Section 5.

3 484 General Topology on

Section 5.3 General Topology on the Real Line:

Line: Open Sets

Purpose of Section To introduce topological concepts of the real number

system, such as open and closed sets, interior, boundary, and exterior points
of a set, and limit points, These act as the foundation of many concepts in
analysis.

Introduction
General topology (sometimes called point-set topology) is that branch of
mathematics that deals with placing a “structure” on sets in a way that allows
one to investigate important mathematical concepts, like closeness, limits,
infinite series, convergence, continuity, and many others. In calculus, the
concept of what is “close” is crucial to its development. You have seen that
the distance between two real numbers x and a is given by the absolute value
of their difference; x − a , thus points within a distance δ from a point a are
points in the set
{x ∈
: x − a < δ }
Also, recall the definition of
lim xn = a
n →∞
is
( ∀ε > 0 )( ∃N > 0) n > N ⇒ xn − a < ε 

which means if we go far enough out in the sequence the values of the
sequence will get closer to a than any prescribed number ε . But general
topology defines convergence in a more general way by introducing a family
T ⊆ P (
) of subsets of

T = {Oα }α ∈∆

called a topology on
, whose members Oα are called the open sets of the
topology. In terms of this family of open sets, the above limit would be stated
as

( ∀Oα ∈ T containing a )( ∃N > 0 )  n > N ⇒ xn ∈ Oα 

This says that for any open set containing a the terms in the sequence will
eventually lie in that open set. By choosing different families of open sets,
one can effect different types of convergence; i.e. pointwise, uniform, etc.
 Section 5.3 485 General Topology on

However, before we define our topology (what we mean by open sets),

we define a neighborhood of a point.

Definition: Let a ∈
and δ > 0 . A δ -neighborhood of a is the open interval

Nδ (a) = ( a − δ , a + δ ) of radius δ centered at a . Alternate ways of writing
this are
Nδ ( a ) = { x ∈
: a − δ < x < a + δ } = { x ∈
: x − a < δ } .

Using the concept of a neighborhood, we can restate the definition of

continuity at x = a in a more general1 form:

( ∀ε > 0 )( ∃δ > 0)  x ∈ Nδ ( a ) ⇒ f ( x) ∈ N ε ( f (a) ) 

This brings us to the unifying concept of this section, and the study of
“closeness”, the open set.

Definition: A subset of real numbers A ⊆
is an open set if for every a ∈ A

there exists a δ > 0 such that Nδ (a) ⊆ A . That is

A open ⇔ ( ∀a ∈ A )( ∃δ > 0 )( Nδ (a ) ⊆ A )

1
The key word here is “general” since we can find neighborhoods of points in higher dimensions
and even points in function spaces..
 Section 5.3 486 General Topology on

In the definition of an open set, when we say “there exists a δ greater than
zero” we are thinking of a small δ , normally not a large one. Intuitively
speaking, a set is open if you can “wiggle” around any point in the set and still
be in the set, provided you don’t wiggle too much. Another way of thinking
about open sets is every point in an open set is surrounded by other points in
the set and insulted from the outside.

Margin Note: Because of the matching of real numbers with points on the
number line, we often refer to real numbers as “points.”

Example 1 (Open Sets)

a) Open intervals ( a, b) = { x ∈
: a < x < b} like you studied in calculus

like ( 0,1) , ( −1,3 ) are open sets.

b) The following unbounded open intervals are open sets

( a, ∞ ) = { x ∈
: x > a}
( −∞, b ) = { x ∈
: x < b}
What does it mean for a set not to be open? To answer that question, we
negate2 the definition of an open set, getting

A is not open ⇔ ∼ ( ∀a ∈ A)( ∃δ > 0 )( Nδ (a) ⊆ A )

⇔ ( ∃a ∈ A)( ∀δ > 0 )( Nδ (a) ⊄ A )
In other words, there exists at least one point a ∈ A “right on the boundary”
of A that is not “insulated” from the outside.

The interval ( a, b ] is not open since if the point x = b (which belongs to ( a, b ] )

is wiggled any amount of distance (say 10−100 ) to the right, it will be outside
( a, b ] . In other words for any δ > 0 , we have Nδ (b) = ( b − δ , b + δ ) ⊄ ( a, b ] .
The most important properties of open sets relates to their union and
intersection.

