Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 March 2014
Let a be an admissible ordinal and let ∧ ≤ α be a limit ordinal. A sequence of a-r.e. degrees is said to be ascending, simultaneous and of length ∧ if (i) there is an α-recursive function t: α × ∧ → α such that, for all ϒ < ∧, A ϒ = {t(σ, ϒ)∣ σ < α} is of degree a ϒ; (ii) if ϒ < ⊤ < ∧, then a ϒ ≤α a τ and (iii) for all ϒ < ∧, there is a ⊤ > ϒ with a ϒ, >α a ϒ. Lerman [4] showed that such an exists for every ∧ ≤ α. An upper bound a of is an α-r.e. degree in which every element of is α-recursive. a is minimal if there is no α-r.e. degree b <α a which is also an upper bound of . Sacks [6] proved that every ascending sequence of simultaneously ω-r.e. degrees of length ω cannot have 0ω′, the complete ω-r.e. degree, as a minimal upper bound. In contrast, Cooper [2] showed that there exists an ascending sequence of simultaneously ω-r.e. degrees of length to having a minimal upper bound which is an ω-r.e. degree. In this paper we investigate the behavior of ascending sequences of simultaneously α-r.e. degrees for admissible ordinals α > ω. Call α Σ∞-admissibIe if it is Σ n -nadmissible for all n. Let Φ(∧) say: No ascending sequence of simultaneously α-r.e. degrees of length ∧ can have 0α′, the complete α-r.e. degree, as a minimal upper bound. Our main result in this paper is:
Let α be either a constructible cardinal with σ2ci(α) < α or Σ∞-admissible. Then σ2cf(α) is the least ordinal ν for which every ∧ ≤ α of cofinality ν (over L α) can satisfy Φ(∧).