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LemmaStatement: AI-adaptedProof: AI-generatedSession-authored (Fable 5 assisted)precheck passjudge pass (z-ai/glm-5.2)audited 2026-07-28
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Assuming the Axiom of Choice, R\mathbb{R} has a Hamel basis over Q\mathbb{Q}: there is BRB \subseteq \mathbb{R} such that every real is a finite Q\mathbb{Q}-linear combination of elements of BB in exactly one way, and each basis vector carries a well-defined Q\mathbb{Q}-linear coefficient map

Statement

Assume the Axiom of Choice (The Axiom of Choice). The hypothesis is genuinely used: it enters through Every vector space has a basis, whose own Statement begins "Assume the Axiom of Choice", and which rests on Zorn's lemma.

Write Q\mathbb{Q} for the canonical copy {q^:qQ}\{\hat q : q \in \mathbb{Q}\} of the rationals inside R\mathbb{R} (The rationals embed densely in the reals). Then Q\mathbb{Q} is a subfield of R\mathbb{R} (Subfield: a subring of a field closed under inverses of its nonzero elements, and therefore a field with the restricted operations) and R\mathbb{R} is a vector space over Q\mathbb{Q} by restriction of scalars (A field is a vector space over itself, and over any subfield KFK \subseteq F every FF-vector space is a KK-vector space by restricting the scalars, Vector space over a field); all spans, linear independence and bases below are taken in that structure. Then:

  1. Existence. R\mathbb{R} has a basis BB over Q\mathbb{Q} (Basis of a vector space: a linearly independent spanning subset; and ordered basis: an injective finite list whose image is a basis), called a Hamel basis.
  2. Representation. Every real xx is x=i<nλibix = \sum_{i<n}\lambda_i b_i for some nNn \in \mathbb{N}, some injective list b:nBb : n \to B (Injection, surjection, bijection) and some λ:nQ\lambda : n \to \mathbb{Q} (Linear combination of a finite list, and the span span(S)\operatorname{span}(S) as the smallest linear subspace containing SS).
  3. Uniqueness along a list. For a fixed nn and a fixed injective b:nBb : n \to B, if λ,μ:nQ\lambda, \mu : n \to \mathbb{Q} satisfy i<nλibi=i<nμibi\sum_{i<n}\lambda_i b_i = \sum_{i<n}\mu_i b_i, then λi=μi\lambda_i = \mu_i for every i<ni < n.
  4. The coefficient map of a basis vector. Fix bBb_{\star} \in B and put Wb:=span(B{b})W_{b_{\star}} := \operatorname{span}(B \setminus \{b_{\star}\}). Every real xx is x=λb+wx = \lambda\, b_{\star} + w with λQ\lambda \in \mathbb{Q} and wWbw \in W_{b_{\star}} in exactly one way. Writing Λb(x):=λ\Lambda_{b_{\star}}(x) := \lambda for that unique scalar, the map Λb:RQ\Lambda_{b_{\star}} : \mathbb{R} \to \mathbb{Q} satisfies Λb(x+y)=Λb(x)+Λb(y),Λb(qx)=qΛb(x)  (qQ),Λb(b)=1,\Lambda_{b_{\star}}(x+y) = \Lambda_{b_{\star}}(x) + \Lambda_{b_{\star}}(y), \qquad \Lambda_{b_{\star}}(qx) = q\,\Lambda_{b_{\star}}(x) \ \ (q \in \mathbb{Q}), \qquad \Lambda_{b_{\star}}(b_{\star}) = 1, its range is the whole of Q\mathbb{Q}, and {xR:Λb(x)=0}=Wb\{\, x \in \mathbb{R} : \Lambda_{b_{\star}}(x) = 0 \,\} = W_{b_{\star}}.
  5. The complement is not trivial. Wb{0}W_{b_{\star}} \ne \{0\} for every bBb_{\star} \in B.

