Proving R is Bigger Than N Set Elements

  • Thread starter Thread starter dextercioby
  • Start date Start date
AI Thread Summary
The discussion focuses on proving that the cardinality of the set of real numbers, \mathbb{R}, is greater than that of the natural numbers, \mathbb{N}. It highlights Cantor's theorem, which states that no bijection exists between these two sets. A proof is mentioned that illustrates this concept through a simple idea, although it may not be immediately apparent to those unfamiliar with it. Participants express appreciation for the clarity and effectiveness of the proof. The conversation emphasizes the significance of understanding set cardinality in mathematics.
dextercioby
Science Advisor
Insights Author
Messages
13,396
Reaction score
4,069
that the number of elements of \mathbb{R} (seen as a set, obviously) is bigger than the number of elements of \mathbb{N} ...? :bugeye:

Daniel.
 
Mathematics news on Phys.org
Two sets have the same cardinality iff there exists a bijection between the sets. Cantor showed that there is no bijection between \mathbb{R} and \mathbb{N}. A "[URL proof[/URL] of this involves a very simple idea - simple once one has seen it, but not until then.

Regards,
George
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Thankyou for the reply.

Daniel.
 
Very nice. I've never seen that proof before.
 
Wow...that's good!
 
Insights auto threads is broken atm, so I'm manually creating these for new Insight articles. In Dirac’s Principles of Quantum Mechanics published in 1930 he introduced a “convenient notation” he referred to as a “delta function” which he treated as a continuum analog to the discrete Kronecker delta. The Kronecker delta is simply the indexed components of the identity operator in matrix algebra Source: https://www.physicsforums.com/insights/what-exactly-is-diracs-delta-function/ by...
Suppose ,instead of the usual x,y coordinate system with an I basis vector along the x -axis and a corresponding j basis vector along the y-axis we instead have a different pair of basis vectors ,call them e and f along their respective axes. I have seen that this is an important subject in maths My question is what physical applications does such a model apply to? I am asking here because I have devoted quite a lot of time in the past to understanding convectors and the dual...
Thread 'Imaginary Pythagoras'
I posted this in the Lame Math thread, but it's got me thinking. Is there any validity to this? Or is it really just a mathematical trick? Naively, I see that i2 + plus 12 does equal zero2. But does this have a meaning? I know one can treat the imaginary number line as just another axis like the reals, but does that mean this does represent a triangle in the complex plane with a hypotenuse of length zero? Ibix offered a rendering of the diagram using what I assume is matrix* notation...
Back
Top