We discuss the conceptual problem of identifying the natural notions of computability at higher types (over the natural numbers). We argue for an eclectic approach, in which one considers a wide range of possible approaches to defining higher type computability and then looks for regularities. As a first step in this programme, we give an extended survey of the di#erent strands of research on higher type computability to date, bringing together material from recursion theory, constructive logic and computer science. The paper thus serves as a reasonably complete overview of the literature on higher type computability. Two sequel papers will be devoted to developing a more systematic account of the material reviewed here.

In this paper we consider admissible domain representations of topological spaces. A domain representation D of a space X is λ-admissible if, in principle, all other λ-based domain representations E of X can be reduced to D via a continuous function from E to D. We present a characterisation theorem of when a topological space has a λ-admissible and κ-based domain representation. We also prove that there is a natural cartesian closed category of countably based and countably admissible domain representations. These results are generalisations of [Sch02]. 1

It is a fact of experience from the study of higher type computability that a wide range of approaches to defining a class of (hereditarily) total functionals over N leads in practice to a relatively small handful of distinct type structures. Among these are the type structure C of Kleene-Kreisel continuous functionals, its effective substructure C eff, and the type structure HEO of the hereditarily effective operations. However, the proofs of the relevant equivalences are often non-trivial, and it is not immediately clear why these particular type structures should arise so ubiquitously. In this paper we present some new results which go some way towards explaining this phenomenon. Our results show that a large class of extensional collapse constructions always give rise to C, C eff or HEO (as appropriate). We obtain versions of our results for both the “standard” and “modified” extensional collapse constructions. The proofs make essential use of a technique due to Normann. Many new results, as well as some previously known ones, can be obtained as instances of our theorems, but more importantly, the proofs apply uniformly to a whole family of constructions, and provide strong evidence that the above three type structures are highly canonical mathematical objects.

We review some of the history of the computability theory of functionals of higher types, and we will demonstrate how contributions from logic and theoretical computer science have shaped this still active subject.

hereditarily-sequential functionals is not ω-complete (in contrast to the old fully abstract continuous dcpo model of Milner). This is also applicable to a potentially (universal) model for PCF + = PCF + pif (parallel if). Here we will present an outline of a general approach to this kind of ‘natural ’ domains which, although being non-dcpos, allow considering ‘naturally ’ continuous functions (with respect to existing directed ‘pointwise’, or ‘natural ’ least upper bounds). There is also an appropriate version of ‘naturally ’ algebraic and ‘naturally ’ bounded complete ‘natural’ domains which serves as the non-dcpo analogue of the well-known concept of Scott domains, or equivalently, the complete f-spaces of Ershov. It is shown that this special version of ‘natural ’ domains, if considered under ‘natural ’ Scott topology, exactly corresponds to the class of f-spaces, not necessarily complete. Key words: domain theory, dcpo and non-dcpo domains, Scott topology,

The paper considers algebraic directed-complete partial orders with a semi-regular Scott topology, called regular domains. As is well known, the category of Scott domains and continuous maps is Cartesian closed. This is no longer true, if the domains are required to be regular. Two Cartesian closed subcategories of the regular Scott domains are exhibited: regular dI-domains with stable maps and strongly regular Scott domains with continuous maps. Here a Scott domains is strongly regular if all of its compact open subsets are regular open. If one considers only embeddings as morphisms, then both categories are closed under the construction of dependent products and sums. Moreover, they are #-cocomplete and their object classes are closed under several constructions used in programming language semantics. It follows that recursive domains equations can be solved and models of typed and untyped lambda calculi can be constructed. Both kinds of domains can be used in giving meaning to progr...