Definition
A given binary relation ~ on a set A is said to be an equivalence relation if and only if it is reflexive, symmetric and transitive. Equivalently, for all a, b and c in A:
- a ~ a. (Reflexivity)
- if a ~ b then b ~ a. (Symmetry)
- if a ~ b and b ~ c then a ~ c. (Transitivity)
A together with the relation ~ is called a setoid. The equivalence class of a under ~, denoted, is defined as .
Read more about this topic: Equivalence Relation
Famous quotes containing the word definition:
“According to our social pyramid, all men who feel displaced racially, culturally, and/or because of economic hardships will turn on those whom they feel they can order and humiliate, usually women, children, and animalsjust as they have been ordered and humiliated by those privileged few who are in power. However, this definition does not explain why there are privileged men who behave this way toward women.”
—Ana Castillo (b. 1953)
“Its a rare parent who can see his or her child clearly and objectively. At a school board meeting I attended . . . the only definition of a gifted child on which everyone in the audience could agree was mine.”
—Jane Adams (20th century)
“One definition of man is an intelligence served by organs.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (18031882)