Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2012/ia/paper-4/5d/i/solution

Take . The assertion can fail on an infinite set. On , set , , and for . Then for every , but . Thus a right inverse need not be a left inverse.
On a finite set it is always true. From , is an injection: equality of two -values gives equality after applying . An injective self-map of a finite set is a bijection. Composing with shows , and hence . This includes the empty set.

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