We show that the Proper Forcing Axiom implies the Singular Cardinal Hypothesis. The proof is by interpolation and uses the Mapping Reflection Principle.
Given a cardinal $λ$, category forcing axioms for $λ$-suitable classes $Γ$ are strong forcing axioms which completely decide the theory of the Chang model $\mathcal C_λ$, modulo generic extensions via forcing notions from $Γ$. $\mathsf{MM}^{+++}$ was the first category forcing axiom to be isolated (by the second author). In this paper we present, without proofs, a general theory of category forcings, and prove the existence of $\aleph_1$-many pairwise incompatible category forcing axioms for $ω_1$-suitable classes.
We prove that the Generalized Continuum Hypothesis holds above a supercompact cardinal assuming the Ultrapower Axiom, an abstract comparison principle motivated by inner model theory at the level of supercompact cardinals.
In the present paper we are interested in simple forcing notions and Forcing Axioms. A starting point for our investigations was the article [JR1] in which several problems were posed. We answer some of those problems here.
We show that various tameness assertions about abstract elementary classes imply the existence of large cardinals under mild cardinal arithmetic assumptions.
We introduce the resurrection axioms, a new class of forcing axioms, and the uplifting cardinals, a new large cardinal notion, and prove that various instances of the resurrection axioms are equiconsistent over ZFC with the existence of an uplifting cardinal.
We argue against Foreman's proposal to settle the continuum hypothesis and other classical independent questions via the adoption of generic large cardinal axioms.
The Axiom of Full Reflection at a measurable cardinal has been conjectured to be equiconsitent with the existence of a coherent sequence of measures with a repeat point. However we prove that the Axiom of Full Reflection at a measurable cardinal is surprisingly equiconsistent just with the existence of a measurable cardinal. We also generalize the result to larger cardinals as strong or supercompact. Hence we can conclude that the Axiom of Full Reflection at large cardinals weaker than measurable, e.g. as n-Mahlo, does push the consistency strength up, but does not push the consistency strengt…
Despite being an established notion in the large cardinal hierarchy, results about Woodin cardinals are sparse in the literature. Here we gather known results about the preservation of Woodin cardinals under certain forcing extensions, as well as giving a template for preserving Woodin cardinals through forcing. Using this template, we form an indestructibility result under certain Easton iterations.
Various theorems for the preservation of set-theoretic axioms under forcing are proved, regarding both forcing axioms and axioms true in the Levy-Collapse. These show in particular that certain applications of forcing axioms require to add generic countable sequences high up in the set-theoretic hierarchy even before collapsing everything down to $\aleph\_1$. Later we give applications, among them the consistency of ${\rm MM}$ with $\aleph\_ω$ not being Jonsson which answers a question raised during Oberwolfach 2005.
If we assume the axiom of choice, then every two cardinal numbers are comparable. In the absence of the axiom of choice, this is no longer so. For a few cardinalities related to an arbitrary infinite set, we will give all the possible relationships between them, where possible means that the relationship is consistent with the axioms of set theory. Further we investigate the relationships between some other cardinal numbers in specific permutation models and give some results provable without using the axiom of choice.
We introduce the strongly uplifting cardinals, which are equivalently characterized, we prove, as the superstrongly unfoldable cardinals and also as the almost hugely unfoldable cardinals, and we show that their existence is equiconsistent over ZFC with natural instances of the boldface resurrection axiom, such as the boldface resurrection axiom for proper forcing.
We prove that the forcing axiom $MA^{1.5}_{\aleph_2}(\mbox{stratified})$ implies $\Box_{ω_1, ω_1}$. Using this implication, we show that the forcing axiom $MM_{\aleph_2}(\aleph_2\mbox{-c.c.})$ is inconsistent. We also derive weak Chang's Conjecture from $MA^{1.5}_{\aleph_2}(\mbox{stratified})$ and use this second implication to give another proof of the inconsistency of $MM_{\aleph_2}(\aleph_2\mbox{-c.c.})$.
We study the spectrum of forcing notions between the iterations of $σ$-closed followed by ccc forcings and the proper forcings. This includes the hierarchy of $α$-proper forcings for indecomposable countable ordinals as well as the Axiom A forcings. We focus on the bounded forcing axioms for the hierarchy of $α$-proper forcings and connect them to a hierarchy of weak club guessing principles. We show that they are, in a sense, dual to each other. In particular, these weak club guessing principles separate the bounded forcing axioms for distinct countable indecomposable ordinals. In the study o…
We show that the forcing axiom for countably compact, $ω_2$-Knaster, well-met posets is inconsistent. This is supplemental to an inconsistency result of Shelah and sets a new limit to the generalization of Martin's Axiom to the stage of $ω_2$.
