Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2006 ib Paper 3 4F i Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-14
This does not define a topology on . Every singleton is declared open, but their union over is , an infinite proper subset. It is therefore not declared open, violating closure under arbitrary unions. This is the example that finite subsets do not define a topology on an infinite set. The empty set, whole space and finite-intersection requirements do hold, but they do not compensate for the failed union axiom. This is different from the cofinite topology, which uses finite complements rather than finite sets.