Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-options-ii-course-of-the-university-of-oxford/2012/e/e3/b/ii/3/solution
Past exam of the options II course of the University of Oxford 2012 E E3 b ii 3 Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-31
Use three nested sequences:For fixed , letting produces the point . Letting produces , and letting produces . Accordingly, putThe successive derived sets areTo see that no limits are missing, take any convergent sequence of distinct points from . If is unbounded, a subsequence has and converges to the origin. Otherwise fix on a subsequence. Unbounded then forces limit ; with fixed, distinctness forces unbounded , giving the corresponding point of . The same argument, with one index fewer at each stage, proves the next two equalities. Distinct -clusters are separated away from the origin because their first coordinates lie in the disjoint intervals .
The original set has positive second coordinates, the first derived set has isolated -points on the axis, the second has infinitely many -points, and the third is a singleton. All three required successive inequalities follow. This is a three-stage accumulation tower.
New to topics? Read the docs here!