Closure in Groups: Definition & Examples

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Closure in groups is defined as the requirement that for any two elements a and b in a group G, the product a*b must also be an element of G. The discussion clarifies that demonstrating a*b is a well-defined element of G involves showing that the operation is closed under the defined binary function. An example using equivalence classes of integers modulo 3 illustrates the importance of ensuring that the operation yields consistent results regardless of the representations of the elements. The conversation also touches on the distinction between closure and well-definedness, emphasizing that both concepts are crucial in group theory. Ultimately, the closure axiom is foundational, even if it may seem redundant at first glance.
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Let G be a group and my book defines closure as: For all a,bε G the element a*b is a well defined element of G. Then G is called a group. When they say well defined element does that mean I have to show a*b is well defined and it is a element of the group? Or do I just show a*b is closed under *(the operation)?
 
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I've always found the closure axiom a bit silly. It's implied if you just write *: G\times G\to G. All it means is that, given a,b\in G, there's a thing named a*b, and that whatever this thing is, it belongs to G.
 
Thanks. I saw that other abstract algebra books have it defined as how you said it. My book apparently has it defined a little differently.
 
This will often depend on the context. * is by definition a binary function *:GxG→G, and a function is well-defined by definition.. I think the problem is best illustrated by examples:

Let G = {[x]: x is an integer not a multiple of 3}, where [x] = {integers y s.t. x~y}, where we write x~y if x and y leave the same remainder upon division by 3 (alternatively, x-y is divisible by 3). The elements of G are sets called equivalence classes of Z modulo 3, and we can easily verify that G={[1],[2]}. Now define a binary operation on G by [a]*=[ab]. At first glance it might not be obvious that * is well-defined since [a] and have many different representations, and [ab] might depend on which of these representations we choose. For example [2]=[5] and [1]=[31], so we better make sure that we get [2]*[1]=[5]*[31] with how we defined *! We can verify that [2]*[1]=[2]=[155]=[5]*[31], since 155 leaves remainder 2 upon division by 3. Indeed, we can prove that [a]*=[ab] gives the same element of G no matter how we choose to write [a] and , i.e. * is well defined!

Edit: G={[0],[1],[2]} is not a group ([0] is not invertible), edited so that G={[1],[2]}
 
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Yes its just like showing a function is well defined. I wasn't sure if it just suffices to show that (G,*) is closed under the operation *.
 
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