In mathematics, the support of a function is the set of points where the function is not zero-valued, or the closure of that set. This concept is used very widely in mathematical analysis. In the form of functions with support that is bounded, it also plays a major part in various types of mathematical duality theories.
A function supported in Y must vanish in X Y. For instance, f with domain X is said to have finite support if f(x) = 0 for all but a finite number of x in X. Since any superset of a support is also a support, attention is given to properties of subsets of X that admit at least one support for f. When the support of f (written supp(f)) is mentioned, it may be the intersection of all supports, {x in X: f(x) ≠ 0} (the set-theoretic support), or the smallest support with some property of interest.
The most common situation occurs when X is a topological space (such as the real line) and f : X→R is a continuous function. In this case, only closed supports of X are…
PETALING JAYA: The Association of the Computer and Multimedia Industry of Malaysia (Pikom) has appointed C. J. Ang as its president. He is the first to hold that position. The president’s job is to to enhance Pikom’s capability to take the Malaysian information and communications technology (ICT) industry to new heights, in support of the Government’s drive towards a knowledge-based…
