2.II.16G

Logic and Set Theory
Part II, 2008

(i) State the Completeness Theorem and the Compactness Theorem for the predicate calculus.

(ii) Show that if a theory has arbitrarily large finite models then it has an infinite model. Deduce that there is no first order theory whose models are just the finite fields of characteristic 2 . Show that the theory of infinite fields of characteristic 2 does not have a finite axiomatisation.

(iii) Let T\mathcal{T} be the collection of closed terms in some first order language L\mathcal{L}. Suppose that x.ϕ(x)\exists x . \phi(x) is a provable sentence of L\mathcal{L} with ϕ\phi quantifier-free. Show that the set of sentences {¬ϕ(t):tT}\{\neg \phi(t): t \in \mathcal{T}\} is inconsistent.

[Hint: consider the minimal substructure of a model.]

Deduce that there are t1,t2,,tnt_{1}, t_{2}, \ldots, t_{n} in T\mathcal{T} such that ϕ(t1)ϕ(t2)ϕ(tn)\phi\left(t_{1}\right) \vee \phi\left(t_{2}\right) \vee \cdots \vee \phi\left(t_{n}\right) is provable.