Claim 2 together with claim 4 is the precise content of the phrase "in exactly one way" in the title: a real is a finite Q\mathbb{Q}-combination of basis vectors, and the coefficient attached to each single basis vector is determined by the real alone.

Facts & Assumptions

Given: The field R\mathbb{R}, the canonical copy QR\mathbb{Q} \subseteq \mathbb{R} of the rationals, and the Axiom of Choice.

[A1]

The Axiom of Choice, used only through [L4] (The Axiom of Choice, Zorn's lemma).

[L1]

The map qq^q \mapsto \hat q is an embedding of ordered fields of Q\mathbb{Q} into R\mathbb{R} (The rationals embed densely in the reals); a subfield is a subset containing 11, closed under aba - b and abab, and containing x1x^{-1} for each nonzero xx in it (Subfield: a subring of a field closed under inverses of its nonzero elements, and therefore a field with the restricted operations, Field, Complete ordered field (least-upper-bound property)).

[L2]

A field is a vector space over itself, and an FF-vector space is a KK-vector space for every subfield KFK \subseteq F by restricting the scalars (A field is a vector space over itself, and over any subfield KFK \subseteq F every FF-vector space is a KK-vector space by restricting the scalars, Vector space over a field).

[L6]

A finite list v:nVv : n \to V is an ordered basis of VV if and only if every xVx \in V is i<nλivi\sum_{i<n}\lambda_i v_i for exactly one λ:nF\lambda : n \to F; an ordered basis is an injective list whose image is a basis; and for a linear subspace UVU \subseteq V and AUA \subseteq U the readings of "AA is linearly independent" and "AA is a basis" computed in UU and in VV agree (A finite list v:nVv : n \to V is an ordered basis if and only if every xVx \in V equals i<nλivi\sum_{i<n} \lambda_i v_i for exactly one λ:nF\lambda : n \to F; those scalars are the coordinates of xx in that ordered basis, Basis of a vector space: a linearly independent spanning subset; and ordered basis: an injective finite list whose image is a basis, The natural numbers N\mathbb{N} (von Neumann)).

[L8]

QN\mathbb{Q} \approx \mathbb{N} and R\mathbb{R} is uncountable; a nonempty at most countable set is the image of a surjection from N\mathbb{N}, and the image of a surjection from N\mathbb{N} is at most countable (Q\mathbb{Q} is countably infinite, R\mathbb{R} is uncountable (Cantor's nested intervals, 1874), A nonempty set is at most countable iff it is a surjective image of N\mathbb{N}, Finite, countably infinite, countable, uncountable).

Proof

technique · direct
1.1

Q={q^:qQ}\mathbb{Q} = \{\hat q : q \in \mathbb{Q}\} is a subfield of R\mathbb{R}: it contains 1^=1\hat 1 = 1; it is closed under differences and products, since p^q^=pq^\hat p - \hat q = \widehat{p-q} and p^q^=pq^\hat p\,\hat q = \widehat{pq}; and if q^0\hat q \ne 0 then q0q \ne 0 and q^1=q1^\hat q^{-1} = \widehat{q^{-1}} lies in it.

L1
2.1

R\mathbb{R} is a vector space over itself, so restricting the scalars to the subfield Q\mathbb{Q} makes R\mathbb{R} a vector space over Q\mathbb{Q}, with the field addition as vector addition and the field multiplication restricted to Q×R\mathbb{Q} \times \mathbb{R} as scalar multiplication.

step 1.1L2
3.1

Claim 1: assuming the Axiom of Choice, that vector space has a basis BB, a linearly independent subset of R\mathbb{R} with span(B)=R\operatorname{span}(B) = \mathbb{R}.

step 2.1A1L4
4.1

Claim 2: since span(B)=R\operatorname{span}(B) = \mathbb{R} and the span of a set is already the set of linear combinations of injective finite lists into it, every real xx is i<nλibi\sum_{i<n}\lambda_i b_i with b:nBb : n \to B injective and λ:nQ\lambda : n \to \mathbb{Q}.

