transfinite arithmetic, cardinal arithmetic, ordinal arithmetic
prime field, p-adic integer, p-adic rational number, p-adic complex number
arithmetic geometry, function field analogy
A natural number is traditionally one of the numbers , , , and so on. It is now common in many fields of mathematics to include as a natural number as well. One advantage of doing so is that a natural number can then be identified with the cardinality of a finite set, as well as a finite ordinal number. One can distinguish these as the nonnegative integers (with ) and the positive integers (without ), at least until somebody uses ‘positive’ in the semidefinite sense. To a set theorist, a natural number is essentially the same as an integer, so they often use the shorter word; one can also clarify with unsigned integer (but this doesn't help with ). In school mathematics, natural numbers with are called whole numbers.
The set of natural numbers is often written , , , , or . The last two notations refer to this set's structure as an ordinal number or cardinal number respectively, and they often (usually for ) have a subscript allowing them to be generalised. In the foundations of mathematics, the axiom of infinity states that this actually forms a set (rather than a proper class). At a foundational level, it's completely irrelevant whether counts as a natural number or not; as sets (and even as natural numbers objects), the two options are equivalent, so we are really talking about the choice of additive semigroup structure (or inclusion map into the set of integers, etc).
By default, our natural numbers always include .
We define the standard arithmetic and metric operations and order relations of the natural numbers in dependent type theory using induction on the natural numbers.
Addition is inductively defined by double induction on the natural numbers
The minimum function is inductively defined by double induction on the natural numbers
The maximum function is inductively defined by double induction on the natural numbers
The distance function is inductively defined by double induction on the natural numbers
The absolute value is defined as the distance of a natural number from zero.
The less than relation is inductively defined by double induction on the natural numbers
The less than or equal to relation is inductively defined by double induction on the natural numbers
The apart from relation is inductively defined by double induction on the natural numbers
The observational equality relation is inductively defined by double induction on the natural numbers
The greater than relation is inductively defined by double induction on the natural numbers
The greater than or equal to relation is inductively defined by double induction on the natural numbers
Multiplication is inductively defined by induction on the natural numbers
Exponentiation is inductively defined by induction on the natural numbers
Given a natural number , we define the division function such that
and the remainder function
is a natural numbers object in Set; indeed, it is the original example. This consists of an initial element (or if is not used) and a successor operation (or simply ; in computer science, one often writes ) such that, for a set , an element , and a function , there exists a unique function such that and . This function is said to be constructed by primitive recursion. (Fancier forms of recursion are also possible.)
The basic idea is that we define the values of one by one, starting with , then , , and so on. These are all both possible and necessary individually, but something must be put in the foundations to ensure that this can go on uniquely forever.
In classical mathematics, any inhabited subset of the natural numbers possesses a minimal element. In constructive mathematics, one cannot show this:
If every inhabited subset of the natural numbers possesses a minimal element, then the law of excluded middle holds.
Let be an arbitrary arithmetical formula. Then the subset
is inhabited. By assumption, it possesses a minimal element . By discreteness of the natural numbers, either or . In the first case, holds. In the second case, holds.
In this sense, the natural numbers are not complete, and it’s fruitful to study their completion: For instance, the global sections of the completed natural numbers object in the sheaf topos on a topological space are in one-to-one correspondence with upper semicontinuous functions (details at one-sided real number).
We can salvage the minimum principle in two ways:
Any detachable inhabited subset of the natural numbers possesses a minimal element.
Any inhabited subset of the natural numbers does not not possess a minimal element.
For instance, any finitely generated vector space over a residue field does not not possess a finite basis (pick a minimal generating set, guaranteed to not not exist). Interpreting this in the internal language of the sheaf topos of a reduced scheme , one obtains the well-known fact that any -module locally of finite type over is locally free on a dense open subset.
Classically, any weakly decreasing sequence of natural numbers is eventually constant, i.e. admits an index such that . Constructively, one can only prove for each that there exists an index such that . (One may prove this by induction on ; indeed, you can always find so that .) The classical principle is equivalent to the limited principle of omniscience for (which follows already when ).
On the other hand, there can be no strictly decreasing sequence of natural numbers. This is constuctively valid (proved by contradiction and induction on ).
This is relevant to constructive algebra?, as this shows that formulating chain conditions needs some care. (It is easier to say ‘weakly’ than ‘strictly’ in the hypothesis, but then it's unclear how to state the conclusion.)
number, natural number, integer, rational number, algebraic number, Gaussian number, irrational number, real number, p-adic number
Origin of the Dedekind-Peano axioms for the natural numbers:
Richard Dedekind, Was sind und was sollen die Zahlen? (1888) [scan: pdf, doi:10.1007/978-3-663-02788-1]
Richard Dedekind (transl. by W. Beman), The nature and meaning of numbers, Chapter II in: Essays on the Theory of Numbers, Chicago (1901) [Project Gutenberg, pdf]
Giuseppe Peano, Arithmetices principia, nova methodo exposita, [Wikipedia]
Review:
Broader historical review:
Last revised on December 16, 2023 at 10:11:57. See the history of this page for a list of all contributions to it.