Definition (in reals)

A set of real numbers SS is compact if for every covering OO of SS by open sets, SS is covered by some finite set of members of OO.

Definition (compact topological space)

A topological space (X,𝒯)(X, \mathcal{T}) is said to be compact if every open cover of XX has a finite subcover.

Notes

  • Heine-Borel theorem says that for real sets, compact iff closed and bounded.

See also

References

  1. https://math.mit.edu/~djk/calculus_beginners/chapter16/section02.html
  2. https://math.stackexchange.com/questions/1614133/the-two-definitions-of-a-compact-set
  3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_space
  4. https://ncatlab.org/nlab/show/compact+space
  5. https://www.math.toronto.edu/ivan/mat327/docs/notes/16-compact.pdf
  6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heine–Borel_theorem