First-order theories of abstract dependence relations (Q1073012)

''The notion of a dependence system is usually formulated in terms of a relation between points and sets which does not admit analysis by the usual logical tools. We first translate these axioms into ordinary first order terms. The main goal of this paper is to show this language allows the formulation of concepts which (a) illuminate the distinctions between dependence relations arising in different algebraic settings and (b) permit common proof of results in quite different settings where dependence relations satisfy these common properties. We provide examples in several different areas, among them stability theory, the decomposition theory of modules, matroid theory and recursive algebra.'' (from the introduction)