2
You can see the benefit of predicate logic notion that allows one to negate sentences very easily.
 Section 5.3 487 General Topology on

Theorem 1 (Main Theorem of Open Sets) The union of any collection

(possibly infinite) of open sets is open. The intersection of a finite number
of open sets is open.

Proof

(Union of Open Sets) We show that if { Aα }α∈∆ is an arbitrary a family of

open sets, then ∪ Aα
α ∈∆
is an open set. To show this we let

a ∈ ∪ Aα
α ∈∆
Hence
 
( ∃β ∈ ∆ ) ( ∀a ∈ Aβ ) ( ∃δ > 0 )  a ∈ Nδ ( a ) ⊆ Aβ ∈ ∪ Aα 
 α ∈∆ 

which verifies the result.

(Intersection of Open Sets) We show that if the sets Ak in the finite family
n
n
{ Ak }k =1 , then the intersection a ∈ ∩ Ak is open. . To show this we let
k =1
n
a ∈ ∩ Ak
k =1

Hence for all k = 1, 2,..., n , we have

( ∀a ∈ Ak )( ∃δ k > 0 ) ( a ∈ Nδ ( a ) ⊆ Ak )
k

3
and if we pick δ = min {δ k : k = 1, 2,..., n} > 0 we have

n
a ∈ Nδ ( a ) ⊆ ∩ Ak
k =1

which proves the desired result. ▌

3
It is necessary that the number of open sets be finite, else the values of δk might not have a minimum
value.
Section 5.3 488 General Topology on

Example 2 (Unions and Intersections of Open Sets)

The following examples illustrate the fact that the union of open sets is
open, but an infinite intersection of open sets need not be open.

∞
 1
a) ∪  0,1 − n  = ( 0,1)
n= 2
(open)

∞
 1 1
b) ∩  − n , n  = {0}
n= 2
(not open)

5
 1 1  1 1
c) ∩  − n , n  =  − 5 , 5 
n= 2
(open)

Closed Sets

The concept of open sets leads us to what might be called the opposite
of an open set, a closed set.

Definition:
Definition A set A ⊆
is closed if its complement A is open.

Example
Example 3 (Closed Sets)

a) The closed intervals A = [ a, b ] studied in calculus are closed sets

since their complements A = ( −∞, a ) ∪ ( b, ∞ ) are open. For
example, the closed intervals [ 0,1] , [ −2,3] are closed sets.

b) The unbounded closed intervals A = [ a, ∞ ) , B = ( −∞, b] are closed

sets since their complements A = ( −∞, a ) , B = ( b, ∞ ) are open.
For example [ 0, ∞ ) , ( −∞, 0] are closed sets.

c) Any singleton set {a} is a closed set since its compliment

( −∞, a ) ∪ ( a, ∞ ) is open. In fact any finite set {a1 , a2 ,..., an } is closed
since its compliment is the union of open intervals , which by
Theorem 1 is an open set.
Section 5.3 489 General Topology on

Keep in mind not all sets of are open or closed; the sets A = ( 0,1] and
B = [ −3, 2 ) are neither open nor closed.

The set of real numbers
is open by the definition of an open set, and
hence its complement, the empty set, is closed. But the empty set is also
open vacuously by definition since there is no point a ∈∅ to check for the
condition a ∈ Nδ ( a ) ⊆ ∅ . But if the empty set is open, that means
is
closed. This means
and ∅ are both open and closed are the only sets of
real numbers both open and closed. All other sets are either open, closed, or
neither.

We have seen that the intersection of an arbitrary collection of open sets

is open, and that the finite intersection of open sets is open. We now ask what
are the corresponding properties for closed sets. The following theorem
answers this question and shows the “dual” nature of this property.

Theorem 2 (Main Theorem of Closed Sets) The intersection of an arbitrary

family or collection (possibly infinite) of closed sets is closed. The union of a
finite number of closed sets is closed. The proof is based on DeMorgan’s
laws whose proof is left for the reader.

