Related papers: Choiceless cardinals and the continuum problem
This paper contributes to the theory of large cardinals beyond the Kunen inconsistency, or choiceless large cardinal axioms, in the context where the Axiom of Choice is not assumed. The first part of the paper investigates a periodicity…
Large cardinals arising from the existence of arbitrarily long end elementary extension chains over models of set theory are studied here. In particular, we show that the large cardinals obtained that way (`Unfoldable cardinals') behave as…
A usual dichotomy is that in many cases, reasonably definable sets, satisfy the CH, i.e. if they are uncountable they have cardinality continuum. A strong dichotomy is when: if the cardinality is infinite it is continuum as in [Sh:273]. We…
If we assume the axiom of choice, then every two cardinal numbers are comparable. In the absence of the axiom of choice, this is no longer so. For a few cardinalities related to an arbitrary infinite set, we will give all the possible…
While many inner model theoretic combinatorial principles are incompatible with large cardinal axioms, on some rare occasions, large cardinals actually imply that the structure of the universe of sets is analogous to the canonical inner…
We show relative to strong hypotheses that patterns of compact cardinals in the universe, where a compact cardinal is one which is either strongly compact or supercompact, can be virtually arbitrary. Specifically, we prove if V is a model…
We prove a result concerning elementary embeddings of the set-theoretic universe into itself (Reinhardt embeddings) and functions on ordinals that "eventually dominate" such embeddings. We apply that result to show the existence of…
We introduce the notion of a critical cardinal as the critical point of sufficiently strong elementary embedding between transitive sets. Assuming the axiom of choice this is equivalent to measurability, but it is well-known that choice is…
Given an uncountable cardinal $\kappa$, we consider the question of whether subsets of the power set of $\kappa$ that are usually constructed with the help of the Axiom of Choice are definable by $\Sigma_1$-formulas that only use the…
Exacting and ultraexacting cardinals are large cardinal numbers compatible with the Zermelo-Fraenkel axioms of set theory, including the Axiom of Choice. In contrast with standard large cardinal notions, their existence implies that the…
We investigate the structure of rank-to-rank elementary embeddings, working in ZF set theory without the Axiom of Choice. Recall that the levels $V_\alpha$ of the cumulative hierarchy are defined via iterated application of the power set…
Set-theoretical, physical, and intuitive notions of continuum are compared. It is shown that the independence of the continuum hypothesis determines status and properties of the set of intermediate cardinality. The intermediate set is a…
We consider the partition lattice $\Pi_\kappa$ on any set of transfinite cardinality $\kappa$ and properties of $\Pi_\kappa$ whose analogues do not hold for finite cardinalities. Assuming the Axiom of Choice we prove: (I) the cardinality of…
We prove that if there is an elementary embedding from the universe to itself, then there is a proper class of measurable successor cardinals.
This paper exposes a contradiction in the Zermelo-Fraenkel set theory with the axiom of choice (ZFC). While Godel's incompleteness theorems state that a consistent system cannot prove its consistency, they do not eliminate proofs using a…
We introduce combinatorial principles that characterize strong compactness and supercompactness for inaccessible cardinals but also make sense for successor cardinals. Their consistency is established from what is supposedly optimal.…
A ccc-generically supercompact cardinal $\kappa$ can be smaller than or equal to the continuum. On the other hand, such a cardinal $\kappa$ still satisfies diverse largeness properties, like that it is a stationary limit of ccc-generically…
We will consider a number of new large-cardinal properties, the $\alpha$-tremendous cardinals for each limit ordinal $\alpha>0$, the hyper-tremendous cardinals, the $\alpha$-enormous cardinals for each limit ordinal $\alpha>0$, and the…
We prove that the strong polarized relation of $\theta$ above $\omega$ applied simultaneously for every cardinal in the interval $[\aleph_1,\aleph]$ is consistent. We conclude that this positive relation is consistent for every cardinal…
We discuss how singular can cardinals be in absence of the axiom of choice. We show that, contrasting with known negative consistency results (of Gitik and others), certain positive results are provable. Then we pose some problems.