Linear numeral systems

We investigate numeral systems in the lambda calculus; specifically in the linear lambda calculus where terms cannot be copied or erased. Our interest is threefold: representing numbers in the linear calculus, finding constant time arithmetic operations when possible for successor, addition and predecessor, and finally, efficiently encoding subtraction—an operation that is problematic in many numeral systems. This paper defines systems that address these points, and in addition provides a characterisation of linear numeral systems