Example 4 (Unions and Intersections of Closed Sets) The following examples

illustrate that the intersection of closed sets is closed, but union of closed sets
may not be closed, unless it is the union of a finite set.

∞
 1 1
a) ∩  − n , n  = {0}
n= 2
(closed)

∞
 1 1
b) ∪  −1 + n ,1 − n  = ( −1,1)
n= 2
(not closed)

c) [ 0, 2] ∪ [1, 4] = [0, 4] (closed)

Margin Note: Open and closed sets are at the center of point set topology
topology.
ogy In
general topology, open sets are defined as any collection of subsets of a
larger set (say the real line) that is “closed” under unions and finite
intersections. By choosing more or less open sets, a variety of different
types of convergence is possible. The more open sets the more difficult for
sequences to converge, the fewer open sets the more likely a sequence will
converge.
 Section 5.3 490 General Topology on

Interior, Exterior, and Boundary of a Set

Three important concepts of topology are the concept of interior,

exterior, and boundary points of a set4.

Definition:
Definition: Suppose A ⊆
and x ∈
. Then, exactly one of the following is
true: x is in the interior, boundary, or exterior of the set A . The following
definitions make this precise..

Interior Point: A point a ∈
is an interior point of A if and only if there

exists a δ > 0 such that a ∈ Nδ (a) ⊆ A . We denote the set of interior points of
a set A by Int ( A ) . In the language of predicate logic, it says

a ∈ Int ( A) ⇔ ( ∃δ > 0 ) ( Nδ ( a ) ⊆ A )

An interior point of A will always belong to A .

Boundary Point:
Point A point x ∈
is a boundary point of A if and only if for any
δ > 0 the δ -neighborhood of x intersects both A and the compliment of A .
We denote the set of boundary points of a set A by Bdy ( A ) . In the language
of predicate logic, we have

x ∈ Bdy ( A) ⇔ ( ∀δ > 0 ) ( Nδ ( x ) ∩ A ≠ ∅ ) ∧ (N δ ( x ) ∩ A ≠ ∅ )  .

A boundary point of A may or may not belong to A .

4
We are studying basic topology of the real numbers, which allows us to talk about
closeness, convergence, and so on. In general, a topology on a set is a family of subsets,
called open sets,
sets which are closed under unions and finite intersections.
 Section 5.3 491 General Topology on

Exterior
Exterior Point: A point a ∈
is an exterior
exterior point of A if and only if there
exists a δ > 0 such that a ∈ Nδ ( a) ⊆ A . We denote the set of exterior points
of a set A by Ext ( A ) . In the language of predicate logic, we have

a ∈ Ext ( A) ⇔ ( ∃δ > 0 ) ( a ∈ Nδ ( a ) ⊆ A )

An exterior point of A will never belong to A .

Margin Note: Intuitively, a point in a set is an interior point if it is not “right

on the edge” of the set. Boundary points are “right on the edge” of the set,
they are both close to points inside and outside of the set. On the other hand,
the exterior points of a set are point that are “away” from the set.

Interiors, Bounderies, and Exteriors of Common Sets

Table 1 shows the interiors, boundaries, and exteriors of some common

subsets of the real numbers. Note that the interior and exterior of a set is
always open and the exterior, which is the complement of the union of the
interior and boundary, is always closed.

A⊆
Int ( A ) ⊆ A Bdy ( A ) Ext ( A ) Int ( A ) ∪ Bdy ( A ) ∪ Ext ( A )

∅ ∅ ∅


( a, b ) ( a, b ) {a, b} ( −∞, a ) ∪ ( b, ∞ )

 a, b  ( a, b ) {a, b} ( −∞, a ) ∪ ( b, ∞ )

( a, b  ( a, b ) {a, b} ( −∞, a ) ∪ ( b, ∞ )

{a} ∅ {a} ( −∞, a ) ∪ ( a, ∞ )

{a, b, c} ∅ {a, b, c}
− {a, b, c}

 1 1 1   1 1 1   1 1 1 
1, , , ,... ∅ 1, , , ,..., 0 
− 1, , , ,..., 0 

 2 3 4   2 3 4   2 3 4 

( 0,1) ∪ {2} ( 0,1) {0,1, 2} ( −∞, 0) ∪ (1, 2 ) ∪ ( 2, ∞ )

