# nLab Kleene's second algebra

### Context

#### Constructivism, Realizability, Computability

intuitionistic mathematics

# Contents

## Idea

Kleene’s second algebra is a partial combinatory algebra based on Baire space. It was introduced by Kleene to formalize Brouwer’s notion of choice sequence.

## Definition

Let $\mathbb{N}$ be the set of natural numbers equipped with the discrete topology, so that the function space $\mathbb{N}^\mathbb{N}$ is a countable product of copies of $\mathbb{N}$. By means of continued fractions, this space is homeomorphic to the Baire space $B$ of irrational numbers between $0$ and $1$.

To define Kleene’s second algebra, we need several ingredients:

1. There is a function $p \colon B \to 1 + \mathbb{N}$ which takes the constant function at $0$ to $\ast \in 1$, and any other function $\alpha \colon \mathbb{N} \to \mathbb{N}$ to the predecessor of the first non-zero $\alpha(k)$.

2. Each irrational number $\beta \in B$ releases a stream of rational approximants $q_1(\beta), q_2(\beta), \ldots$ by successive truncations of the continued fraction of $\beta$. By coding rational numbers by natural numbers, we get a corresponding stream of natural numbers $(\beta_1, \beta_2, \ldots) \in \mathbb{N}^\mathbb{N}$. The map

$\phi \colon B \to B$

that sends $\beta$ to $(\beta_1, \beta_2, \ldots)$ is continuous.

3. $B$ is the terminal coalgebra of the endofunctor $- \times \mathbb{N}$ on $Top$, so there is an isomorphism $\xi \colon B \to B \times \mathbb{N}$ whose inverse is denoted $prefix$.

4. Composition of functions $\mathbb{N} \to \mathbb{N}$ defines a map $comp \colon B \times B \to B$.

Now consider the composite

$B \times B \times \mathbb{N} \stackrel{1_B \times prefix}{\to} B \times B \stackrel{1_B \times \phi}{\to} B \times B \stackrel{comp}{\to} B \stackrel{p}{\to} 1 + \mathbb{N}$

and curry this to a map $\psi \colon B \times B \to (1 + \mathbb{N})^\mathbb{N}$. Let $i \colon \mathbb{N} \to 1 + \mathbb{N}$ be the inclusion map.

Kleene’s second algebra is the applicative structure or partial binary operation on $B$ defined by the pullback

$\array{ D & \to & \mathbb{N}^\mathbb{N} \\ \downarrow & & \downarrow^\mathrlap{i^\mathbb{N}} \\ B \times B & \underset{\psi}{\to} & (1 + \mathbb{N})^\mathbb{N} }$

## Properties

### Relation to function realizability

Kleene’s second algebra is an abstraction of function realizability introduced for the purpose of extracting computational content from proofs in intuitionistic analysis. (e.g. Streicher 07, p. 17)

computability

type I computabilitytype II computability
typical domainnatural numbers $\mathbb{N}$Baire space of infinite sequences $\mathbb{B} = \mathbb{N}^{\mathbb{N}}$
computable functionspartial recursive functioncomputable function (analysis)
type of computable mathematicsrecursive mathematicscomputable analysis, Type Two Theory of Effectivity
type of realizabilitynumber realizabilityfunction realizability
partial combinatory algebraKleene's first partial combinatory algebraKleene's second partial combinatory algebra

## References

• Stephen Kleene, Introduction to Meta-Mathematics (1952)

• Thomas Streicher, example 3.4 of Realizability (2007/08) (pdf)

• Andrej Bauer, section 2 of Realizability as connection between constructive and computable mathematics, in T. Grubba, P. Hertling, H. Tsuiki, and Klaus Weihrauch, (eds.) CCA 2005 - Second International Conference on Computability and Complexity in Analysis, August 25-29,2005, Kyoto, Japan, ser. Informatik Berichte, , vol. 326-7/2005. FernUniversität Hagen, Germany, 2005, pp. 378–379. (pdf)

A presentation of neighborhood functions using algebras and co-algebras:

• Neil Ghani, Peter Hancock, Dirk Pattinson, Continuous Functions on Final Coalgebras, 2009. (pdf)

Revised on March 9, 2014 08:22:55 by Toby Bartels (98.23.139.218)