Write down the recursive definitions of ordinal addition, multiplication and exponentiation.
Given that F:On→On is a strictly increasing function-class (i.e. α<β implies F(α)<F(β)), show that α⩽F(α) for all α.
Show that every ordinal α has a unique representation in the form
α=ωα1⋅a1+ωα2⋅a2+⋯+ωαn⋅an
where n∈ω,α⩾α1>α2>⋯>αn, and a1,a2,…,an∈ω\{0}.
Under what conditions can an ordinal α be represented in the form
ωβ1⋅b1+ωβ2⋅b2+⋯+ωβm⋅bm
where β1<β2<⋯<βm and b1,b2,…,bm∈ω\{0}? Justify your answer.
[The laws of ordinal arithmetic (associative, distributive, etc.) may be assumed without proof.]