The Chang-Los-Suszko Theorem in a Topological Setting

The Chang-Łoś-Suszko theorem of first-order model theory characterizes universal-existential classes of models as just those elementary classes that are closed under unions of chains. This theorem can then be used to equate two model-theoretic closure conditions for elementary classes; namely unions of chains and existential substructures. In the present paper we prove a topological analogue and indicate some applications

Base-free Formulas in the Lattice-theoretic Study of Compacta

The languages of finitary and infinitary logic over the alphabet of bounded lattices have proven to be of considerable use in the study of compacta. Significant among the sentences of these languages are the ones that are base free, those whose truth is unchanged when we move among the lattice bases of a compactum. In this paper we define syntactically the expansive sentences, and show each of them to be base free. We also show that many well-known properties of compacta may be expressed using expansive sentences; and that any property so expressible is closed under inverse limits and co-existential images. As a byproduct, we conclude that co-existential images of pseudo-arcs are pseudo-arcs. This is of interest because the corresponding statement for confluent maps is still open, and co-existential maps are often—but not always—confluent

On the First-order Expressibility of Lattice Properties to Unicoherence in Continua

Many properties of compacta have “textbook” definitions which are phrased in lattice-theoretic terms that, ostensibly, apply only to the full closed-set lattice of a space. We provide a simple criterion for identifying such definitions that may be paraphrased in terms that apply to all lattice bases of the space, thereby making model-theoretic tools available to study the defined properties. In this note we are primarily interested in properties of continua related to unicoherence; i.e., properties that speak to the existence of “holes” in a continuum and in certain of its subcontinua

Not Every Co-existential Map is Confluent

A continuous surjection between compacta is co-existential if it is the second of two maps whose composition is a standard ultracopower projection. Co-existential maps are always weakly confluent, and are even monotone when the range space is locally connected; so it is a natural question to ask whether they are always confluent. Here we give a negative answer. This is an interesting question, mainly because of the fact that most theorems about confluent maps have parallel versions for co-existential maps---notably, both kinds of maps preserve hereditary indecomposability. Where the known parallels break down is in the question of chainability. It is a celebrated open problem whether confluent maps preserve chainability, or even being a pseudo-arc; however, as has recently been shown, co-existential maps do indeed preserve both these properties

Chainability and Hemmingsen\u27s Theorem

On the surface, the definitions of chainability and Lebesgue covering dimension ⩽1 are quite similar as covering properties. Using the ultracoproduct construction for compact Hausdorff spaces, we explore the assertion that the similarity is only skin deep. In the case of dimension, there is a theorem of E. Hemmingsen that gives us a first-order lattice-theoretic characterization. We show that no such characterization is possible for chainability, by proving that if κ is any infinite cardinal and AA is a lattice base for a nondegenerate continuum, then AA is elementarily equivalent to a lattice base for a continuum Y, of weight κ, such that Y has a 3-set open cover admitting no chain open refinement

Dendrites, Topological Graphs, and 2-Dominance

For each positive ordinal α, the reflexive and transitive binary relation of α-dominance between compacta was first defined in our paper [Mapping properties of co-existentially closed continua, Houston J. Math., 31 (2005), 1047-1063] using the ultracopower construction. Here we consider the important special case α =2, and show that any Peano compactum 2-dominated by a dendrite is itself a dendrite (with the same being true for topological graphs and trees). We also characterize the topological graphs that 2-dominate arcs (resp., simple closed curves) as those that have cut points of order 2 (resp., those that are not trees)

Mapping Properties of Co-existentially Closed Continua

A continuous surjection between compacta is called co-existential if it is the second of two maps whose composition is a standard ultracopower projection. A continuum is called co-existentially closed if it is only a co-existential image of other continua. This notion is not only an exact dual of Abraham Robinson\u27s existentially closed structures in model theory, it also parallels the definition of other classes of continua defined by what kinds of continuous images they can be. In this paper we continue our study of co-existentially closed continua, especially how they (and related continua) behave in certain mapping situations

Some applications of the ultrapower theorem to the theory of compacta

The ultrapower theorem of Keisler-Shelah allows such model-theoretic notions as elementary equivalence, elementary embedding and existential embedding to be couched in the language of categories (limits, morphism diagrams). This in turn allows analogs of these (and related) notions to be transported into unusual settings, chiefly those of Banach spaces and of compacta. Our interest here is the enrichment of the theory of compacta, especially the theory of continua, brought about by the immigration of model-theoretic ideas and techniques

Some Applications of the Ultrapower Theorem to the Theory of Compacta

The ultrapower theorem of Keisler and Shelah allows such model-theoretic notions as elementary equivalence, elementary embedding and existential embedding to be couched in the language of categories (limits, morphism diagrams). This in turn allows analogs of these (and related) notions to be transported into unusual settings, chiefly those of Banach spaces and of compacta. Our interest here is the enrichment of the theory of compacta, especially the theory of continua, brought about by the importation of model-theoretic ideas and techniques

Singly generated quasivarieties and residuated structures

A quasivariety K of algebras has the joint embedding property (JEP) iff it is generated by a single algebra A. It is structurally complete iff the free countably generated algebra in K can serve as A. A consequence of this demand, called "passive structural completeness" (PSC), is that the nontrivial members of K all satisfy the same existential positive sentences. We prove that if K is PSC then it still has the JEP, and if it has the JEP and its nontrivial members lack trivial subalgebras, then its relatively simple members all belong to the universal class generated by one of them. Under these conditions, if K is relatively semisimple then it is generated by one K-simple algebra. It is a minimal quasivariety if, moreover, it is PSC but fails to unify some finite set of equations. We also prove that a quasivariety of finite type, with a finite nontrivial member, is PSC iff its nontrivial members have a common retract. The theory is then applied to the variety of De Morgan monoids, where we isolate the sub(quasi)varieties that are PSC and those that have the JEP, while throwing fresh light on those that are structurally complete. The results illuminate the extension lattices of intuitionistic and relevance logics