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Cross-structural identity statements

Bahram Assadian*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticle (Academic Journal)peer-review

Abstract

According to realist or ‘non-eliminative’ versions of mathematical structuralism, mathematical objects are merely positions in structures, ontologically dependent on them. This raises questions about identity statements linking positions across distinct structures, such as ‘the natural number 2 is identical to the real number 2’. I develop a novel Aristotelian account on which structures ontologically depend on their corresponding systems. On this in re version of structuralism, cross-structural identities are false, while the expressions flanking the identity sign are referentially indeterminate, even if isomorphism suffices for the numerical identity of structures.
Original languageEnglish
Article numbernkag011
JournalPhilosophia Mathematica
Early online date31 May 2026
DOIs
Publication statusE-pub ahead of print - 31 May 2026

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) [2026].

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