1,916 research outputs found
How unprovable is Rabin's decidability theorem?
We study the strength of set-theoretic axioms needed to prove Rabin's theorem
on the decidability of the MSO theory of the infinite binary tree. We first
show that the complementation theorem for tree automata, which forms the
technical core of typical proofs of Rabin's theorem, is equivalent over the
moderately strong second-order arithmetic theory to a
determinacy principle implied by the positional determinacy of all parity games
and implying the determinacy of all Gale-Stewart games given by boolean
combinations of sets. It follows that complementation for
tree automata is provable from - but not -comprehension.
We then use results due to MedSalem-Tanaka, M\"ollerfeld and
Heinatsch-M\"ollerfeld to prove that over -comprehension, the
complementation theorem for tree automata, decidability of the MSO theory of
the infinite binary tree, positional determinacy of parity games and
determinacy of Gale-Stewart games are all
equivalent. Moreover, these statements are equivalent to the
-reflection principle for -comprehension. It follows in
particular that Rabin's decidability theorem is not provable in
-comprehension.Comment: 21 page
Sequent Calculus in the Topos of Trees
Nakano's "later" modality, inspired by G\"{o}del-L\"{o}b provability logic,
has been applied in type systems and program logics to capture guarded
recursion. Birkedal et al modelled this modality via the internal logic of the
topos of trees. We show that the semantics of the propositional fragment of
this logic can be given by linear converse-well-founded intuitionistic Kripke
frames, so this logic is a marriage of the intuitionistic modal logic KM and
the intermediate logic LC. We therefore call this logic
. We give a sound and cut-free complete sequent
calculus for via a strategy that decomposes
implication into its static and irreflexive components. Our calculus provides
deterministic and terminating backward proof-search, yields decidability of the
logic and the coNP-completeness of its validity problem. Our calculus and
decision procedure can be restricted to drop linearity and hence capture KM.Comment: Extended version, with full proof details, of a paper accepted to
FoSSaCS 2015 (this version edited to fix some minor typos
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On the Logic of Belief and Propositional Quantification
We consider extending the modal logic KD45, commonly taken as the baseline system for belief, with propositional quantifiers that can be used to formalize natural language sentences such as “everything I believe is true” or “there is some-thing that I neither believe nor disbelieve.” Our main results are axiomatizations of the logics with propositional quantifiers of natural classes of complete Boolean algebras with an operator (BAOs) validating KD45. Among them is the class of complete, atomic, and completely multiplicative BAOs validating KD45. Hence, by duality, we also cover the usual method of adding propositional quantifiers to normal modal logics by considering their classes of Kripke frames. In addition, we obtain decidability for all the concrete logics we discuss
Changing a semantics: opportunism or courage?
The generalized models for higher-order logics introduced by Leon Henkin, and
their multiple offspring over the years, have become a standard tool in many
areas of logic. Even so, discussion has persisted about their technical status,
and perhaps even their conceptual legitimacy. This paper gives a systematic
view of generalized model techniques, discusses what they mean in mathematical
and philosophical terms, and presents a few technical themes and results about
their role in algebraic representation, calibrating provability, lowering
complexity, understanding fixed-point logics, and achieving set-theoretic
absoluteness. We also show how thinking about Henkin's approach to semantics of
logical systems in this generality can yield new results, dispelling the
impression of adhocness. This paper is dedicated to Leon Henkin, a deep
logician who has changed the way we all work, while also being an always open,
modest, and encouraging colleague and friend.Comment: 27 pages. To appear in: The life and work of Leon Henkin: Essays on
his contributions (Studies in Universal Logic) eds: Manzano, M., Sain, I. and
Alonso, E., 201
On some peculiar aspects of the constructive theory of point-free spaces
This paper presents several independence results concerning the topos-valid
and the intuitionistic (generalized) predicative theories of locales. In
particular, certain consequences of the consistency of a general form of
Troelstra's uniformity principle with constructive set theory and type theory
are examined
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