Let be a set of rational numbers such that
\begin{enumerate}
\item[(a)] ;
\item[(b)] If then and ; and
\item[(c)] If and , then .
\end{enumerate}
Must contain all rational numbers?
Solution
The answer is no; indeed, $S = \mathbb{Q} \setminus \{n+2/5 \,|\,
n\in\mathbb{Z}\}S$ satisfies
(a) and (b); we need only check that it satisfies (c). It suffices to
show that if is a fraction with and , then we
cannot have for an integer . Suppose otherwise; then
Since and are relatively prime, and divides , we must
have , so or . On the other hand, and are
also relatively prime, so divides as well, and must be
\pm 1 or \pm 5. This leads to eight possibilities for :
, , , , , , ,
. The first three are impossible, while the final five lead to
respectively, none of which holds for
integral .
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