What is the Size of ∪A_n Where n Goes to Infinity?

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In summary, there is a set with the cardinality of the reals that is the union of all sets A_n, where n goes to infinity. Additionally, a function can be defined on this set that has the same cardinality as the reals. This fact has been explained in a previous post.
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TriTertButoxy
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I am not a mathematician, I am a physicist. Out of curiosity, how big is the following set?

Let me first define:
A_0 = a point
A_1 = the reals
A_2 = the reals^2 (the plane)
A_3 = the reals^3
.
.
.

The set I want to know the size of is the sum (union) of all the A_n sets, where n goes to infinity. Also, can i assign a cardinality?
 
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Let f_n be an injection from R^n to [n-1,n), n>0, then we can define a function F on U = [tex]\bigcup_{n=1} R^n[/tex] to [tex][0,\infty)[/tex] by F(x) = f_n(x) whenever x is an element of R^n. This is a bijection, so U + your point (R^0) has the same cardinality as R.

I have explained the fact that R^n has the same cardinality as R (and hence [n-1,n) ) in an earlier post of mine if you are not familiar with this fact:

https://www.physicsforums.com/showpost.php?p=3021974&postcount=11

As I have used above, U + a point, or more formally [tex]U \cup \{x\}[/tex] where x is not in U has the same cardinality as U whenever U is an infinite set. We can prove that as such: take a countable sequence a_n, n>0, of distinct elements from U, and define [tex]f : U \to U \cup \{x\}[/tex] by [tex]f(a_n) = a_{n-1}[/tex] for n>1, f(a_1) = x, and f(y) = y whenever y is not in the sequence. This is a bijection.
 
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1. What does ∪A_n represent?

∪A_n represents the union of all sets in the sequence A_n, where n is a positive integer. This means that ∪A_n contains all the elements that are present in at least one of the sets in the sequence.

2. How does the size of ∪A_n change as n increases?

As n increases, the size of ∪A_n also increases. This is because with each increment of n, a new set is added to the union, potentially adding new elements to the overall set. This results in the size of ∪A_n growing indefinitely as n approaches infinity.

3. Is there a limit to the size of ∪A_n as n approaches infinity?

No, there is no limit to the size of ∪A_n as n approaches infinity. This is because the sequence A_n can contain an infinite number of sets, and each set can contain an infinite number of elements. Therefore, the size of ∪A_n can continue to grow infinitely as n increases.

4. Can the size of ∪A_n ever decrease as n increases?

No, the size of ∪A_n can never decrease as n increases. This is because with each increment of n, at least one new set is added to the union, which can only increase the overall size of the set. It is possible for the size of ∪A_n to remain constant if the same set is repeated in the sequence A_n, but it cannot decrease.

5. How is the size of ∪A_n related to the individual sizes of the sets in the sequence?

The size of ∪A_n is always equal to or greater than the size of each individual set in the sequence A_n. This is because the union contains all the elements of the individual sets, and may also contain additional elements that are not present in the individual sets. Therefore, the size of ∪A_n is directly influenced by the sizes of the individual sets, but can never be smaller than any of the individual set sizes.

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