Assuming PA is consistent, the theory is consistent by second incompleteness. Its false axiom is provable, so the standard semantic biconditional is true with both sides false. Thus a true biconditional alone does not make an arbitrary sentence a true canonical Gödel sentence. A canonical Pi-1 construction adds the necessary syntactic or sound-base information. Truth, internal equivalence and canonical construction must be distinguished.
An arithmetic theory is bounded-complete if it proves every true closed formula with only bounded quantifiers. It then proves every true Sigma-1 sentence by choosing a standard witness. If it is also consistent, it cannot prove a false Pi-1 sentence: a standard bounded counterexample supplies a provable contradiction to that universal theorem. This arithmetic condition is distinct from bounded completeness of a statistical model or family.
A congruence relation on a first-order structure is an equivalence relation compatible with each interpreted function and relation. Equivalent input tuples give equivalent function outputs, and an atomic relation has the same truth value on equivalent input tuples. This compatibility makes the functions and relations well-defined on the quotient set. In a Henkin term model with equality, membership of a formal equality in the maximal consistent theory gives precisely the equivalence relation used for this quotient.
For adequate arithmetic provability predicates, the arithmetized deduction theorem identifies inconsistency of with -provability of . Formalized second incompleteness gives . Contraposition yields the displayed conditional. This is an internal theorem and does not license removal of its consistency premise.
In the one-sorted vector-space language naming each scalar multiplication, a first-order formula reduces by quantifier elimination to finitely many linear equations. An independent pair satisfies only the identically zero equations among them. A dependent pair with nonzero satisfies the same listed equations if the scalar avoids their finitely many forbidden ratios, which is possible over an infinite field. Thus no formula defines pair independence. The complete independent-pair type is still consistent in an infinite-dimensional model; it is nonisolated.
If a theory without finite models is categorical in an infinite cardinal at least the language size, it is complete. Otherwise its two consistent extensions deciding a sentence oppositely have infinite models. The Löwenheim-Skolem theorems produce models of both of the specified cardinality, contradicting their forced isomorphism. Categoricity includes existence at that cardinality, so it is not vacuous.
One-consistency 2026-10-31
An arithmetic theory is one-consistent if it does not prove while proving every , for a bounded arithmetic formula and all standard natural numbers . If the theory proves all true bounded sentences, this is equivalent to Sigma-1 soundness: a false existential theorem has every standard instance refuted by bounded completeness; conversely a true witness and its provable negation contradict the assumption of a consistent first-order theory.
Use the following form of the omitting types theorem. Let be a consistent first-order theory in a countable first-order language, and let be a countable family of finite-arity partial types. Suppose each is a nonprincipal partial type: no formula consistent with satisfies for every . Then has a countable model omitting all the .
For the proof, add countably many fresh constants and perform a Henkin construction. Enumerate three kinds of tasks: deciding each sentence, providing a fresh constant witness for each existential sentence, and making every constant tuple omit each of the corresponding arity. Starting with the empty set, keep a finite set such that is consistent. A sentence can be decided in one of its two ways while preserving consistency. For an existential sentence, add with fresh; inconsistency would contradict freshness and the existential sentence itself.
For an omission task at a tuple , let be the conjunction of . Replace its constants by variables, identify the occurrences of the tuple's constants with the corresponding variables , and existentially quantify the other variables. If the tuple repeats a constant, include the corresponding equalities between its variables. This gives with consistent. Nonprincipality supplies such that
is consistent. Reintroducing the constants shows that is a permitted next stage. Thus each constant tuple will fail some formula of each prescribed type.
The union is consistent by the finite character of formal proofs, complete in the expanded language, and has the Henkin witness property. Its term model has closed terms modulo provable equality as elements, and satisfies the truth lemma for a Henkin term model, proved by induction on formulas. It is countable. Every closed term equals a constant in this model: apply the witness task to . Consequently every tuple is represented by a constant tuple and fails a formula of each . This proves simultaneous omission.
For arithmetic, the nonstandard element type is
In a model of Peano arithmetic, an element omits this type precisely when it is one of the standard numerals: arithmetic proves that every element at most equals one of . A model omitting everywhere is therefore isomorphic to the standard structure .
