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In set theory, the cardinality of the continuum is the cardinality or "size" of the set of real numbers, sometimes called the continuum.It is an infinite cardinal number and is denoted by (lowercase Fraktur "c") or | | [1]
The cardinality of the continuum is the size of the set of real numbers. The continuum hypothesis is sometimes stated by saying that no cardinality lies between that of the continuum and that of the natural numbers , ℵ 0 {\displaystyle \aleph _{0}} , or alternatively, that c = ℵ 1 {\displaystyle {\mathfrak {c}}=\aleph _{1}} .
The continuum hypothesis states that the set of real numbers has minimal possible cardinality which is greater than the cardinality of the set of integers. That is, every set, S, of real numbers can either be mapped one-to-one into the integers or the real numbers can be mapped one-to-one into S.
In the mathematical discipline of set theory, a cardinal characteristic of the continuum is an infinite cardinal number that may consistently lie strictly between (the cardinality of the set of natural numbers), and the cardinality of the continuum, that is, the cardinality of the set of all real numbers.
The continuum hypothesis says that =, i.e. is the smallest cardinal number bigger than , i.e. there is no set whose cardinality is strictly between that of the integers and that of the real numbers. The continuum hypothesis is independent of ZFC , a standard axiomatization of set theory; that is, it is impossible to prove the continuum ...
The cardinality of the set of real numbers (cardinality of the continuum) is 2 ℵ 0. It cannot be determined from ZFC (Zermelo–Fraenkel set theory augmented with the axiom of choice) where this number fits exactly in the aleph number hierarchy, but it follows from ZFC that the continuum hypothesis (CH) is equivalent to the identity 2 ℵ 0 ...
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Motivated by the insight that the set of real numbers is "bigger" than the set of natural numbers, one is led to ask if there is a set whose cardinality is "between" that of the integers and that of the reals. This question leads to the famous continuum hypothesis.