After small forcing, almost every strongness embedding is the lift of a strongness embedding in the ground model. Consequently, small forcing creates neither strong nor Woodin cardinals.
Methods of Higher Forcing Axioms was a small workshop in Norwich, taking place between 10--12 of September, 2019. The goal was to encourage future collaborations, and create more focused threads of research on the topic of higher forcing axioms. This is an improved version of the notes taken during the meeting by Asaf Karagila.
We introduce bounded category forcing axioms for well-behaved classes $Γ$. These are strong forms of bounded forcing axioms which completely decide the theory of some initial segment of the universe $H_{λ_Γ^+}$ modulo forcing in $Γ$, for some cardinal $λ_Γ$ naturally associated to $Γ$. These axioms naturally extend projective absoluteness for arbitrary set-forcing--in this situation $λ_Γ=ω$--to classes $Γ$ with $λ_Γ>ω$. Unlike projective absoluteness, these higher bounded category forcing axioms do not follow from large cardinal axioms, but can be forced under mild large cardinal assumptions o…
The landmark Levy-Solovay Theorem limits the kind of large cardinal embeddings that can exist in a small forcing extension. Here I announce a generalization of this theorem to a broad new class of forcing notions. One consequence is that many of the forcing iterations most commonly found in the large cardinal literature create no new weakly compact cardinals, measurable cardinals, strong cardinals, Woodin cardinals, strongly compact cardinals, supercompact cardinals, almost huge cardinals, huge cardinals, and so on.
Small forcing always ruins the indestructibility of an indestructible supercompact cardinal. In fact, after small forcing, any cardinal $κ$ becomes superdestructible---any further ${<}κ$-closed forcing which adds a subset to $κ$ will destroy the measurability, even the weak compactness, of $κ$. Nevertheless, after small forcing indestructible cardinals remain resurrectible, but never strongly resurrectible.
We note that some form of the condition "$p_1, p_2$ have a $\leq_{\mathbb{Q}}$-lub in $\mathbb{Q}$" is necessary in some forcing axiom for $λ$-complete $μ^+$-c.c. forcing notions. We also show some versions are really stronger than others.
We show that some of the most prominent large cardinal notions can be characterized through the validity of certain combinatorial principles at $ω_2$ in forcing extensions by the pure side condition forcing introduced by Neeman. The combinatorial properties that we make use of are natural principles, and in particular for inaccessible cardinals, these principles are equivalent to their corresponding large cardinal properties. Our characterizations make use of the concepts of internal large cardinals introduced in this paper, and of the classical concept of generic elementary embeddings.
In this paper we prove that the maximum principle in forcing is equivalent to the axiom of choice. The maximum principle is the property of forcing: p ||- exists x theta(x) iff for some name tau p ||- theta(tau). We also look at three similar partial orders in the Basic Cohen model for the failure of the axiom of choice. We show that despite their apparent similarity the maximum principle holds for only one of the three.
This paper presents the main results in my Ph.D. thesis. In what follows several proofs of SCH are presented introducing a family of covering properties which implies both SCH and the failure of various forms of square. These covering properties are also applied to investigate models of strongly compact cardinals or of strong forcing axioms like MM or PFA.
We build a supercompact version of the forcing defined in \cite{gitik2019}. For each singular cardinal in the ground model with any fixed cofinality, which is a limit of supercompact cardinals, it is possible to force so that the size of the powerset of the singular cardinal is arbitrarily large, while preserving the singular cardinal. An important feature of this forcing is that it is possible to define the forcing so that the successor of the singular cardinal is collapsed, but all the cardinals above it are preserved.
David Aspero asks on the possibility of having Forcing axiom FA_{aleph_2}(K), where K is the class of forcing notions preserving stationarity of subsets of aleph_1 and of aleph_2. We answer negatively, in fact we show the negative result for any regular lambda>aleph_1 even demanding adding no new sequence of ordinals of length<lambda.