For a complete consistent theory , this gives the particularly useful equivalence
The first implication is the omitting types theorem. For the converse, if a consistent over the theory of true arithmetic implied every , completeness would give . A standard witness contradicts the implication .
Completeness matters in this formulation. One must not claim that is automatically nonprincipal over an arbitrary incomplete arithmetic theory. For example, assuming consistency of Peano arithmetic, the formula saying that is the least code of a proof of a contradiction is consistent with that theory, by Gödel second incompleteness theorem, and implies for each standard . It makes principal over that incomplete theory, although its standard model still omits the type. The theorem is a sufficient omission criterion, not a necessary one for arbitrary partial types over incomplete theories.
Write for the arithmetical sentence asserting -provability of . If , the first derivability condition gives . The stipulated fixed-point equivalence also gives . This contradicts consistency. Conversely an inconsistent classical theory proves every sentence, including . Thus
Only the direction from an actual proof to its formalized provability is used here. There is no inference from a theorem to a theorem , and no assumption that every theorem of is true.
The Hilbert-Bernays-Löb derivability conditions are: if then ; ; and . The first is an external rule about provability; the latter two are internal theorems. Standard numerical correctness and the stipulated form accompany the predicate in this question. These conditions do not include reflection .
Choose a fixed refutable sentence and identify with . Different fixed refutable choices have provably equivalent consistency sentences, because proves their equivalence to a contradiction. From , necessitation and distribution give . Since , this yields .
For the converse, necessitate and distribute to get . Positive introspection also gives . The two boxed contradictories imply by formalized propositional reasoning. Thus , and contraposition gives . Consequently
Finally the deduction theorem says that is inconsistent exactly when . The internal equivalence identifies and in their deductive consequences. Hence exactly when is consistent. Consistency of alone need not ensure this stronger consistency condition.
For consistency of a negated-consistency extension, put . The arithmetized deduction theorem, together with double-negation elimination and formalized proof transformations, gives
From the preceding proof, . Necessitating the equivalence between and and using distribution therefore gives . Its contrapositive is
This is an internal conditional statement. It does not assert that proves its own consistency or permits the consistency premise to be discarded.
For unrestricted consistency self-strengthening is inconsistent, again take . In the axiom and the preceding implication prove . The additional rule then proves .
However consistency of an extension implies consistency of its subtheory by the formalized inclusion of proofs: . Thus the ordinary theory contains and derives , so it has a finite contradiction proof. Checking that concrete proof in arithmetic gives . This theorem is also present in , contradicting the result of the new rule. Therefore is inconsistent.
The error in the added rule is its unrestricted internal use on arbitrary arithmetically presented systems, including systems containing false consistency assertions. A true external consistency progression for a specified sound system is not this unrestricted inference rule.
For separation of number sets in an arithmetic theory, a formula separates from in if implies , and implies . No demand is made for numbers outside their union. Consistency forces disjointness when such a separator exists.
Let be the code of the fixed-point sentence. If , then is in the provable set, so separation gives . The fixed-point equivalence gives its negation, a contradiction. If , then is in the refutable set, so separation gives , and the fixed-point equivalence gives , again a contradiction. Thus
The argument is syntactic: it needs only the separating implications and consistency, not omega-consistency or general soundness.
For Rosser separation by a bounded stage comparison, use the numeralwise enumeration in arithmetic properties meant by enumeration in : membership supplies some standard stage with a provable positive instance, while nonmembership makes every standard-stage instance refutable. These are stronger than merely attaching a syntactic label to an arbitrary formula. The finite-initial-segment axiom lets us combine finitely many numeralwise refutations into a bounded universal assertion.
If is provable, choose a standard stage with . Consistency means is not refutable. Therefore for each . Using the displayed finite-segment axiom and equality substitution, combine these proofs to get . Existential introduction with stage proves the separator at .
If is refutable, choose a standard stage with . Consistency implies that is not provable, so all standard instances of are refutable. In particular their finitely many instances through give . For an arbitrary proposed witness , the total-comparison axiom gives or . In the first case its conjunct fails; in the second case the known instance at contradicts its bounded no-refutation conjunct. Generalize on to refute the existential separator. Hence the proposed first-proof-before-refutation formula separates the two sets.
