We investigate the strength of the existence of a non-principal ultrafilter over fragments of higher-order arithmetic. Let [Formula: see text] be the statement that a non-principal ultrafilter on ℕ exists and let [Formula: see text] be the higher-order extension of ACA0. We show that [Formula: see text] is [Formula: see text]-conservative over [Formula: see text] and thus that [Formula: see text] is conservative over PA. Moreover, we provide a program extraction method and show that from a proof of a strictly (...) [Formula: see text] statement ∀ f ∃ g A qf in [Formula: see text] a realizing term in Gödel's system T can be extracted. This means that one can extract a term t ∈ T, such that ∀ f A qf). (shrink)

We present a list of open questions in reverse mathematics, including some relevant background information for each question. We also mention some of the areas of reverse mathematics that are starting to be developed and where interesting open question may be found.

Hindman’s Theorem says that every finite coloring of the positive natural numbers has a monochromatic set of finite sums. Ramsey algebras, recently introduced, are structures that satisfy an analogue of Hindman’s Theorem. It is an open problem posed by Carlson whether every Ramsey algebra has an idempotent ultrafilter. This paper develops a general framework to study idempotent ultrafilters. Under certain countable setting, the main result roughly says that every nondegenerate Ramsey algebra has a nonprincipal idempotent ultrafilter in some nontrivial countable (...) field of sets. This amounts to a positive result that addresses Carlson’s question in some way. (shrink)

We extend theories of reverse mathematics by a non-principal ultrafilter, and show that these are conservative extensions of the usual theories ACA0, ATR0, and [Formula: see text].