( −1, 0 ) ∪ ( 0,1) ( −1, 0 ) ∪ ( 0.1) {−1, 0,1} ( −∞, −1) ∪ (1, ∞ )

 ∅ 
−

 ∅ 
−

 ∅ 
−

 Section 5.3 492 General Topology on

∅ ∅

Interiors, Boundaries, and Exteriors of Sets

Table 1
Limit Points
The concept of a limit point is fundamental to the development of
calculus and analysis. The reader will recall that the two fundamental
operations of the calculus, the derivative and integral, are both limits. It is to
the French mathematician Augustin-Louis Cauchy (1789-1857) and German
mathematician Karl Weierstrass (1815-1897) that gave us the first rigorous
definition of the limit, the so-called epsilon, delta ( ε ,δ ) condition, which
allowed mathematicians to argue with greater precision and avoid the
imprecise and intuitive reasoning of the past.

Definition: A number a is a limit point (or accumulation point)

point of a set A if
and only if for every δ > 0 there is a δ -neighborhood of a which contains at
least one point of A distinct from a itself. In other words, every
neighborhood of a contains points of A different from a . Keep in mind that a
limit point of a set may or may not belong to the set. We denote the set of
limit points of a set A by Limits ( A ) .

We call a neighborhood of a point a that does not contain a is called a

deleted neighborhood of a , that is Nδ ( a ) − {a} is a deleted δ neighborhood of
a . Using this definition a limit point of a set is a point in which every deleted
neighborhood of the point contains members of the set.

Margin Note: Intuitively, a limit point of a set is a point where no matter how
little you “wiggle” away from the point you intersect points of the set. In
other words, a set likes to “snuggle up” to its limit points.

Closed Sets Contain Their Limit Points

A good way to determine if a set is closed is to show that its complement
is open. Although this indirect procedure is convenient, there is a direct way
to determine if a set is closed which involves the limit points of a set. The
following theorem makes this precise.
Section 5.3 493 General Topology on

Theorem 3: A subset A ⊆
is closed if and only if it contains its limit points.

Proof:
Proof: (⇒ ) If A is closed, then its complement A is open, which means that
for any x ∈ A there is an open neighborhood of x lying completely in A .
Hence x can not be a limit point A which means A contains its limit points.

(⇐) Suppose now that A contains its limit points, which means that if x ∈ A ,
x is not a limit point. Hence, there exists an open neighborhood of x lying
completely in A , which by definition means that A is an open set which
further means that its complement, i.e. A , is closed. ▌

Table 2 gives the limit points of some common sets of real numbers. If
the last column is a “yes” that means the set A is closed. If the answer is
“no” that means the set is either open or neither open or closed.

A⊆
Limits ( A ) Limits ( A ) ⊆ A ?
∅ ∅ yes (closed)
( a, b )  a, b  no

 a, b   a, b  yes (closed)
( a, b   a, b  no
{a} ∅ yes (closed)
{a, b, c} ∅ yes (closed)
 1 1 1 
1, , , ,... {0} no
 2 3 4 
( 0,1) ∪ {2}  0,1 no
 0,1 ∪ {2}  0,1 yes (closed)
(closed)
 ∅ yes (closed)
 ∅ yes (closed)

no


yes (closed)

Limit Points of Some Common Sets

Table 2
Section 5.3 494 General Topology on

We now come to one of the most important theorems in analysis, the

Bolzano-Weierstrass theorem. However, before we state and prove it, we
must introduce the concept of nested closed intervals.

Nested Closed Intervals

Intervals
By a sequence of nested closed intervals I n = [ an , bn ] we simply mean a
sequence of closed intervals with the left endpoint an moving towards the
right, and the right endpoint bn moving towards the left. The question we ask
is, what can be said about the intersection of all these sets? The following
lemma, which we state without proof, will be used to prove both the Bolzano-
Weierstrass and Heine-Borel theorems, gives the answer.

