a positive (negative) occurrence of U.It is shown how this single new interpolation theorem, obtained by a canonical and rather elementary model theoretic proof, unifies a number of related results: the classical characterisation theorems concerning extensions (substructures) with those concerning monotonicity, as well as a many-sorted interpolation theorem focusing on positive vs. negative occurrences of predicates and on existentially vs. universally quantified sorts.

Some characterization theorems for infinitary universal Horn logic without equality

In this paper we mainly study preservation theorems for two fragments of the infinitary languages Lκκ, with κ regular, without the equality symbol: the universal Horn fragment and the universal strict Horn fragment. In particular, when κ is ω, we obtain the corresponding theorems for the first-order case.The universal Horn fragment of first-order logic (with equality) has been extensively studied; for references see [10], [7] and [8]. But the universal Horn fragment without equality, used frequently in logic programming, has received much less attention from the model theoretic point of view. At least to our knowledge, the problem of obtaining preservation results for it has not been studied before by model theorists. In spite of this, in the field of abstract algebraic logic we find a theorem which, properly translated, is a preservation result for the strict universal Horn fragment of infinitary languages without equality which, apart from function symbols, have only a unary relation symbol. This theorem is due to J. Czelakowski; see [5], Theorem 6.1, and [6], Theorem 5.1. A. Torrens [12] also has an unpublished result dealing with matrices of sequent calculi which, properly translated, is a preservation result for the strict universal Horn fragment of a first-order language. And in [2] of W. J. Blok and D. Pigozzi we find Corollary 6.3 which properly translated corresponds to our Corollary 19, but for the case of a first-order language that apart from its function symbols has only one κ-ary relation symbol, and for strict universal Horn sentences. The study of these results is the basis for the present work. In the last part of the paper, Section 4, we will make these connections clear and obtain some of these results from our theorems. In this way we hope to make clear two things: (1) The field of abstract algebraic logic can be seen, in part, as a disguised study of universal Horn logic without equality and so has an added interest. (2) A general study of universal Horn logic without equality from a model theoretic point of view can be of help in the field of abstract algebraic logic.

On countable fractions from an elementary class

The following fairly elementary result seems to raise possibilities for the study of countable models of a theory in a countable language. For the terminology of model theory we refer to [CK].Let L be a countable first-order language. Let L′ be the relational language having, for each formula φ of L and each sequence υ1,…,υn of variables including the free variables of φ, an n-ary relation symbol Pφ. For any L-structure and any formula Ψ(υ) of L, we define the Ψ-fraction of to be the L′-structure Ψ whose universe consists of those elements of satisfying Ψ(υ) and whose relations {Rφ}φϵL are defined by letting a1,…,an satisfy Rφ in Ψ if, and only if, a1,…, an satisfy φ in .An L-elementary class means the class of all L-structures satisfying each of some set of sentences of L. The countable part of an L-elementary class K means the class of all countable L-structures from K.Theorem. Let K be an L-elementary class and let Ψ(υ) be a formula of L. Then the class of countable Ψ-fractions of structures in K is the countable part of some L′-elementary class.Comment. By the downward Löwenheim-Skolem theorem, the countable Ψ-fractions of structures in K are the same as the Ψ-fractions of countable structures in K.Proof. We give a set Σ′ of L′-sentences whose countable models are exactly the countable Ψ-fractions of structures in K.

Definability of models by means of existential formulas without identity

The problem of coding relations by means of a single binary relation is well known in the mathematical literature. It was considered in interpretation theory, and also in connection with investigations of decidability of elementary theories. Using various constructions (see, e.g., [2,6], proofs of Theorem 11 in [7] and Theorem 16.51 in [3]), for any model for a countable language, one can construct a model for ℒp (a language with a single binary relation symbol ) in which is interpretable. Each of the mentioned constructions has the same weak point: the universe of is different than the universe of . In [4] we have shown that, in the infinite case, one can eliminate this defect, i.e., for any infinite , we have constructed a model , having the same universe as , in which is elementarily definable. In all constructions mentioned above, it appears that formulas, which define in ( in ), are very complicated. In the present paper, another construction of a model for ℒp is given.

On Ehrenfeucht-Fraïssé equivalence of linear orderings

C. Karp has shown that if α is an ordinal with ωα = α and A is a linear ordering with a smallest element, then α and α ⊗ A are equivalent in L∞ω up to quantifer rank α. This result can be expressed in terms of Ehrenfeucht-Fraïssé games where player ∀ has to make additional moves by choosing elements of a descending sequence in α. Our aim in this paper is to prove a similar result for Ehrenfeucht-Fraïssé games of length ω1. One implication of such a result will be that a certain infinite quantifier language cannot say that a linear ordering has no descending ω1-sequences (when the alphabet contains only one binary relation symbol). Connected work is done by Hyttinen and Oikkonen in [H] and [O].

APPLICATIONS OF LYNDON HOMOMORPHISM THEOREMS TO THE THEORY OF MINIMAL MODELS

This paper contains, among others, a concise proof (proof 6.2) of the following fact (theorem 2.7): For every ∀∪Neg-theory Σ and every positive sentence φ, [Formula: see text] It is demonstrated in this paper (corollary 5.2) that the necessary and sufficient condition for φ, guaranteeing the truthfulness of the above equivalence for every Σ⊆∀, is that φ is equivalent to a sentence which does not contain in a scope of negation an occurrence of a relation symbol other than the equality symbol. The proofs have been constructed using classical model-theoretic tools, thus supporting the thesis that classical logic is adequate for expressing and investigating non-monotonic reasoning patterns.

Saturation of homogeneous resplendent models

The complete diagram of a structure , denoted by Dc(), is the set of all sentences true in the structure (, a)a∈. A structure is said to be resplendent if for every sentence θ involving a new relation symbol R in addition to symbols occurring in Dc(), if θ is consistent with Dc(), then there is a relation P on such that (see[1]).Baldwin asked whether a homogeneous recursively saturated structure is necessarily resplendent. Here it is shown that this need not be the case. It is shown that if is an uncountable homogeneous resplendent model of an unstable theory, then must be saturated. The proof is related to the proof in [5] that an uncountable homogeneous recursively saturated model of first order Peano arithmetic must be saturated. The example for Baldwin's question is an uncountable homogeneous model for a particular unstable theory, such that is recursively saturated and omits some type. (The continuum hypothesis is needed to show the existence of such a model in power ℵ1.)The proof of the main result requires two lemmas.