- #1
Mr Davis 97
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Homework Statement
Show that the collection of all nilpotent elements of a commutative ring ##R## is an ideal.
Homework Equations
The Attempt at a Solution
Showing that something is an ideal is somewhat straightforward, but I am a little confused as to what explicitly I have to show. If we denote ##N## as the set in question, then I know that we have to show that ##aN \subseteq N## and ##Nb \subseteq## for all ##a,b \in R##. But what else do I have to show? Do I have to show that N is an additive subgroup?