step 3.1L5
4.2

Claim 3: let b:nBb : n \to B be injective and put U:=span(b[n])U := \operatorname{span}(b[n]), a linear subspace of R\mathbb{R}. The list bb is linearly independent, since BB is a linearly independent subset and bb is an injective finite list into BB; its image b[n]b[n] spans UU by construction, so b[n]b[n] is a basis of UU and bb is an ordered basis of UU, independence and spanning being the same conditions read in UU as in R\mathbb{R}.

step 3.1L3L6
4.3

Fix bBb_{\star} \in B and put U0:=span{b}={λb:λQ}U_{0} := \operatorname{span}\{b_{\star}\} = \{\, \lambda b_{\star} : \lambda \in \mathbb{Q} \,\} and U1:=Wb=span(B{b})U_{1} := W_{b_{\star}} = \operatorname{span}(B \setminus \{b_{\star}\}), both linear subspaces of R\mathbb{R}.

step 3.1L3construct
5.1

With bb and UU as in step 4.2, the coordinate theorem applied to the vector space UU says that every xUx \in U is i<nλibi\sum_{i<n}\lambda_i b_i for exactly one λ:nQ\lambda : n \to \mathbb{Q}; in particular i<nλibi=i<nμibi\sum_{i<n}\lambda_i b_i = \sum_{i<n}\mu_i b_i forces λ=μ\lambda = \mu, which is claim 3.

step 4.2L6
5.2

U0+U1=RU_{0} + U_{1} = \mathbb{R}. Indeed U0+U1=span(U0U1)U_{0} + U_{1} = \operatorname{span}(U_{0} \cup U_{1}); the set BB is contained in U0U1U_{0} \cup U_{1}, since bU0b_{\star} \in U_{0} and B{b}U1B \setminus \{b_{\star}\} \subseteq U_{1} by extensiveness of the span, so R=span(B)span(U0U1)\mathbb{R} = \operatorname{span}(B) \subseteq \operatorname{span}(U_{0} \cup U_{1}) by monotonicity; and U0U1span(B)U_{0} \cup U_{1} \subseteq \operatorname{span}(B), again by monotonicity, so span(U0U1)span(span(B))=span(B)=R\operatorname{span}(U_{0} \cup U_{1}) \subseteq \operatorname{span}(\operatorname{span}(B)) = \operatorname{span}(B) = \mathbb{R} by idempotence.

step 3.1step 4.3L3L7
5.3

b0b_{\star} \ne 0 and bU1b_{\star} \notin U_{1}. If bb_{\star} lay in span(B{b})\operatorname{span}(B \setminus \{b_{\star}\}) then BB would be linearly dependent, contrary to step 3.1; and 0B0 \in B would likewise make BB dependent, since 0span(B{0})0 \in \operatorname{span}(B \setminus \{0\}), every span containing the zero vector.

step 3.1step 4.3L5
6.1

U0U1={0}U_{0} \cap U_{1} = \{0\}. Let zU0U1z \in U_{0} \cap U_{1} and write z=λbz = \lambda b_{\star} with λQ\lambda \in \mathbb{Q}. If λ0\lambda \ne 0 then b=λ1zU1b_{\star} = \lambda^{-1}z \in U_{1}, because U1U_{1} is a linear subspace and λ1Q\lambda^{-1} \in \mathbb{Q}, contradicting step 5.3; so λ=0\lambda = 0 and z=0z = 0.

step 4.3step 5.3L3
7.1

Hence R=U0U1\mathbb{R} = U_{0} \oplus U_{1}: condition (D1) is step 5.2, and condition (D2) is step 6.1, since for the two-member family the sum of the other summands is U1U_{1} in the one case and U0U_{0} in the other. By the direct-sum criterion every real xx is u0+u1u_{0} + u_{1} with u0U0u_{0} \in U_{0} and u1U1u_{1} \in U_{1} in exactly one way.

