I’m continuing my exploration of TikZ (here is my first post about TikZ). I will be showing my Discrete Math class how to “count” the positive rational numbers. (See this old blog post for more information about countable sets.) I used TikZ to create the picture below. Here is the source code for this figure. If you click…
Tag: cardinality
What is the cardinality of the Euclidean topology?
I’m teaching topology this semester. The students are looking at different topologies on the real number line. For homework I asked them to think about which topologies are “the same” (if any) and which are “different,” and why they thought that was the case. We haven’t yet talked about continuous maps or homeomorphisms, so I…
Cardinality of infinite sets, part 1: four nonstandard proofs of countability
The study of cardinalities of infinite sets is one of the most intriguing areas of mathematics that an undergraduate mathematics major will encounter. It never fails to bring crooked smiles of joy, disbelief, confusion and wonder to their faces. The results are beautiful, deep, and unexpected. Recall that two sets have the same cardinality if…
David Richeson: Division by Zero 