461 research outputs found
The weakness of being cohesive, thin or free in reverse mathematics
Informally, a mathematical statement is robust if its strength is left
unchanged under variations of the statement. In this paper, we investigate the
lack of robustness of Ramsey's theorem and its consequence under the frameworks
of reverse mathematics and computable reducibility. To this end, we study the
degrees of unsolvability of cohesive sets for different uniformly computable
sequence of sets and identify different layers of unsolvability. This analysis
enables us to answer some questions of Wang about how typical sets help
computing cohesive sets.
We also study the impact of the number of colors in the computable
reducibility between coloring statements. In particular, we strengthen the
proof by Dzhafarov that cohesiveness does not strongly reduce to stable
Ramsey's theorem for pairs, revealing the combinatorial nature of this
non-reducibility and prove that whenever is greater than , stable
Ramsey's theorem for -tuples and colors is not computably reducible to
Ramsey's theorem for -tuples and colors. In this sense, Ramsey's
theorem is not robust with respect to his number of colors over computable
reducibility. Finally, we separate the thin set and free set theorem from
Ramsey's theorem for pairs and identify an infinite decreasing hierarchy of
thin set theorems in reverse mathematics. This shows that in reverse
mathematics, the strength of Ramsey's theorem is very sensitive to the number
of colors in the output set. In particular, it enables us to answer several
related questions asked by Cholak, Giusto, Hirst and Jockusch.Comment: 31 page
On uniform relationships between combinatorial problems
The enterprise of comparing mathematical theorems according to their logical strength is an active area in mathematical logic, with one of the most common frameworks for doing so being reverse mathematics. In this setting, one investigates which theorems provably imply which others in a weak formal theory roughly corresponding to computable mathematics. Since the proofs of such implications take place in classical logic, they may in principle involve appeals to multiple applications of a particular theorem, or to nonuniform decisions about how to proceed in a given construction. In practice, however, if a theorem Q implies a theorem P, it is usually because there is a direct uniform translation of the problems represented by P into the problems represented by Q, in a precise sense formalized by Weihrauch reducibility. We study this notion of uniform reducibility in the context of several natural combinatorial problems, and compare and contrast it with the traditional notion of implication in reverse mathematics. We show, for instance, that for all n; j; k 1, if j < k then Ramsey's theorem for n-tuples and k many colors is not uniformly, or Weihrauch, reducible to Ramsey's theorem for n-tuples and j many colors. The two theorems are classically equivalent, so our analysis gives a genuinely ner metric by which to gauge the relative strength of mathematical propositions. We also study Weak K�onig's Lemma, the Thin Set Theorem, and the Rainbow Ramsey's Theorem, along with a number of their variants investigated in the literature. Weihrauch reducibility turns out to be connected with sequential forms of mathematical principles, where one wishes to solve in nitely many instances of a particular problem simultaneously. We exploit this connection to uncover new points of di erence between combinatorial problems previously thought to be more closely related
An axiomatic approach to sustainable development
The paper proposes two axioms that capture the idea of sustainable development and derives the welfare criterion that they imply. The axioms require that neither the present nor the future should play a dictatorial role. Theorem 1 shows there exist sustainable preferences, which satisfy these axioms. They exhibit sensitivity to the present and to the long-run future, and specify trade-offs between them. It examines other welfare criteria which are generally utilized: discounted utility, lim inf. long run averages, overtaking and catching-up criteria, Ramsey's criterion, Rawlsian rules, and the criterion of satisfaction of basic needs, and finds that none satisfies the axioms for sustainability. Theorem 2 gives a characterization of all continuous independent sustainable preferences. Theorem 3 shows that in general sustainable growth paths cannot be approximated by paths which approximate discounted optima. Proposition 1 shows that paths which maximize the present value under a standard price system may fail to reach optimal sustainable welfare levels, and Example 4 that the two criteria can give rise to different value systems.sustainable development; economic development; welfare
Calibrating the complexity of combinatorics: reverse mathematics and Weihrauch degrees of some principles related to Ramsey’s theorem
In this thesis, we study the proof-theoretical and computational strength of some combinatorial principles related to Ramsey's theorem: this will be accomplished chiefly by analyzing these principles from the points of view of reverse mathematics and Weihrauch complexity.
We start by studying a combinatorial principle concerning graphs, introduced by Bill Rival and Ivan Sands as a form of ``inside-outside'' Ramsey's theorem: we will determine its reverse mathematical strength and present the result characterizing its Weihrauch degree. Moreover, we will study a natural restriction of this principle, proving that it is equivalent to Ramsey's theorem.
We will then move to a related result, this time concerning countable partial orders, again introduced by Rival and Sands: we will give a thorough reverse mathematical investigation of the strength of this theorem and of its original proof. Moreover, we will be able to generalize it, and this generalization will itself be presented in the reverse mathematical perspective.
After this, we will focus on two forms of Ramsey's theorem that can be considered asymmetric. First, we will focus on a restriction of Ramsey's theorem to instances whose solutions have a predetermined color, studying it in reverse mathematics and from the point of view of the complexity of the solutions in a computability theoretic sense. Next, we move to a classical result about partition ordinals, which will undergo the same type of analysis.
Finally, we will present some results concerning a recently introduced operator on the Weihrauch degrees, namely the first-order part operator: after presenting an alternative characterization of it, we will embark on the study the result of its applications to jumps of Weak KÅ‘nig's Lemma
Separation Property for wB- and wS-regular Languages
In this paper we show that {\omega}B- and {\omega}S-regular languages satisfy
the following separation-type theorem If L1,L2 are disjoint languages of
{\omega}-words both recognised by {\omega}B- (resp. {\omega}S)-automata then
there exists an {\omega}-regular language Lsep that contains L1, and whose
complement contains L2. In particular, if a language and its complement are
recognised by {\omega}B- (resp. {\omega}S)-automata then the language is
{\omega}-regular. The result is especially interesting because, as shown by
Boja\'nczyk and Colcombet, {\omega}B-regular languages are complements of
{\omega}S-regular languages. Therefore, the above theorem shows that these are
two mutually dual classes that both have the separation property. Usually (e.g.
in descriptive set theory or recursion theory) exactly one class from a pair C,
Cc has the separation property. The proof technique reduces the separation
property for {\omega}-word languages to profinite languages using Ramsey's
theorem and topological methods. After that reduction, the analysis of the
separation property in the profinite monoid is relatively simple. The whole
construction is technically not complicated, moreover it seems to be quite
extensible. The paper uses a framework for the analysis of B- and S-regular
languages in the context of the profinite monoid that was proposed by
Toru\'nczyk
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