Question

Superkey (Relational Algebra)

Asked by: axtur

I've got the next question, (i've answered it on a uni test) and im not sure wether this is true or not what i have explained:

Given the relational scheme R= {A,B,C,D,E} on a relation r(R)
Is {A,B,C,D,E} a superkey?

I would assume it CAN be, but it also can not be a superkey in the case that some registers may have all the same content in the fields, so it wouldn't be a superkey as such in that case.


What do you think?

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Asked On
2009-06-16 at 14:57:04ID24497374
Topics

Databases Miscellaneous

,

Math & Science

Participating Experts
2
Points
500
Comments
8

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Answers

 

by: mark_willsPosted on 2009-06-17 at 05:52:41ID: 24647589

A superkey is a combination of attributes that can be uniquely used to identify a database record. So, given the information to date, then Yes.

Is that the full question ? They normally through in a matrix of possible values...

A definition : A superkey is a combination of attributes that can be uniquely used to identify a database record. A table might have many superkeys. Candidate keys are a special subset of superkeys that do not have any extraneous information in them

 

by: mark_willsPosted on 2009-06-17 at 05:55:57ID: 24647617

found this : http://www.dbforums.com/database-concepts-design/1643858-candidate-key-vs-super-key.html

interestingly, dportas is an EE expert as well...

 

by: axturPosted on 2009-06-17 at 06:56:04ID: 24648200

According to this definition, if we have two tuples with the same info in all the fields, it wouldn't be a superkey:

A superkey is any set of attributes (K) such that no two tuples of a relation can have the same values for K, i.e: t1(K) != t2(K) for every possible pair of distinct tuples.

It looks like is not clear when we think of the case when all the attributes have the same value. So does this mean that it CAN be a superkey only in the case that no pair of distinct tuples has the same values in all the fields?

 

by: mark_willsPosted on 2009-06-17 at 08:45:48ID: 24649534

Yes that's correct.

That is also why those types of questions normally have additional information. at this rate R= {A,B,C,D,E} on a relation r(R) then {A,B,C,D,E} must be a superkey.

Well at least that is the way I read that question.

 

by: dportasPosted on 2009-06-18 at 13:02:09ID: 24661253

>> It looks like is not clear when we think of the case when all the attributes have the same value.

That's not possible though because a relation is always a set of distinct tuples. That's the definition of a relation. So for every relation the heading of that relation (all the attributes) is always a superkey.

 

by: mark_willsPosted on 2009-06-18 at 14:36:43ID: 24661942

And here he is :) dportas, hope you got a small smile when you saw the link above :)

 

by: dportasPosted on 2009-06-18 at 14:50:32ID: 24662050

Exam time is obviously the time of year for questions about superkeys :)

 

by: mark_willsPosted on 2009-07-05 at 15:48:11ID: 24781585

Gosh, wish I had said "That's the definition of a relation" seems to have made all the difference :)

20120131-EE-VQP-002

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