Set theory MOC

Class

A class is a Collection of different things with Propositional equality which may not be a set, though the exact meaning depends on the foundation being used. Thus it is a generalization of a small set. A Proper class is a class which is not a set. A Subclass generalizes a subset. A mapping between classes is a Class function.

Foundation-agnostic usage

We often use the word class in foundation-agnostic contexts. The appropriate interpretations are then:

  • In a theory like ZF one may treat a class indirectly as a predicate Φ ranging over sets and possibly urelements and we say 𝑥 Φ iff Φ(𝑥).
  • In an extension such as NBG, a class becomes an object in its own right which largely supersedes the notion of a set, with a set becoming a class which is contained in some class. Classhood of 𝑥 is denoted by 𝔩𝔰(𝑥). Again, classes are taken to satisfy the Axiom of Extensionality
  • In TG a U-class is a subset of U.
  • Similarly, in a Type theory with universes a class is the same as an h-set.


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