Tag Archives: set theory

BB #86: Number Theory Lightbulbs

This is one of those geeky posts more a “Dear Diary” (or “Dear Lab Notebook”) entry than a post I expect anyone anywhere will get anything out of. This — in part — is about how we define numbers using set theory, so it’s pretty niche and rarified. Tuning out is understandable; this is extra-credit reading.

This is also about having a double-lightbulb moment. I finally get why what always seemed an overly complicated approach is actually perfect. A smaller lightbulb involves easily solving a programming problem that confounded me previously.

Fun for me, but your mileage may vary.

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Sideband #55: Numbers & Sets

mathsIn this post I’ll show how Set Theory allows us to define the natural numbers using sets. It’s admittedly a very abstract topic, but it’s about something very common in our experience: counting things. Seeing how numbers are defined also demonstrates (contrary to some false notions) that there is a huge difference between a number and how that number is “spelled” or represented.

Note: I am not a mathematician! This topic is right on the edge of my mathematical frontier. I wanted this addendum to the previous post but be aware I may misstep. I welcome any feedback from Real Mathematicians!

But go on anyway… keep reading I dare ya!

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