Lemma 1 (Nested Interval Lemma)

If
[ a1 , b1 ] ⊃ [ a2 , b2 ] ⊃ ... ⊃ [ an , bn ] ⊃ 
is a nested sequence of closed intervals whose lengths converge to 0, i.e.
∞
lim ( bn − an ) = 0 , then their intersection consists of a single point
n →∞
∩[ a , b ] = x
n =1
n n 0 .

Bolzano-
Bolzano-Weierstrass Theorem

To test your understanding of limit points, we pose the following

question. Some people will answer this question in the affirmative, some in
the negative, so the question isn’t trivial. Suppose you mark off points inside
the interval [ 0,1] and suppose you do this indefinitely. The question is, can
you do it in such a way that your points do not have a limit point? In other
words, can you mark off points in a way that they never “bunch up”
anywhere? Think hard. We now give you the answer, which is the conclusion
of the Bolzano-Weierstrass theorem. Not only is this a key result in the
foundation of analysis, but the proof is a masterpiece of ingenuity.
 Section 5.3 495 General Topology on

Theorem 4: Bolzano-
Bolzano-Weierstrass Theorem

Every bounded infinite set of real numbers has a limit point5.

Proof:

We call the set in question by S . Since the set is bounded, we can

enclose it in a closed interval S ⊆ [ a, b ] , where the midpoint of  a, b  , which is
x = ( a + b ) / 2 , divides [ a, b ] into two closed subintervals

 a+b a +b 
 a, 2  and  2 , b 
   

each of whose length is half the original length. Now, one of these
subintervals (possibly both) contains an infinite number of points of S since
we have assumed S is infinite. We now call I1 the subinterval that contains
an infinite number of points of . If both subintervals contain an infinite
S

number of points of S , pick one at random. We continue on, dividing I1 into

two more closed subintervals, each of equal length, where we call I 2 a
subinterval that contains an infinite number of points of S . See Figure 1.
Continuing in this manner, we arrive at a sequence of closed intervals

[ a, b ] ⊃ I 1 ⊃ I 2 ⊃ I 3 ⊃  ⊃ I n ⊃ 
each of whose length is half that of the previous interval and each of which
contains an infinite number of points of S . By the Nested Interval Lemma
∞
(Lemma 1) the intersection we know that the intersection ∩I
k =1
k consists of a

single point, say x0 .

5
The limit point will be a real number, but may or may not lie in the set S
 Section 5.3 496 General Topology on

Strategy for the Bolzano-Weierstrass Theorem; Divide and Conquer

Figure 1

We now show that x0 is a limit point of the set S by letting (α , β ) be any

open interval of x0 ∈ (α , β ) . But the lengths of these intervals I n go to zero,
and so there exists an interval IN for N sufficiently large which
satisfies I N ⊂ (α , β ) , and since I N contains an infinite number of points of S ,
so does (α , β ) . Hence, by definition x0 is a limit point of S . Thus, we have
proven that S has a limit point. ▌

Margin Note: Cantor claimed the Bolzano-Weierstrass is the basis for most of
the important results in analysis. Realize that the theorem is false if one
restricts oneself to infinite bounded subsets of the rational numbers. The
Bolzano-Weierstrass theorem states something inherent about the real
numbers.

Example 6 (Limit
(Limit Points)

a) (bounded and infinite) The set

 1 1 1 
A = 1, , , ,
 2 3 4 

is a bounded infinite set so the Bolzano-Weierstrass theorem guarantees at

least one limit point. In this case there is exactly one limit point, namely 0.
The limit point of the set does not belong to the set.

b) (not bounded, but infinite) The set of integers  is an infinite set, but is not
bounded and so the conditions of the Bolzano-Weierstrass theorem are not
satisfied. Hence, there is no guarantee of any limit point. In this case, the set
has no limit point.
 Section 5.3 497 General Topology on

c) (not bounded, but infinite) The set A = ( 0,1) ∪ {2,3, 4,...} is an infinite set, but
not bounded so the conditions of the Bolzano-Weierstrass theorem are not
satisfied, and so no guarantee of a limit point. However, the set does have limit
points, namely all points in the closed interval [ 0,1] .

d) (bounded, not infinite) The set A = {1, 2,3, 4,5 } is bounded but not infinite,
thus the conditions of the Bolzano-Weierstrass theorem are not satisfied and so
there is no guarantee of a limit point. In this case the set does not have a limit
point. Finite sets never have limit points.