step 5.2step 6.1L7
8.1

Writing u0=λbu_{0} = \lambda b_{\star}, the scalar λQ\lambda \in \mathbb{Q} is determined by u0u_{0}, since b0b_{\star} \ne 0; so Λb(x):=λ\Lambda_{b_{\star}}(x) := \lambda is a well-defined map RQ\mathbb{R} \to \mathbb{Q}, and x=Λb(x)b+wx = \Lambda_{b_{\star}}(x)\,b_{\star} + w with wWbw \in W_{b_{\star}} in exactly one way.

step 5.3step 7.1L3
9.1

Λb\Lambda_{b_{\star}} is additive and Q\mathbb{Q}-homogeneous: if x=λb+wx = \lambda b_{\star} + w and y=μb+wy = \mu b_{\star} + w' with w,wWbw, w' \in W_{b_{\star}}, then x+y=(λ+μ)b+(w+w)x + y = (\lambda + \mu)b_{\star} + (w + w') with w+wWbw + w' \in W_{b_{\star}}, and qx=(qλ)b+qwqx = (q\lambda)b_{\star} + qw with qwWbqw \in W_{b_{\star}} for qQq \in \mathbb{Q}, both because WbW_{b_{\star}} is a linear subspace; uniqueness in step 8.1 then identifies the coefficients.

step 8.1L3
10.1

Λb(b)=1\Lambda_{b_{\star}}(b_{\star}) = 1, from the representation b=1b+0b_{\star} = 1\cdot b_{\star} + 0; the range of Λb\Lambda_{b_{\star}} is all of Q\mathbb{Q}, since Λb(qb)=q\Lambda_{b_{\star}}(q b_{\star}) = q for every qQq \in \mathbb{Q}; and Λb(x)=0\Lambda_{b_{\star}}(x) = 0 holds exactly when x=0b+w=wWbx = 0\cdot b_{\star} + w = w \in W_{b_{\star}}. Claim 4 is proved.

step 8.1step 9.1
11.1

Claim 5: if Wb={0}W_{b_{\star}} = \{0\} then step 8.1 gives R={λb:λQ}\mathbb{R} = \{\lambda b_{\star} : \lambda \in \mathbb{Q}\}. That set is the image of Q\mathbb{Q} under λλb\lambda \mapsto \lambda b_{\star}, and Q\mathbb{Q} is the image of a surjection from N\mathbb{N}, so composing gives a surjection from N\mathbb{N} onto R\mathbb{R} and R\mathbb{R} would be at most countable, contradicting its uncountability. So Wb{0}W_{b_{\star}} \ne \{0\}.

step 8.1L8

Remarks

  • How this differs from R\mathbb{R} as a vector space over Q\mathbb{Q} has a basis, and every such basis is infinite; the existence proof exhibits none, exactly. That item, homed on the examples page of Linear independence, bases and dimension, proves three things: that R\mathbb{R} is a vector space over the canonical copy of Q\mathbb{Q}, that it has a basis there, and that every such basis is infinite, together with the observation that the existence proof exhibits none. The present lemma proves the first two and does not prove the third: nothing above says that a Hamel basis is infinite. What it adds instead is claims 2 to 5 — the representation by injective lists, uniqueness of the coefficients along a list, the coefficient map Λb\Lambda_{b_{\star}} of a single basis vector with its kernel, and the fact that Wb{0}W_{b_{\star}} \ne \{0\} — none of which appears there. So neither statement contains the other, and they are not the same statement.

The duplication of the two shared clauses is deliberate. An examples page is a leaf of this library and nothing outside it may depend on an item homed there, so a citable Hamel basis had to be built on a page that is not a leaf. The proofs of those clauses are the same proof, and no originality is claimed for them.

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