The literal semantic hypothesis is insufficient: a semantic Gödel fixed point need not be canonical. A sentence can be false and provable in a consistent, unsound arithmetic theory, in which case both sides of the stipulated semantic biconditional can be false.
For a concrete counterexample, assume PA is consistent and set . Gödel's second incompleteness theorem makes this extension consistent: otherwise PA would prove its own consistency. It is still bounded-complete. Use ordinary numeralwise proof and refutation enumerators for this recursively axiomatized theory, and take . This is false in the standard natural numbers but is an axiom of . Since it is provable, is true; its negation is false. Thus the semantic fixed-point biconditional required in this part is true, with both sides false.
Choose by the usual canonical Rosser construction for these proof matrices. Its undecidability follows from the preceding parts, and it is a true sentence: if it were false, its true negation would be provable in this bounded-complete theory, contradicting undecidability. Hence is false and true, so their proposed semantic equivalence is false. This counterexample meets the literal assumptions and does not exploit a missing source page.
Under the intended canonical Gödel/Rosser convention, the expected answer does hold. Consistency plus bounded completeness implies soundness: a false theorem has a standard bounded counterexample whose negation the theory proves. If canonical were false, its truth fixed point would make it provable, contradicting this soundness; thus is true. Canonical is true by the preceding -negation argument, so both canonical sentences are true and their equivalence is true. This last conclusion needs that canonical construction or an equivalent additional restriction; truth of a biconditional alone does not supply it.
Use the two formal consistency equivalences expressly supplied for this part. If , the derivability conditions give . Taking negations and applying those supplied equivalences yields
One-consistency implies soundness under bounded completeness. Hence is consistent: if not, would prove , a false sentence. But in that consistent extension the last equivalence and its consistency axiom prove its own consistency . Gödel's second incompleteness theorem rules this out. Therefore
This establishes the requested unprovability using the explicit formal hypotheses, without inferring internal provability from the semantic equivalence discussed in the preceding part. The hypotheses for the second theorem are the standard effective arithmetic presentation and adequate provability predicates stipulated here.
Gödel's second incompleteness theorem says that a consistent effectively presented arithmetic theory with an adequate proof predicate cannot prove its formal consistency statement. The background strength must support the diagonal lemma and the derivability conditions, as in the present arithmetic setting.
Löb's theorem says
It is a theorem about derivability for every sentence , not merely an external soundness assertion about the interpretation of . Taking , a proof of consistency gives ; Löb then gives . Thus a consistent cannot prove consistency. This is how the second incompleteness theorem is the contradiction-sentence instance of Löb's more general result.
Suppose proves every specified reflection instance. Use only the instance with . The deduction theorem gives
Classical propositional reasoning turns this into : if already holds the implication is true, while otherwise holds and the displayed theorem supplies it. Löb's theorem now yields , making inconsistent. Therefore no sentence consistent with can supply all the local reflection instances in a one-sentence extension. The proof uses just one well-chosen instance, and never applies necessitation to a derivation with the extra assumption still open.
The fixed point of boxed negated provability gives, in fact, that GL proves . Here is a direct derivation. Since is provably equivalent to a boxed formula, positive introspection and necessitation of that equivalence give . Another introspection step gives . The stipulated fixed point also gives . Combining these two boxed contradictories yields . Conversely follows by normal boxed explosion, and the fixed point then yields .
Arithmetical soundness of GL, proved by translating distribution into the second derivability condition, necessitation into the first, and Löb's axiom into its internal arithmetic theorem, now gives
Any remaining propositional parameters may be assigned arbitrary arithmetic sentences; this equivalence is uniform in those assignments. If PA is one-consistent, it is consistent and sound. Its standard provability predicate for a contradiction is then a false sentence and cannot be a theorem. Hence is not provable in PA. Moreover its negation is equivalent to PA's consistency statement and is unprovable by the second incompleteness theorem. Thus this fixed point is, under the stated hypothesis, undecidable rather than an unboxed reflection principle.
Under the deductively closed convention, an -theory is a set of -sentences containing all its first-order logical consequences: if , then . By completeness this is equivalent to closure under provability. An axiom set is often called a theory too, with its deductive closure understood. Neither convention by itself requires completeness or satisfiability; an inconsistent deductively closed theory contains every sentence.