Existence of a limit point implies existence of inifintely many limit points?

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around the properties of limit points in metric spaces, specifically examining whether the existence of a limit point implies the existence of infinitely many limit points within a non-empty subset of a metric space.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Assumption checking, Conceptual clarification

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants explore the implications of having a limit point and consider the possibility of a metric space containing only a finite number of points. There is an attempt to prove the statement by contradiction, questioning the consistency of having a finite set of limit points.

Discussion Status

The discussion is ongoing, with participants sharing thoughts on examples of metric spaces that could illustrate the concepts. Some guidance has been offered regarding the construction of a metric space with a single limit point, and there is an acknowledgment of the challenges in proving the original statement.

Contextual Notes

Participants note that a finite set of points does not contain limit points, which raises questions about the assumptions underlying the original statement. There is also mention of specific examples, such as subsets of real numbers approaching a limit point.

julypraise
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Homework Statement


Prove the following statement is true or not:

the statement:
Let [itex](X,d)[/itex] be a non-empty metric space and [itex]A[/itex] is a non-empty subset of [itex]X[/itex]. Then if [itex]A'[/itex] is not empty, then [itex]A'[/itex] is infinte.


Homework Equations


Definition of limit point and its negation.


The Attempt at a Solution


I tried to prove by contradiction in this way: (to prove the statement is true)
Suppose [itex]p_{1},\dots,p_{N}[/itex] are limit points of [itex]A[/itex]. Since [itex]A[/itex] has a limit point, it is infinte. Now observe that if [itex]p'\in A,p\notin\{p_{1},\dots,p_{N}\}[/itex] then [itex]p'[/itex] is not a limit point of [itex]A[/itex], i.e., [itex]A\cap B(p';r_{p'})=\{p'\}[/itex] for some [itex]r_{p'}>0[/itex]. Thus [itex]A[/itex] has a kind of gap inside it.

But from here, I cannot go further. It almost seems that [itex]A'[/itex] finite is consistent.
 
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julypraise said:
But from here, I cannot go further. It almost seems that [itex]A'[/itex] finite is consistent.

Go with that. I can think of a metric space with one limit point. Can you?
 
Last edited:
Dick said:
Go with that. I can think of a metric space with one limit point. Can you?

Sorry, I tried but couldn't think of one. Could you give me at least a hint? Like, what kind of metric space is it with what kind metric??
 
Well, one obvious way to avoid "an infinite number of limit points" is to start with a space that only contains a finite number of points!
 
HallsofIvy said:
Well, one obvious way to avoid "an infinite number of limit points" is to start with a space that only contains a finite number of points!

Humm.. But, you know, if a set has only finite points then there is no limit point of this set for whatever metric space is talked about. Isn't it?
 
julypraise said:
Sorry, I tried but couldn't think of one. Could you give me at least a hint? Like, what kind of metric space is it with what kind metric??

Nothing fancy. Pick a subset of the real numbers. They should be discrete but approach a single limit point. Like 0.
 
Wow, this one right? [itex]\bigcup_{n=1}^{\infty}\{-\frac{1}{n},\frac{1}{n}\}[/itex].
 
julypraise said:
Wow, this one right? [itex]\bigcup_{n=1}^{\infty}\{-\frac{1}{n},\frac{1}{n}\}[/itex].

Looks generally ok to me. But I think you want to include 0 in your subset. What do you think?
 
Last edited:
Dick said:
Looks generally ok to me. But I think you want to include 0 in your subset. What do you think?

Ah... I think it's okay to disprove the statement. I showed that A' is not empty but finite anyway. Thanks!
 

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