Re: Three Kinds of Logical Trees

Marshall Spight wrote:
> dawn wrote:
> > Marshall Spight wrote:
> > > dawn wrote:
> > > >
> > > > I missed the word "set" before the ? I use a 2VL where a null is like
> > > > a null set.
> > >
> > > What is a 'null set'? Is that like the empty set?
> > >
> > yes
> >
> > http://www.swif.uniba.it/lei/foldop/foldoc.cgi?null+set
> > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Null_set
>
> Wow. I hadn't heard that term before.

I'm really surprised by that. I wonder if/when that term lost favor. I'll make a mental note.

> Given how much confusion
> there is around the semantics of null in SQL, I think I'm going
> to steer clear of it, especially in this field.

Hmmm. It seems an interesting sport to derive a term from one discipline, alter the meaning, and then stop using it in the discipline it was taken from so as not to confuse things. Language is so fluid.

> I can easily
> see it causing confusion where the more popular

I didn't realize it was. I'm sure I've spoken the words "null set" more than "empty set" in my life. We both learned somethin' there. Thanks. --dawn

> "empty set" term
> wouldn't.
Received on Wed Jul 27 2005 - 21:10:13 CEST