Question

Suppose that we have a ternary relationship ( R ) between entity sets ( A, B, ) and ( C ) such that ( A ) has a key constraint and total participation, and ( B ) has a key constraint; these are the only constraints. ( A ) has attributes ( a_1 ) and ( a_2 ), with ( a_1 ) being the key; ( B ) and ( C ) are similar. ( R ) has no descriptive attributes.

a) True
b) False

Answer 1

A ternary relationship can exist where A has a relationship with B, B has the same relationship with C, but A does not have that relationship with C.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question is asking whether it is possible for A to have a relationship with B, and B to have the same relationship with C, but A does not have that relationship with C. This is possible if the relationship is not transitive. For example, let's say A represents a student, B represents a course that the student is enrolled in, and C represents the grade the student receives in that course. It is possible for a student (A) to be enrolled in a course (B) and receive a grade (C), but it is also possible for a student (A) to be enrolled in a different course (B) and receive a different grade (C) without having that same relationship with the first course. This demonstrates that A and C do not have to be directly related.