Is (2,1), (1,-2), (-3,2), (2,-3) a function?

1 Answer
Jul 6, 2015

No - there are two distinct values for f(2), so this relation does not describe a function.

Explanation:

A set of pairs (x_i, y_i) defines a function if

For all i, j we have x_j = x_i => y_j = y_i

This is trivially satisfied if all the x_i's are distinct.

In our example, we have pairs (2, 1) and (2, -3) which break the condition.