We study the coherence, that is the equality of canonical natural transformations in non-free symmetric monoidal closed categories . To this aim, we use proof theory for intuitionistic multiplicative linear logic with unit. The study of coherence in non-free smccs is reduced to the study of equivalences on terms in the free category, which include the equivalences induced by the smcc structure. The free category is reformulated as the sequent calculus for imll with unit so that only equivalences on derivations (...) in this system are to be considered. We establish that any equivalence induced by the equality of canonical natural transformations over a model can be axiomatized by some set of “critical” pairs of derivations. From this, we derive certain sufficient conditions for full coherence, and establish that the system of identities defining smccs is not Post-complete: extending this system with an identity that does not hold in the free smcc does not in general cause the free smcc to collapse into a preorder. In order to give a larger context to these results, we study the equality of canonical morphisms in non-free symmetric monoidal categories, and establish that w.r.t. a broad subclass of smccs, the equivalences induced by the equality of canonical natural transformations over a model coincide with the equivalences induced by the equality of canonical morphisms for all interpretations in that model. (shrink)

Coercive subtyping offers a general approach to subtyping and inheritance by introducing a simple abbreviational mechanism to constructive type theories. In this paper, we study coercion completion in coercive subtyping and prove that the formal extension with coercive subtyping of a type theory such as Martin–Löf's type theory and UTT is a conservative extension. The importance of coherence conditions for the conservativity result is also discussed.

Some sufficient conditions on a Symmetric Monoidal Closed category K are obtained such that a diagram in a free SMC category generated by the set A of atoms commutes if and only if all its interpretations in K are commutative. In particular, the category of vector spaces on any field satisfies these conditions . Instead of diagrams, pairs of derivations in Intuitionistic Multiplicative Linear logic can be considered . Two derivations of the same sequent are equivalent if and only if (...) all their interpretations in K are equal. In fact, the assignment of values to atoms is defined constructively for each pair of derivations. Taking into account a mistake in R. Voreadou's proof of the “abstract coherence theorem” found by the author, it was necessary to modify her description of the class of non-commutative diagrams in SMC categories; our proof of S. Mac Lane conjecture also proves the correctness of the modified description. (shrink)