John T. Baldwin – författare

Modern model theory began with Morley's categoricity theorem: A countable first-order theory that has a unique (up to isomorphism) model in one uncountable cardinal (i.e., is categorical in cardinality) if and only if the same holds in all uncountable cardinals. Over the last 35 years Shelah made great strides in extending this result to infinitary logic, where the basic tool of compactness fails. He invented the notion of an Abstract Elementary Class to give a unifying semantic account of theories in first-order, infinitary logic and with some generalized quantifiers. Zilber developed similar techniques of infinitary model theory to study complex exponentiation. This book provides the first unified and systematic exposition of this work. The many examples stretch from pure model theory to module theory and covers of Abelian varieties. Assuming only a first course in model theory, the book expounds eventual categoricity results (for classes with amalgamation) and categoricity in excellent classes. Such crucial tools as Ehrenfeucht - Mostowski models, Galois types, tameness, omitting-types theorems, multi-dimensional amalgamation, atomic types, good sets, weak diamonds, and excellent classes are developed completely and methodically. The (occasional) reliance on extensions of basic set theory is clearly laid out. The book concludes with a set of open problems.

Since their inception, the Perspectives in Logic and Lecture Notes in Logic series have published seminal works by leading logicians. Many of the original books in the series have been unavailable for years, but they are now in print once again. In this volume, the twelfth publication in the Perspectives in Logic series, John T. Baldwin presents an introduction to first order stability theory, organized around the spectrum problem: calculate the number of models a first order theory T has in each uncountable cardinal. The author first lays the groundwork and then moves on to three sections: independence, dependence and prime models, and local dimension theory. The final section returns to the spectrum problem, presenting complete proofs of the Vaught conjecture for ω-stable theories for the first time in book form. The book provides much-needed examples, and emphasizes the connections between abstract stability theory and module theory.

Major shifts in the field of model theory in the twentieth century have seen the development of new tools, methods, and motivations for mathematicians and philosophers. In this book, John T. Baldwin places the revolution in its historical context from the ancient Greeks to the last century, argues for local rather than global foundations for mathematics, and provides philosophical viewpoints on the importance of modern model theory for both understanding and undertaking mathematical practice. The volume also addresses the impact of model theory on contemporary algebraic geometry, number theory, combinatorics, and differential equations. This comprehensive and detailed book will interest logicians and mathematicians as well as those working on the history and philosophy of mathematics.

Major shifts in the field of model theory in the twentieth century have seen the development of new tools, methods, and motivations for mathematicians and philosophers. In this book, John T. Baldwin places the revolution in its historical context from the ancient Greeks to the last century, argues for local rather than global foundations for mathematics, and provides philosophical viewpoints on the importance of modern model theory for both understanding and undertaking mathematical practice. The volume also addresses the impact of model theory on contemporary algebraic geometry, number theory, combinatorics, and differential equations. This comprehensive and detailed book will interest logicians and mathematicians as well as those working on the history and philosophy of mathematics.