Some models of combinatorial principles have been obtained by collapsing a huge cardinal in the case of the successors of regular cardinals. For example, saturated ideals, Chang's conjecture, polarized partition relations, and transfer principles for chromatic numbers of graphs. In this paper, we study these in the case of the successors of singular cardinals. In particular, we show that Prikry forcing preserves the centeredness of ideals but kills the layeredness. We also study $\binom{μ^{++}}{μ^{+}}\to\binomκ{μ^{+}}_μ$ and $\mathrm{Tr}_{\mathrm{Chr}}(μ^{+++},μ^{+})$ in the extension by Prikr…
Recently the second author introduced combinatorial principles that characterize supercompactness for inaccessible cardinals but can also hold true for small cardinals. We prove that the proper forcing axiom PFA implies these principles hold for $ω_2$. Using this, we argue to show that any of the known methods for forcing models of PFA from a large cardinal assumption requires a strongly compact cardinal. If one forces PFA using a proper forcing, then we get the optimal result that a supercompact cardinal is necessary.
We study principles of the form: if a name $σ$ is forced to have a certain property $φ$, then there is a ground model filter $g$ such that $σ^g$ satisfies $φ$. We prove a general correspondence connecting these name principles to forcing axioms. Special cases of the main theorem are: Any forcing axiom can be expressed as a name principle. For instance, $\mathsf{PFA}$ is equivalent to a principle for rank $1$ names (equivalently, nice names) for subsets of $ω_1$, and a principle for rank $2$ names for sets of reals. Moreover, $λ$-bounded forcing axioms are equivalent to name principles. Bagaria…
We prove two general results about the preservation of extendible and $C^{(n)}$-extendible cardinals under a wide class of forcing iterations (Theorems 5.4 and 7.5). As applications we give new proofs of the preservation of Vopěnka's Principle and $C^{(n)}$-extendible cardinals under Jensen's iteration for forcing the GCH, previously obtained by Brooke-Taylor and Tsaprounis, res\-pectively. We prove that $C^{(n)}$-extendible cardinals are preserved by forcing with standard Easton-support iterations for any possible $Δ_2$-definable behaviour of the power-set function on regular cardinals. We sh…
A central theme in set theory is to find universes with extreme, well-understood behaviour. The case we are interested in is assuming GCH and has a strong forcing axiom of higher order than usual. Instead of "for every suitable forcing notion for~$λ$" we shall say "for every such family of forcing notions, depending on stationary $S\subseteq λ$, for some such stationary set we have\dots". Such notions of forcing are important for Abelian group theory, but this application is delayed for a sequel.
The purpose of this paper is to present some results which suggest that the Singular Cardinals Hypothesis follows from the Proper Forcing Axiom. What will be proved is that a form of simultaneous reflection follows from the Set Mapping Reflection Principle, a consequence of PFA. While the results fall short of showing that MRP implies SCH, it will be shown that MRP implies that if SCH fails first at kappa then every stationary subset of S_{kappa^+}^omega = {a < kappa^+ : cf(a) = omega} reflects. It will also be demonstrated that MRP always fails in a generic extension by Prikry forcing.
A ccc-generically supercompact cardinal $κ$ can be smaller than or equal to the continuum. On the other hand, such a cardinal $κ$ still satisfies diverse largeness properties, like that it is a stationary limit of ccc-generically measurable cardinals (Theorem 4.1). This is in a strong contrast to $\cal P$-generically supercompact cardinals for the class $\cal P$ of all $σ$-closed posets, which can be $\aleph_n$ for any n>1.
We show that Shelah's Eventual Categoricity Conjecture follows from the existence of class many strongly compact cardinals. This is the first time the consistency of this conjecture has been proven. We do so by showing that every AEC with $LS(K)$ below a strongly compact cardinal $κ$ is $< κ$ tame and applying the categoricity transfer of Grossberg and VanDieren. These techniques also apply to measurable and weakly compact cardinals and we prove similar tameness results under those hypotheses. We isolate a dual property to tameness, called \emph{type shortness}, and show that it follows simila…
Suppose that $T^*$ is an $ω_1$-Aronszajn tree with no stationary antichain. We introduce a forcing axiom PFA($T^*$) for proper forcings which preserve these properties of $T^*$. We prove that PFA($T^*$) implies many of the strong consequences of PFA, such as the failure of very weak club guessing, that all of the cardinal characteristics of the continuum are greater than $ω_1$, and the $P$-ideal dichotomy. On the other hand, PFA($T^*$) implies some of the consequences of diamond principles, such as the existence of Knaster forcings which are not stationarily Knaster.
