We show that the universal theory of the hyperfinite II$_1$ factor is not computable. The proof uses the recent result that MIP*=RE. Combined with an earlier observation of the authors, this yields a proof that the Connes Embedding Problem has a negative solution that avoids the equivalences with Kirchberg’s QWEP Conjecture and Tsirelson’s Problem.

We give an algebraic description of the structure of the analytic universal cover of a complex abelian variety which suffices to determine the structure up to isomorphism. More generally, we classify the models of theories of ‘universal covers’ of rigid divisible commutative finite Morley rank groups.

We realize the Jiang-Su algebra, all UHF algebras, and the hyperfinite II1 factor as Fraïssé limits of suitable classes of structures. Moreover by means of Fraïssé theory we provide new examples of AF algebras with strong homogeneity properties. As a consequence of our analysis we deduce Ramsey-theoretic results about the class of full-matrix algebras.

The Connes Embedding Problem (CEP) asks whether every separable II1 factor embeds into an ultrapower of the hyperfinite II1 factor. We show that the CEP is equivalent to the statement that every type II1 tracial von Neumann algebra has a computable universal theory.

In this note, we show that the theory of tracial von Neumann algebras does not have a model companion. This will follow from the fact that the theory of any locally universal, McDuff II1 factor does not have quantifier elimination. We also show how a positive solution to the Connes Embedding Problem implies that there can be no model-complete theory of II1 factors.

Let T be simple, work in Ceq over a boundedly closed set. Let p Є S(∅) be internal in a quasi-stably-embedded type-definable set Q (e.g., Q is definable or stably-embedded) and suppose (p, Q) is ACL-embedded in Q (see definitions below). Then Aut(p/Q) with its action on pc is type-definable in Ceq over ∅. In particular, if p Є S(∅) is internal in a stably-embedded type-definable set Q, and pc ⋃ Q is stably-embedded, then Aut(p/Q) is type-definable with its action on pc .

Certain classes of smoothly approximable structures — the class of affine covers of Lie geometries — are shown to have the amalgamation property. In particular, this shows that any affine cover of a Lie geometry has the small index property.

2000 Mathematical Subject Classification: 03C45.

By a classifiable theory we shall mean a theory which is superstable, without the dimensional order property, which has prime models over pairs. In order to define what we mean by unique decomposition, we remind the reader of several definitions and results. We adopt the usual conventions of stability theory and work inside a large saturated model of a fixed classifiable theory T; for instance, if we write M ⊆ N for models of T, M and N we are thinking of these models as elementary submodels of this fixed saturated models; so, in particular, M is an elementary submodel of N. Although the results will not depend on it, we will assume that T is countable to ease notation.

We do adopt one piece of notation which is not completely standard: if T is classifiable, M0 ⊆ Mi for i = 1, 2 are models of T and M1 is independent from M2 over M0 then we write M1M2 for the prime model over M1 ∪ M2.

In this paper we discuss several generalization of theorems from stability theory to simple theories. Cherlin and Hrushovski, in [2] develop a substitute for canonical bases in finite rank, ω-categorical supersimple theories. Motivated by methods there, we prove the existence of canonical bases (in a suitable sense) for types in any simple theory. This is done in Section 2. In general these canonical bases will (as far as we know) exist only as “hyperimaginaries”, namely objects of the form a/E where a is a possibly infinite tuple and E a type-definable equivalence relation. (In the supersimple, ω-categorical case, these reduce to ordinary imaginaries.) So in Section 1 we develop the general theory of hyperimaginaries and show how first order model theory (including the theory of forking) generalises to hyperimaginaries. We go on, in Section 3 to show the existence and ubiquity of regular types in supersimple theories, ω-categorical simple structures and modularity is discussed in Section 4. It is also shown here how the general machinery of simplicity simplifies some of the general theory of smoothly approximable (or Lie-coordinatizable) structures from [2].

Throughout this paper we will work in a large, saturated model M of a complete theory T. All types, sets and sequences will have size smaller than the size of M. We will assume that the reader is familiar with the basics of forking in simple theories as laid out in [4] and [6]. For basic stability-theoretic results concerning regular types, orthogonality etc., see [1] or [9].

We answer a question of Cassidy and Kolchin about the universality of the constrained closure of a differential field by working in a larger category of models.

By a variety we mean a class of algebras in a language , containing only function symbols, which is closed under homomorphisms, submodels, and products. A variety is said to be strongly abelian if for any term in , the quasi-identity

holds in .

In [1] it was proved that if a strongly abelian variety has less than the maximal possible uncountable spectrum, then it is equivalent to a multisorted unary variety. Using Shelah's Main Gap theorem one can conclude that if is a classifiable (superstable without DOP or OTOP and shallow) strongly abelian variety then is a multisorted unary variety. In fact, it was known that this conclusion followed from the assumption of superstable without DOP alone.

This paper is devoted to the proof that the superstability assumption is enough to obtain the same structure result. This fulfills a promise made in [2]. Namely, we will prove the following

Theorem 0.1. If is a superstable strongly abelian variety, then it is multisorted unary.

By a variety, we mean a class of structures in some language containing only function symbols which is equationally defined or equivalently is closed under homomorphisms, submodels and products.

If K is a class of -structures then I(K, λ) denotes the number of nonisomorphic models in K of cardinality λ. When we say that K has few models, we mean that I(K,λ) < 2λ for some λ > ∣∣. If I(K,λ) = 2λ for all λ > ∣∣, then we say K has many models. In [9] and [10], Shelah has shown that for an elementary class K, having few models is a strong structural condition.