Related papers: The Meaning of Infinity
Actual infinity in its various forms is discussed, searched and not found.
Transfinite set theory including the axiom of choice supplies the following basic theorems: (1) Mappings between infinite sets can always be completed, such that at least one of the sets is exhausted. (2) The real numbers can be well…
Cantor's famous proof of the non-denumerability of real numbers does apply to any infinite set. The set of exclusively all natural numbers does not exist. This shows that the concept of countability is not well defined. There remains no…
Contrary to popular misconception, the question in the title is far from simple. It involves sets of numbers on the first level, sets of sets of numbers on the second level, and so on, endlessly. The infinite hierarchy of the levels…
This paper examines a denumerable version of the nested-set theorem and derives from it a contradiction involving the formal consistency of the actual infinity assumed by the Axiom of Infinity.
The infinite numbers of the set M of finite and infinite natural numbers are defined starting from the sequence 0\Phi, where 0 is the first natural number, \Phi is a succession of symbols S and xS is the successor of the natural number x.…
We present the model theoretic concepts that allow mathematics to be developed with the notion of the potential infinite instead of the actual infinite. The potential infinite is understood as a dynamic notion, being an indefinitely…
Several examples are used to illustrate how we deal cavalierly with infinities and unphysical systems in physics. Upon examining these examples in the context of infinities from Cantor's theory of transfinite numbers, the only known…
Is a logicist bound to the claim that as a matter of analytic truth there is an actual infinity of objects? If Hume's Principle is analytic then in the standard setting the answer appears to be yes. Hodes's work pointed to a way out by…
Many mathematical statements have the following form. If something is true for all finite subsets of an infinite set $I$, then it is true for all of $I$. This paper describes some old and new results on infinite sets of linear and…
In this article we consider alternative definitions-descriptions of a set being Infinite within the primitive Axiomatic System of Zermelo.
In which a review of the concept of countability is done in mathematics, subjecting review some of the theorems so far accepted, showing their inconsistency and also taking concrete elements on the countability of all the powers of the set…
We define the indefinite logarithm [log x] of a real number x>0 to be a mathematical object representing the abstract concept of the logarithm of x with an indeterminate base (i.e., not specifically e, 10, 2, or any fixed number). The…
Infinity, in various guises, has been invoked recently in order to `explain' a number of important questions regarding observable phenomena in science, and in particular in cosmology. Such explanations are by their nature speculative. Here…
Here we consider system of infinite number of particles where any particle cannot escape to infinity. We define what means escape of energy to infinity and apply this notion to the case when constant force provides energy to one of the…
In this expository article, the real numbers are defined as infinite decimals. After defining an ordering relation and the arithmetic operations, it is shown that the set of real numbers is a complete ordered field. It is further shown that…
The concept of infinity took centuries to achieve recognized status in the field of mathematics, despite the fact that it was implicitly present in nearly all mathematical endeavors. Here I explore the idea that a similar development might…
We present several philosophical ideas emerging from the studies of complex systems. We make a brief introduction to the basic concepts of complex systems, for then defining "abstraction levels". These are useful for representing…
Sequences diverge either because they head off to infinity or because they oscillate. Part 1 constructs a non-Archimedean framework of infinite numbers that is large enough to contain asymptotic limit points for non-oscillating sequences…
What happens when mathematics realizes infinity. When are mathematical definitions actually useful?