The lottery preparation, a new general kind of Laver preparation, works uniformly with supercompact cardinals, strongly compact cardinals, strong cardinals, measurable cardinals, or what have you. And like the Laver preparation, the lottery preparation makes these cardinals indestructible by various kinds of further forcing. A supercompact cardinal kappa, for example, becomes fully indestructible by kappa-directed closed forcing; a strong cardinal kappa becomes indestructible by less-than-or-equal-kappa-strategically closed forcing; and a strongly compact cardinal kappa becomes indestructible …
We define extender sequences, generelizing measure sequences from Radin Forcing. Using the extender sequences we combine Gitik-Magidor forcing for adding many Prikry sequences with Radin forcing. This forcing satisfies Prikry like condition, destroys no cardinals, and has a kind of properness. Depending on the large cardinal we start with, this forcing can blow the power of a cardinal together with changing its' cofinality to a prescribe value. If this prescribed value is the cardinal itself then it remains regular and even can remain measurable.
I explore two separate topics: the concept of jointness for set-theoretic guessing principles, and the notion of grounded forcing axioms. A family of guessing sequences is said to be joint if all of its members can guess any given family of targets independently and simultaneously. I primarily investigate jointness in the case of various kinds of Laver diamonds. In the case of measurable cardinals I show that, while the assertions that there are joint families of Laver diamonds of a given length get strictly stronger with increasing length, they are all equiconsistent. This is contrasted with …
We derive a forcing axiom from the conjunction of square and diamond, and present a few applications, primary among them being the existence of super-Souslin trees. It follows that for every uncountable cardinal $λ$, if $λ^{++}$ is not a Mahlo cardinal in Gödel's constructible universe, then $2^λ= λ^+$ entails the existence of a $λ^+$-complete $λ^{++}$-Souslin tree.
The purpose of this article is to prove that the forcing axiom for completely proper forcings is inconsistent with the Continuum Hypothesis. This answers a longstanding problem of Shelah. The corresponding completely proper forcing which can be constructed using CH is moreover a tree whose square is special off the diagonal. While such trees had previously been constructed by Jensen and Kunen under the assumption of Jensen's diamond principle, this is the first time such a construction has been carried out using the Continuum Hypothesis.
In other work we have outlined how, building on ideas of Welch and Roberts, one can motivate believing in the existence of supercompact cardinals. After making this observation we strove to formulate a justification for large-cardinal axioms of greater strength, and arrived at a motivation for a new large-cardinal property, which we define here and prove to be equivalent to the property of being a Vopěnka scheme cardinal. Making use of this result, one can also show that a theory $B_0(V_0)$ described in a previous paper of Victoria Marshall implies the existence of a Vopěnka scheme cardinal $κ…
Let $D$ be an infinite discrete set of measurable cardinals. It is shown that generalized Prikry forcing to add a countable sequence to each cardinal in $D$ is subcomplete. To do this it is shown that a simplified version of generalized Prikry forcing which adds a point below each cardinal in $D$, called generalized diagonal Prikry forcing, is subcomplete. Moreover, the generalized diagonal Prikry forcing associated to $D$ is subcomplete above $μ$, where $μ$ is any regular cardinal below the first limit point of $D$.
The inner model problem for supercompact cardinals, one of the central open problems in modern set theory, asks whether there is a canonical model of set theory with a supercompact cardinal. The problem is closely related to the more precise question of the equiconsistency of strongly compact cardinals and supercompact cardinals. This dissertation approaches these two problems abstractly by introducing a principle called the Ultrapower Axiom which is expected to hold in all known canonical models of set theory. By investigating the consequences of the Ultrapower Axiom under the hypothesis that…
Let $\mathcal{E}$ be the $σ$-ideal generated by the closed measure zero sets of reals. We use an ultrafilter-extendable matrix iteration of ccc posets to force that, for $\mathcal{E}$, their associated cardinal characteristics (i.e.\ additivity, covering, uniformity and cofinality) are pairwise different.
A new axiom is proposed, the Ground Axiom, asserting that the universe is not a nontrivial set-forcing extension of any inner model. The Ground Axiom is first-order expressible, and any model of ZFC has a class-forcing extension which satisfies it. The Ground Axiom is independent of many well-known set-theoretic assertions including the Generalized Continuum Hypothesis, the assertion V=HOD that every set is ordinal definable, and the existence of measurable and supercompact cardinals. The related Bedrock Axiom, asserting that the universe is a set-forcing extension of a model satisfying the Gr…
W.H. Woodin showed that if $κ_1 < \cdots < κ_n$ are strong cardinals then two-step ${\bfΣ}^1_{n+3}$ generic absoluteness holds after collapsing $2^{2^{κ_n}}$ to be countable. We show that this number can be reduced to $2^{κ_n}$, and to $κ_n^+$ in the case $n = 1$, but cannot be further reduced to $κ_n$.