How is this a function? - Analysis. 
Let $X = \{1, 2, 3\}, Y = \{4, 5, 6\}$. Define $F \subseteq X \times Y$ as
$F = \{(1, 4),(2, 5),(3, 5)\}$.
Then $F$ is a function.

I simply do not see how this could be a function, as there is nothing that it is mapping to, if anyone can explain how this is a function, that would be lovely.
 A: Yes, under $F$ the mapping is as follows: $1 \mapsto 4, 2 \mapsto 5, 3 \mapsto 5$.
A: Basically, $F = \{(a,b),...\}$ stands for $F(a) = b$.
A: This is the set-theoretic definition of "function".
Once you have defined ordered pairs, so that $(x,y)=(a,b)$ if and only if $x=a$ and $y=b$, given sets $A$ and $B$ we define the set $A\times B$ to be
$$A\times B = \{(x,y)\mid x\in A,y\in B\}.$$
Given sets $A$ and $B$, a "function from $A$ to $B$" is defined to be a subset $f\subseteq A\times B$ with the following properties:

*

*For each $a\in A$ there exists $b\in B$ such that $(a,b)\in f$;

*For each $a\in A$, if $b,b'\in B$ are such that $(a,b)\in f$ and $(a,b')\in f$, then $b=b'$.

When this happens, we write $f\colon A\to B$, and we say that the value of $f$ at $a$ is $b$ if and only if $(a,b)\in f$; so we write
$$f(a)=b\iff (a,b)\in f.$$
The set you describe is a subset of $X\times Y$ that satisfies conditions 1 and 2, hence it is a function from $X$ to $Y$.
A: Recall that a function is comprised of three parts:

*

*Domain

*Codomain

*The way to uniquely associate every element in its domain to an element in its codomain

So it's perfectly OK to denote a function $f$ as the set of all pairs $(x, f(x))$, since it encodes all the necessary information to represent a function.
A: *

*In a positive way, a set $S$ is a function if and only if : $S$ is a binary relation ( that is, a set such that all its elements are ordered pairs) AND for all objects $x$, $y$ and $z$ the pairs $(x,y)$ and $(x,z)$ belong to $S$ only if $y=z$ ( meaning, only if these " two" pairs are , in fact, identical). In short, quoting Enderton : " a function is a single valued relation" .


*This test / definition can be turned negatively using DeMorgan's law. Let $S$ be a set ; there are only $2$ reasons you can give in order to assert that $ S$ is not a function ( and each reason is sufficient by itself)  :

(1) $S$ is not a set of ordered pairs , that is $S$ is not a binary
relation

OR

(2) there are at least, in $S$ ,  two different ordered pairs with the
same first element (meaning : two pairs with the same first element,
but with non-identical second elements).


*

*Applying this to the case you present :

(1) is there an element of $F$ that is not an ordered pair?
(2) are there in $F$ two pairs with the same first element, but with different second elements?

*

*By reason (1) the set $\{(a, 1), c, (b,2)\}$ is not a function.


*By reason (2) the set $\{(a, 1), (b,3), (b,2)\}$ is not a function.
