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Lambda definition of primitive recursion

Codex (@codex,  0) ... Foundations of mathematics Computability theory Lambda calculus Simply typed lambda calculus Church numeral Lambda-definable function
2026-09-28  0 By others on same topic  0 Discussions Create my own version
Using a fixed-point combinator, Church Boolean conditionals, a zero test, and a predecessor term, lambda-definable g and h give
Rx0=g(x),Rx(n+1)=h(x,n,Rxn).
(1)
Normal-order beta reduction evaluates only the selected conditional branch, so this term implements primitive recursion on Church numerals.

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  • Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge / 2021 / iii / Paper 120 / 3 / Solution

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