Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2018 ii Paper 3 16G i Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-03
The class of finite groups is not first-order axiomatizable. If axiomatized it, add constants and all inequalities . Every finite fragment has a sufficiently large finite cyclic group as a model. The compactness theorem would then give an infinite group satisfying , contradicting the definition of the class. This is the group instance of the fact that finite structures are not first-order axiomatizable.