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Derivative algebra (abstract algebra)

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In abstract algebra, a derivative algebra is an algebraic structure of the signature

<A, ·, +, ', 0, 1, D>

where

<A, ·, +, ', 0, 1>

is a Boolean algebra and D is a unary operator, the derivative operator, satisfying the identities:

  1. 0D = 0
  2. xDDx + xD
  3. (x + y)D = xD + yD.

xD is called the derivative of x. Derivative algebras provide an algebraic abstraction of the derived set operator in topology. They also play the same role for the modal logic wK4 = K + (p∧□p → □□p) that Boolean algebras play for ordinary propositional logic.

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