Historical Note: Bernard Bolzano (1781-1848) was a Czech

philosopher/mathematician and theologian. He was a Catholic priest who is
best remembered today for his views in the methodology and mathematics and
logic. Many of the ideas developed later by Cantor were understood by
Bolzano. The Bolzano-Weierstrass theorem was first proven by Bolzano, but
unfortunately the result was lost. It was re-proven by Karl Weierstrass, who
is often called the father of modern analysis, having brought mathematical
rigor to the level we see today.
Section 5.3 498 General Topology on

Problems 5.3 , General Topology on
, Open Sets

1. Tell if the following sets subsets of
are open, closed, both, or neither.

a) ( −1, 0 ) ∪ ( 0,1) Ans: open

b) [ 0, ∞ ) Ans: closed
c) ( 0, ∞ ) Ans: open
d)  Ans: closed
e)  Ans: closed
f)  Ans: not open, not closed
g) A = {0,1, 2,...,100} Ans: closed
h) {x : x −1} > 3 Ans: open
i) ∅ Ans: open and closed
 1 1 1 
j) 1, , , ... Ans: not open, not closed
 2 3 4 
 1 1 1 
k) 1, , , ... ∪ {0} Ans: closed
 2 3 4 
l) {x : x 2
> 0} Ans: open
∞
1 1
m) ∪  ,3 − 
n =1  n n
Ans: open

∞
 1 1
n) ∩ − n,n 
n =1  
Ans: closed

∞
1 1
o) ∪  n , 1 − n 
n= 2
Ans: open

∞
 1
p) ∩k =1
0, k  Ans: closed

2. (Interiors, Boundaries, and Exteriors)

Exteriors) Fill in the blanks in the following
table.

A Int ( A ) Bdy ( A ) Ext ( A )

a) 
b) {sin n : n ∈ }
c) ( 0, ∞ )
d)  0,1 ∪ {2}
Section 5.3 499 General Topology on

e) {1, 5, 6}
f) {sin x : 0 ≤ x ≤ π }
g) ( −1, 0 ) ∪ ( 0,1)
1 
h)  : n ∈   ∪ {0}
n 

Ans:

A Int ( A ) Bdy ( A ) Ext ( A )

a) 
b) { sin x : 0 < x < 2π } ( −1,1) {−1,1}
−  −1,1
c) ( 0, ∞ ) ( 0, ∞ ) {0} ( −∞, 0 )
d) ( 0,1) ∪ {2} ( 0,1) {0,1, 2} ( −∞, 0) ∪ (1, 2 ) ∪ ( 2, ∞ )
e) {1, 2} ∅ {1, 2}
− {1, 2}
f) {sin x : 0 ≤ x ≤ π } ( 0,1) {0,1}
− 0,1
g) ( −1, 0 ) ∪ ( 0,1) ( −1, 0 ) ∪ ( 0,1) {−1, 0,1}
−  −1,1
1 
h)  : n ∈   ∪ {0} ∅ {0}
− {0}
n 

3. (True or False) Answer true or false about the following sets of real
numbers.

a) A non empty set can be both open and closed.

Ans: True,
is both open and closed and it is the only non empty set
that has this property..

b) A point can lie both in the interior and on the boundary of the set.

Ans: False, the interior, boundary, and exterior of a set are disjoint.

c) Finite sets are always closed.

Ans: True

c) Infinite sets are always open.

Ans: False,  0,1 is a counterexample.

 Section 5.3 500 General Topology on

d) The boundary of a set is always finite.

Ans: False, the boundary of  is

4. (Mystery Sets)
Sets) Find two sets, which are not equal, but have the same
interior, boundary, and exterior.

Ans:  0,1 and ( 0,1)

5. (Finding Examples) Find the following sets of real numbers.

a) A set with two boundary points in the set and one boundary point not in
the set.

Ans:  0,1) ∪ {2}

b) A set with four boundary points in the set and three boundary points not
in the set.

