- Empty function
In
mathematics , an empty function is a function whose domain is theempty set . For each set "A", there is exactly one such empty function:
The graph of an empty function is a
subset of theCartesian product ∅×"A". Since the product is empty the only such subset is the empty set ∅. The empty subset is a valid graph since for every "x" in the domain ∅ there is a unique "y" in the codomain "A" such that ("x","y") ∈ ∅. This is an example of avacuous truth since there "are not any x in the domain".Most authors will not care, when defining the term “
constant function ” precisely, whether or not the empty function qualifies, and will use whatever definition is most convenient. Sometimes, however, it is best not to consider the empty function to be constant, and a definition that makes reference to the range is preferable in those situations. This is much along the same lines of not considering an emptytopological space to be connected, or not considering thetrivial group to be simple.The existence of a unique empty function for each set "A" means that the empty set is an
initial object in thecategory of sets .References
* Herrlich, Horst and Strecker, George E.; "Category Theory", Allen and Bacon, Inc. Boston (1973).
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