into function vs injective function

$\begingroup$

In many mathematical books that I have read and from lectures from professors, the words 'into' and 'injective' were used interchangeably, but in Patrick Suppes book Axiomatic Set Theory he gives a percise definition of what it means for a function to be 'into':

$f$ is a function from $\:A$ into $\:B \leftrightarrow\: f$ is a function & $D(f) = A$ & $R(f) \subseteq B$

where $D(f)$ is the Domain of $f$ and $R(f)$ is the Range of $f$.

Is the definition given by Suppes the correct meaning of 'into', or is 'into' simply a synonym for 'injective'

$\endgroup$ 4

1 Answer

$\begingroup$

Into is not a synonym for "injective". There is, however, another way of referring to an injective function: such a function is sometimes said to be "one-to-one function", which is not to be mistaken with a "one-to-one correspondence"/bijective function.

Even though we do refer to a surjective function as being "onto", it does not follow that an injective function is therefore "into."

$\endgroup$ 6

Your Answer

Sign up or log in

Sign up using Google Sign up using Facebook Sign up using Email and Password

Post as a guest

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

You Might Also Like