Ans:  0,1 ∪ ( 2, 3) ∪  4, 5 ) ∪ {6}

c) A set with three boundary points, none of which lie in the set.

1 
Ans:  : n ∈   ∪ ( 2, 3)
n 

d) A set with three boundary points, all of which lie in the set

Ans:  0,1 ∪ {2}

6. (Finite Sets Closed) Show that the finite set A = {1, 2 } is closed by finding
its complement and showing that the complement passes the test of being an
open set.

Ans: The complement is the union of three disjoint open intervals

A = ( −∞,1) ∪ (1, 2 ) ∪ ( 2, ∞ ) . It is clear than for any a ∈ A there exists a small
enough δ -neighborhood containing a that lies within A .

7. (Limit Points) Find (if any) the limit points of the following sets. State if
the conditions of the Bolzano-Weierstrass theorem hold.
Section 5.3 501 General Topology on

a) 

Ans: Limits (  ) = ∅ The set is not bounded.

b) 

Ans: Limits (  ) =
The set is not bounded.

c)

Ans: Limits (
) =
The set is not bounded.

d) ( 2, 4 ) ∪ ( 4,5 )

Ans: Limits ( ( 2, 4 ) ∪ ( 4, 5) ) =  2, 5 Satisfies Bolzano Weierstrass

e) {( −1) n
: n∈ }
Ans: Limits ({( −1) : n ∈ }) = ∅
n
Not infinite.

f) ∅

Ans: Limits ( ∅ ) = ∅ Not infinite

g)  ∩ ( 0,1)

(
Ans: Limits  ∩ ( 0,1) =  0,1 ) Satisfies Bolzano Weiterstrass

m 
h)  n : m, n ∈  
2 

 m 
Ans: Limits   n
: m, n ∈   =
Not bounded
2 

 1 
i) m + : m, n ∈  
 n 
Section 5.3 502 General Topology on

 1 
Ans: Limits  m + : m, n ∈    =  Not bounded
 n 

8. (Closed Sets) A set is closed if and only if it contains its limit points.
Find the limit points of the following sets and determine if the sets are closed.

a) 
Ans: Limits (  ) = ∅ Hence  is closed.

b) 
Ans: Limits (  ) =
, hence  is not closed.

c)

Ans: Limits (
) =
, hence
is closed.

d) ( 2, 4 ) ∪ ( 4,5 )
Ans: Limits ( ( 2, 4 ) ∪ ( 4, 5) ) =  2, 5 , hence the set is not closed.

e) {( −1) n
: n∈ }
Ans: Limits ({( −1) : n ∈ }) = ∅ , hence the set is closed.
n

f) ∅
Ans: Limits ( ∅ ) = ∅ , hence the empty set is closed

g)  ∩ ( 0,1)
Ans: Limits (  ∩ ( 0,1) ) =  0,1 , hence the set is not closed.

m 
h)  n : m, n ∈  
2 
 m 
Ans: Limits   n : m, n ∈    = {0} , hence the set is not closed.
2 

 1 
i) m + : m, n ∈  
 n 
 1 
Ans: Limits  m + : m, n ∈    =  , hence the set is not closed.
 n 
Section 5.3 503 General Topology on

9. (Intersections
(Intersections of Closed Intervals) The intersection of a finite number of
closed intervals is one of three types of sets. What are they?

Ans: empty set, one closed interval, one point

10. (Intersections of Open Intervals) The intersection of a finite number of

open intervals is one of two types of sets. What are they?

Ans: empty set, one open interval

11. (Examples) Give examples of the following.

a) A bounded set with no limit points.

b) An unbounded set with one limit point.
c) A set with two limit points.
d) An unbounded set with whose limit points have cardinality ℵ0 .
e) An unbounded with one limit point.
f) An open set with no limit points.

a) Ans: {1, 2, 3}

1 
b) Ans:  ∪  : n = 2, 3,... Limit point is 0
n 

 n  n −1  
c) Ans: ( −1)   : n ∈   Limit points are ±1 .
  n  

 1 
d) Ans: m + : m, n ∪   Limit points are the natural numbers
 n 

 n − 1  
e) Ans:   : n ∈   ∪  Limit point is 1.
 n  

f) Ans: ∅

12. (Sets and Limits) Find examples of a set A of real numbers with the
following properties:
Section 5.3 504 General Topology on

a) A set that is equal to its limit points.

b) A set that is a subset of its limit points.
c) A set that contains all its limit points.
d) A set that is not a subset of its limit points and its limit points are not a
subset of the set.

