Topological continuity (a few questions).

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the concept of topological continuity, specifically addressing two questions related to the behavior of continuous functions and limit points. The first question examines whether the image of a limit point under a continuous function is necessarily a limit point of the image of a subset. The second question explores the continuity of a function from the real numbers with a lower limit topology.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested
  • Mathematical reasoning

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants propose that if \( f: X \to Y \) is continuous and \( x \) is a limit point of subset \( A \) of \( X \), it is not necessarily true that \( f(x) \) is a limit point of \( f(A) \). A counterexample is sought, particularly involving non-injective functions.
  • Others question whether any special topology is imposed on the sets \( X \) and \( Y \) that might affect the continuity and limit point definitions.
  • A participant suggests that a constant function from \( \mathbb{R} \to \mathbb{R} \ could serve as a counterexample, indicating that it may not meet the limit point criteria.
  • There is a discussion about the definition of limit points, with some noting that the answer to the first question could depend on how limit points are defined, particularly in relation to closure.
  • One participant clarifies the definition of a limit point, emphasizing the requirement for neighborhoods intersecting with the set to contain points other than the limit point itself.
  • Another participant attempts to prove the implications of continuity on limit points and discusses the relationship between neighborhoods and the images under \( f \), considering injectivity as a factor in their reasoning.
  • Hints are requested for the second question regarding continuity in the context of the lower limit topology, indicating some struggle with the proof process.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the first question, with no consensus reached on whether \( f(x) \) must be a limit point of \( f(A) \). The second question also remains unresolved, with participants seeking clarification and hints rather than arriving at a definitive conclusion.

Contextual Notes

The discussion highlights potential ambiguities in the definitions of limit points and continuity, particularly in relation to different topological structures. The exploration of injectivity and its implications for limit points is also noted, but remains unresolved.

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1.suppose that f:X->Y is continuous. if x is a limit point of the subset A of X, is it necessarily true that f(x) is a limit point of f(A)?
2. suppose that f:R->R is continuous from the right, show that f is continuous when considered as a function from R_l to R, where R_l is R in the lower limit topology. (munkres' notation).

Now for 1, I think the answer is no, but I don't find a counterexample if someone could give me a hint on this ( I'm pretty sure it's easy (-: ), but what I did find is that if f is injective then the answer is yes (I proved it by ad absurdum), so my hunch a counterexample should be with a function which is not injective.

Now for two it seems easy enough, if V is open in R, then it contains an open interval, let it be (a,b), now then f^-1(V) contains f^-1((a,b))={x in R_l|f(x) in (a,b)}
now i need to prove that f^-1((a,b)) is an interval of the form: [x0,x1), but I am struggling with that.
any hints?

thanks in advance.
 
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loop quantum gravity said:
1.suppose that f:X->Y is continuous. if x is a limit point of the subset A of X, is it necessarily true that f(x) is a limit point of f(A)?

Are you given any special topology on the sets X,Y?

You could start by assuming that f(x) is not a limit point of f(A), i.e. there exists a neighborhood U of f(x) in Y, such that...
 
1. How about taking a constant function from R->R? This looks like it works, provided I'm not mixing up the terminology.

2. f being continuous doesn't mean it pulls back basic sets to basic sets, only to open sets.
 
the fact that the answer to 1. is yes, is actually the definition of continuity.

oops, it depends on your definition of "limit point of", but it is true if it means "in the closure of".

i realize however that older books define limit points in a strange way.
 
Last edited:
well the definition of x a limit point of a subset A of X, is that for every neighbourhood U of x, the intersection between U and A contanis a point which is different than x.

Now what I did for 1, is that i assumed that f(x) isn't a limit point of f(A) i.e that there exists U open in Y s.t the intersection between f(A) and U is f(x), now i use the fact that
f^-1(f(A)nU)=Anf^-1(U)=(1), by continuity, f^-1(U) is open in X, and if (1) were equal {x} alone that will be a contradiction for x being a limit point, but (1) also equals: f^-1({f(x)})={x' in X|f(x')=f(x)}, and that would be equal {x} if f is injective as i said, or am i missing something here?

any hints on question number 2, morphism's hint doesn't help much.
 

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