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If I understand correctly, the real numbers can be formalised in a first-order, like in ZF. However, such a formalisation is not strong enough to ensure that all models of the reals are isomorphic.

Why is being able to ensure isomorphism between models interesting? What's significant about that? In terms of the first-order formalisation of the reals, when does it fall short compared to a second-order theory?

Thanks!

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    I know this is a late comment, but just to add to what @BenCrowell said, the reals have the same first-order theory as the computable reals, and the latter can be constructed in very weak foundations, unlike the hyperreals which require unusual set-theoretic machinery. The computable reals are also countable. Relatedly, any consistent first-order theory has a countable model. So no uncountable structure can be uniquely pinned down by a first-order theory.2017-07-14

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To take a stab at the other question, ensuring isomorphism between models amounts to having a characterization of the object in question and so demonstrating that it makes sense to talk about the object in question. For example, up to isomorphism there is only one countable dense linear order without endpoints: any such order is order-isomorphic to $\langle\mathbb{Q},\le\rangle$. Thus, we can reasonably talk about the dense linear order without endpoints, and we can resolve questions about it by looking specifically at $\langle\mathbb{Q},\le\rangle$. Whether this is interesting is perhaps a matter of taste, but it pretty clearly is significant, in that it facilitates understanding and further investigation of the object. It also makes it easier to recognize the object when it appears in an unfamiliar guise.

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    @$k$ate.r: (Sorry; I meant to get back to this sooner.) I simply meant that if all models are isomorphic, there is in effect only one object to study. I didn’t mean to suggest that a characterization theorem would automatically result.2011-08-22