Well-orderIn mathematics, a well-order (or well-ordering or well-order relation) on a set S is a total order on S with the property that every non-empty subset of S has a least element in this ordering. The set S together with the well-order relation is then called a well-ordered set. In some academic articles and textbooks these terms are instead written as wellorder, wellordered, and wellordering or well order, well ordered, and well ordering. Every non-empty well-ordered set has a least element.
Limit ordinalIn set theory, a limit ordinal is an ordinal number that is neither zero nor a successor ordinal. Alternatively, an ordinal λ is a limit ordinal if there is an ordinal less than λ, and whenever β is an ordinal less than λ, then there exists an ordinal γ such that β < γ < λ. Every ordinal number is either zero, or a successor ordinal, or a limit ordinal. For example, the smallest limit ordinal is ω, the smallest ordinal greater than every natural number. This is a limit ordinal because for any smaller ordinal (i.
SubbaseIn topology, a subbase (or subbasis, prebase, prebasis) for a topological space with topology is a subcollection of that generates in the sense that is the smallest topology containing as open sets. A slightly different definition is used by some authors, and there are other useful equivalent formulations of the definition; these are discussed below.
List of topologiesThe following is a list of named topologies or topological spaces, many of which are counterexamples in topology and related branches of mathematics. This is not a list of properties that a topology or topological space might possess; for that, see List of general topology topics and Topological property. Discrete topology − All subsets are open. Indiscrete topology, chaotic topology, or Trivial topology − Only the empty set and its complement are open.
Clopen setIn topology, a clopen set (a portmanteau of closed-open set) in a topological space is a set which is both open and closed. That this is possible may seem counter-intuitive, as the common meanings of and are antonyms, but their mathematical definitions are not mutually exclusive. A set is closed if its complement is open, which leaves the possibility of an open set whose complement is also open, making both sets both open closed, and therefore clopen.
Tychonoff plankIn topology, the Tychonoff plank is a topological space defined using ordinal spaces that is a counterexample to several plausible-sounding conjectures. It is defined as the topological product of the two ordinal spaces and , where is the first infinite ordinal and the first uncountable ordinal. The deleted Tychonoff plank is obtained by deleting the point . The Tychonoff plank is a compact Hausdorff space and is therefore a normal space. However, the deleted Tychonoff plank is non-normal.
Cofinal (mathematics)In mathematics, a subset of a preordered set is said to be cofinal or frequent in if for every it is possible to find an element in that is "larger than " (explicitly, "larger than " means ). Cofinal subsets are very important in the theory of directed sets and nets, where “cofinal subnet” is the appropriate generalization of "subsequence".