Ans:

a) A =  0,1 , limits ( A ) = 0,1 ⇒ A = limits ( A )

b) A = ( 0,1) , limits ( A ) =  0,1 ⇒ A ⊆ limits ( A )
c) A = {1, 2, 3}, limits ( A) = ∅ ⇒ limits ( A) ⊆ A
d) A = ( 0,1) ∪ {2}, limits ( A ) =  0,1 ⇒ A ⊄ limits ( A ) ∧ limits ( A ) ⊄ A

13. (Intersections and Unions of Closed Sets) Show that the intersection of
any family of closed sets is closed and that the union of a finite number of
closed sets is closed. Hint: Use the properties of open sets and DeMorgan’s
laws.

Ans: Since any union

∪α ∈∆
Oα

of open sets Oα is open, its complement

∪α ∈∆
Oα = ∩α ∈∆ Oα

closed, which shows that an arbitrary intersection of closed sets is closed.

Also, since a finite intersection

∩O
k =1
k

of open sets is open, its complement

n n

∩ Ok = ∪ Ok
k =1 k =1

is closed, which shows a finite union of closed sets is closed.

 Section 5.3 505 General Topology on

1 2
14. (Cantor Set)
Set) Let I = [ 0,1] . Remove the open middle third  ,  and
3 3
call A1 the set that remains; that is
 1 2 
A1 =  0,  ∪  ,1 .
 3  3 

Now remove the open third intervals from each of these two parts
of A1 , and call the remaining part A2 . Thus

 1 2 1 2 7 8 
A2 = 0,  ∪  ,  ∪  ,  ∪  ,1
 9   9 3  3 9  9 

Continuing in this manner, remove the open middle third of each segment in
Ak and call the remaining set Ak +1 . Note that we will get

A1 ⊃ A2 ⊃ A3 ⊃  Ak ⊃ 

Continue this process indefinitely, always removing the middle third of

existing segments. See Figure 1. The end set of this infinite process is called
the Cantor set, and is defined as
∞
C = ∩ Ak .
k =1

a) Are there be any points left in the Cantor set?

b) Show the Cantor set is closed6.

Cantor Set

6
The Cantor set has a variety of interesting mathematical properties; has no interior, every point
is an limit point, is uncountable but at the same time has total “length” (measure) zero..
Section 5.3 506 General Topology on

Ans: complement of the Cantor set is a collection of disjoint intervals, each of

which has finite length. Hence, any point in this set is contained in a
neighborhood that is in the set. It has the interesting properties that it is
uncountable but Lebesgue measure 0.

15. (Intersection of Open Sets)

Sets) Find an example of a family of open sets whose
intersection is not open.

∞
 1
Ans:
Ans ∩  0,1 + n  = ( 0,1
n =1

16. (Union
(Union of Closed Sets)
Sets) Find an example of a family of closed sets whose
union is not closed.

∞
1 1
Ans: ∪  n , 2 − n  = ( 0, 2 )
n =1

17. (Topologies on {a, b, c} ) A topology on a set X is a family of subsets of

X that is closed under unions and finite intersections. Show whether the
families T1, T2 ∈ P ( X ) are or are not topologies on X = {a, b, c} .

a) T1 = {∅, {a} , {a, b} , {a, b, c}}

Ans: T1 = {∅, {a} , {a, b} , {a, b, c}} is a topology on X = {a, b, c} . The reader can
verify that the union and intersection of any two sets in T1 is again in T1 .

b) T2 = {∅, {a} , {c} , {a, b} , {a, b, c}}

Ans: T2 = {∅, {a} , {c} , {a, b} , {a, b, c}} is not a topology on X = {a, b, c} since
{a} ∪ {c} = {a, c} ∉ T2 .