COLLEGE MATHEMATICS 1A Vanessa Thomas

COURSE INFORMATION
Course Information available on Moodle
Test 1 : Week 7 – 15 MCQ plus ONE structured question – Set
Theory, Algebra and Indices

Test 2: 15 MCQ and TWO structured questions - Logarithms,

Graphs and Sequences and Series

Final Exam: All topics – 20 MCQ , THREE structured Questions to

do TWO
TYPE OF NUMBERS
 NATURAL NUMBERS
Or counting numbers,
represented by N where N = {1, 2, 3, 4 ……..}
Natural Numbers cannot be negative numbers such as – 5
Natural Numbers cannot be decimals such as 0.6 or 2.9
2 4
Natural Numbers cannot be fractions such as or 3
7 5
WHOLE NUMBERS
The set of natural numbers including zero.
Represented by W, where W = {0, 1, 2, 3,………. }
Whole Numbers cannot be negative numbers such as – 5
Whole Numbers cannot be decimals such as 0.6 or 2.9
2 4
Whole Numbers cannot be fractions such as or 3
7 5
𝑁⊂𝑊
WHOLE NUMBERS
 INTEGERS

The set of positive and negative of natural numbers and zero.

Represented by Z, where Z = {……. -3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3 …….}
Integers cannot be decimals such as 0.6 or 2.9
2 4
Integers cannot be fractions such as or 3
7 5
𝑁⊂𝑊⊂𝑍
INTEGERS
RATIONAL NUMBERS
𝑛
Represented by Q where, 𝑄 = and d ≠ 0
𝑑

Numbers which can be expressed as a vulgar

fraction
It must be a terminating or a recurring decimal
 RATIONAL NUMBERS
Terminating - A decimal fraction which ends after a
definite number of digits. For instance, 1 / 2 = 0.5
Recurring - A decimal fraction which repeats itself
forever. 1 / 3 gives the recurring decimal fraction
0.333333...
eg, 4/1, 0.625, 1/3
𝑁⊂𝑊⊂Z⊂𝑄
 RATIONAL NUMBERS
All numbers so far are Rational – Natural, Whole and Integer
IRRATIONAL NUMBERS
Numbers which cannot be written as a fraction
It must be a non-terminating or a non-recurring decimal
Represented by I or
Eg, 2, 𝜋, 𝑒 97, 𝑒𝑡𝑐
A number cannot be both rational and irrational
REAL NUMBERS
o The set of rational and irrational numbers
o Represented by R, where R  Q  Q 
OTHER NUMBERS
Odd (1, 3, 5, ….) and even (2, 4, 6, …)numbers
Prime numbers
a prime number (or prime) is a natural number greater
than one whose only positive divisors are one and itself
Eg, 2, 3, 5, 7, 19
Composite Numbers
A natural number that is greater than one and is not a
prime is called a composite number.
Eg, 25, 30, 84, 132
OTHER NUMBERS

The numbers zero and one are neither prime nor

composite.
Perfect square - integer that is the square of
another integer
REMINDER
Anything multiplied/divided by 1 is itself.
Anything added to zero is itself
Anything multiplied/divided by zero is zero.
NUMBER LINE

A line on which numbers are marked at

intervals, used to illustrate simple numerical
operations.
INEQUALITY SYMBOLS
Always start reading from the variable.
INEQUALITIES AND NUMBER LINES
Inequalities can also be represented on a
number line.

Use a hollow black dot for < and >.

Use a solid black dot for ≤ and ≥.

ACTIVITY
Read the following aloud and represent them on a number line.
𝑥<4
𝑦≥5
−3 < 𝑏
2≤𝑦
1≤𝑤≤7
−3 < 𝑥 ≤ 8
𝑥 < −4 or 𝑥 ≥ 6
 SETS
A Set is a collection of things (usually numbers).

Example: {5, 7, 11} is a set.

But you can also "build" a set by describing what is in it.

Set-builder notation is a mathematical notation for

describing a set by enumerating its elements or
stating the properties that its members must satisfy.
 SET BUILDER NOTATION

It says "the set of all x's, such that x is greater than 0".
In other words any value greater than 0
• The "x" is just a place-holder, it could be anything, such as
{q|q>0}
• Some people use ":" instead of "|", so they would write
{x:x>0}
 SET BUILDER NOTATION

• The ∈ means "a member of" (or simply "in")

• The ℝ is the special symbol for Real Numbers.

QUESTION 1
QUESTION 2
QUESTION 3
QUESTION 4
QUESTION 5
INTERVAL NOTATION
Interval notation is a method of writing down a set of numbers.
A notation for representing an interval as a pair of numbers. The
numbers are the endpoints of the interval. Parentheses and/or
brackets are used to show whether the endpoints are excluded or
included.
EXAMPLE
ACTIVITY
EXAMPLE
EXAMPLE
EXAMPLE
WRITE THE FOLLOWING USING INTERVAL
NOTATION
1. 𝐻 = 𝑥; 𝑥 ∈ ℝ, −3 ≤ 𝑥 < 5
2. 𝐺 = 𝑤; 𝑤 ∈ ℝ, 𝑤 ≥ 7
3. 𝐵 = 𝑥; 𝑥 ∈ ℝ, 𝑥 < −2
4. 𝑆 = 𝑥; 𝑥 ∈ ℝ, 𝑥 ≤ −1 𝑜𝑟 𝑥 > 4
WRITE THE FOLLOWING USING SET BUILDER
NOTATION
1. −∞, 4
2. −7, ∞
3. (−1,5)
4. −2,7
5. (−∞, −2] ∪ 5, ∞)
NUMBER IN A SET
Number of elements in Set A is represented by n(A).
A = {2, 5, 9, 12}, then n(A) = 4
UNION OF A SET
Symbol − ∪
The union of Sets A and B represents everything in Set A and B
 INTERSECTION OF A SET
Symbol − ∩
The intersection of Sets A and B represents everything in BOTH Set A and B
COMPLEMENT OF A SET
Symbol − 𝐴1
The complement of set A represents everything outside of A.
A-B
Everything in A only
 EXAMPLE 1
Represent the following intervals
𝑋 = −∞, 14 and Y = 5,22 on the real
number line and express the following in
both interval and set builder notations.
′
(i) X ∪ Y (ii) X ∩ Y (iii)𝑋 (iv) 𝑋 − Y
 EXAMPLE 2
Represent the following intervals
𝐿 = [−57,38)and M = (−32, 61]on the
real number line and express the following in
both interval and set builder notations.
(i) L ∪ M (ii) L ∩ M ′
(iii)𝑀 (iv)(𝐿 ∩ 𝑀) ′
SOURCE
http://www.mathsisfun.com/sets/set-builder-notation.html
https://www.mathsisfun.com/number-line.html
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks3/maths/algebra/inequalities_simultaneous/revisio
n/3/

http://www.coolmath.com/algebra/07-solving-inequalities/03-interval-notation-01