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| The question was whether every σ-algebra which separates points | |
| contains the singletons. Let's consider (σ-)algebras of clopen | |
| sets of a topological space. (In fact, by Stone's theorem, there | |
| is no loss of generality in doing so.) The desired conditions for a | |
| counterexample then correspond to topological conditions on the space: | |
| clopen sets separate points :: space is totally disconnected | |
| singletons are not clopen :: no points are isolated | |
| clopen sets form a σ-algebra :: G_δ sets are open | |
| The familiar example of ℚ satisfies the first two properties but not | |
| the third, ultimately because the infimum of countably many positive | |
| distances may not be positive. With suitable replacements for the | |
| notions of "distance" and "positive", we can arrange that such infima | |
| must be positive and thus obtain a complete counterexample. | |
| Let X be a set and let P be a poset with least element ⊥. | |
| Let d: X×X → P be a P-ultrametric, meaning that: | |
| for all x in X, d(x,x) = ⊥; | |
| for all x,y in X, d(x,y) = d(y,x); and | |
| for all x,y,z in X, either d(x,z) ≤ d(x,y) or d(x,z) ≤ d(y,z). | |
| For c in X and r in P, define the ball of radius r centred at c to be | |
| B(c,r) = {x in X : d(c,x) ≤ r} | |
| Exercise: For any r in P, the balls of radius r partition X. | |
| Let F be a filter on P, that is, a subset of P satisfying: | |
| for all a,b in P, if a ≤ b then a in F implies b in F; and | |
| for all a,b in F, there exists c in F with c ≤ a and c ≤ b. | |
| (As Wikipedia says, a filter represents some notion of "big enough"; | |
| we'll use it as a substitute for "positive".) Assume further that | |
| F is nonempty. | |
| Exercise: The balls with radius in F form a base of topology for X. | |
| Exercise: In such a topology, all balls with radius in F are clopen. | |
| Now, the counterexample: let S be any uncountable set; take X to be | |
| the power set of S; take P to also be the power set of S, ordered by | |
| inclusion; take d to be the symmetric difference function; take F to | |
| be the filter of co-countable subsets of S; and generate a topology | |
| on X as above. | |
| Exercise: For every distinct x,y in X, there exists r in F such that | |
| d(x,y) ≰ r; consequently, X is totally disconnected. | |
| Exercise: For every x in X and r in F, there exists y in X with x≠y | |
| and d(x,y) ≤ r; consequently, X has no isolated points. | |
| Exercise: F is countably downwards directed (that is, every countable | |
| collection of elements of F has a lower bound in F); consequently, | |
| G_δ sets in X are open. |
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This forum question from 2005 has other examples.