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Definition of Mathematics

Mathematics is the study of relationships among numbers, quantities and


shapes. It includes arithmetic, algebra, trigonometry, geometry, statistics and calculus.
Mathematics nurtures human characteristics like power of creativity, reasoning, critical
thinking, spatial thinking ang others. It provides the opportunity to solve both simple
and complex problems in many real-world contexts using a variety of strategies.
Mathematics is a universal way to make sense of the world and to communicate
understanding of concepts and rules using the mathematical symbols, signs, proofs,
language and conventions.

Mathematics helps organize patterns and regularities in the world. The geometry
of most patterns in nature can be associated either directly or indirectly to mathematical
numbers. The limit and extent to which natural patterns adhere to mathematical series
and numbers are amazing. Mathematics helps predict the behavior of nature and
phenomena in the world. It helps control nature and occurrences in the world for the
good of mankind. Mathematics has become indispensable because of its numerous
applications.

Mathematics being a science of patterns helps students to utilize, recognize and


generalize patterns that exists in numbers, in shapes, and in the world around them.
Students with such skills are better problems solvers and have a better sense and
appreciation of nature and the world. Hence, they should have opportunities to analyze,
synthesize and create a variety of patterns and use pattern-based thinking to
understand and represent mathematical and other real-world phenomena. These
explorations present unlimited opportunities for problem solving, verifying
generalizations and building mathematical and scientific competence.
​Patterns and Numbers in Nature and the World

Patterns in nature are visible regularities found in the natural world. These
patterns persist in different contexts and can be modelled mathematically. Natural
patterns may consist of spirals, symmetries, mosaics, stripes, spots, etc. The world
seems to make several distinct patterns, evolving various complex steps of formation
but a closer and deeper study reveals that these patterns have many similarities and
resemblances.

Plato, Pythagoras and Empedocles and other early Greek philosophers studied
patterns to explain order in nature which leads to the modern understanding of visible
patterns.

In the 19​th century, Belgian physicist Joseph Plateau examined soap films
leading him to formulate the concept of a minimal surface. German biologist and artist
Ernst Haeckel painted hundreds of marine organisms to emphasize their symmetry.
Scottish biologist D’Arcy Thompson pioneered the study of growth patterns in both
plants and animals showing that simple equations could explain spiral growth. In the
20​th century, British mathematician Alan Turing predicted mechanisms of
morphogenesis which gave rise to patterns of spots and stripes. Hungarian biologist
Aristid Lindenmayer and French American mathematician Benoit Mandelbrot showed
how the mathematics of fractals could create plant growth patterns. ​(Patterns of Nature,
2017)
W. Gary Smith adopts eight patterns in his landscape work namely scattered,
fractured, mosaic, naturalistic drift, serpentine, spiral, radial and dendritic. These
patterns occur in plants, animals, rock formations, river flow, stars or in human
creations. ​(Goral, 2017)
Numbers are everywhere in nature. Mathematicians noticed that numbers
appear in many different patterns in nature: bird’s two wings, clover’s three leaflets,
deer’s four hooves, buttercup’s five petals, insect’s six legs, rainbow’s seven colors,
octopus’ eight arms and many others. As men of science studied numbers, they also
realized their significance in everyday life.
The Fibonacci Sequence
Leonardo Pisano Bogollo lived between 1170 and 1250 in Italy. His nickname,
Fibonacci​ roughly means ​Son of Bonacci.​ ​(Fibonacci Sequence, 2016)

Aside from being famous for the Fibonacci Sequence, he also helped spread
Hindu Arabic numerals (0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 and 9) through Europe in place of Roman
Numerals (I, II, III, IV, V, etc). Fibonacci Day is November 23, as it has the digits “ 1, 1,
2, 3” which is part of the sequence which he developed. This famous Fibonacci
Sequence has fascinated mathematicians, artists, designers and scientists for
centuries. Also recognized as the Golden Ratio, the Fibonacci sequence goes like this:

0 1 1 2 3 5 8 13 21 34 55 89 144 233 377 610 987 1597 2584


4181 6765 10946 17711 28657 46368 75025 121393 196418 317811 …

The ratio of any two successive Fibonacci numbers is very close to the Golden
Ratio, referred to and represented as phi (Φ) which is approximately equal to
1.618034… The bigger the pair of Fibonacci numbers considered, the closer is the
approximation.

In geometry, a golden spiral is a logarithmic spiral whose growth factor is Φ, the


Golden Ratio. That is, a golden spiral gets wider (or farther from its origin) by a
factor of Φ for every quarter turn it makes. (​ Golden Spiral, 2017)
Examples of Fibonacci flowers are: three-petal lily and iris; five petal wild rose,
larkspur, buttercup and columbine; eight-petal delphiniums; thirteen-petal ragwort,
corn, marigold and cineraria; 21-petal aster, chicory and black-eyed susan; 34-petal
pytethrum and plantain and others
96-100 91-95 86-90 81-85
Well-organized Well-organized Well-organized Well-organized
thoughts and thoughts and thoughts and thoughts and
ideas are very ideas are ideas are fairly ideas are not
satisfactorily satisfactorily evident evident
evident evident
Grammar and Grammar and Grammar and Grammar and
format are very format are highly format are fairly format are not
highly observed observed observed observed
Definition

Language​ is the system of words, signs and symbols which people use to
express ideas, thoughts and feelings
Mathematical Language​ is the system used to communicate mathematical
ideas.

Four main actions attributed to problem solving and reasoning

1. Modeling and Formulating


2. Transforming and Manipulating
3. Inferring
4. Communicating

Characteristics of Mathematical Language


Mathematics is about ideas - relationship, quantities, processes, measurements,
reasoning and so on.
The use of language in mathematics differs from the language of ordinary speech
in three important ways. ​(Jamison 2000)
First, mathematical language is non-temporal. There is no past, present and
future in mathematics
Second, mathematical language is devoid of emotional content
Third, mathematical language is precise.
Operational Terms & Symbols

Addition Subtraction Multiplication Division

[+] [-] [ x, (), * ] [/]

Plus minus multiplied by divided by


the sum of the difference of the product of the quotient of
increased by decreased by times of per
total subtracted from
added to

Mathematical Expressions
Mathematical expression consists of terms. The term of a mathematical
expression contains a number and a letter connected by at least one of the fundamental
operations.
In algebra, variables or letters are used to represent unknown quantities. In 2x +
5, x is a variable and is also called literal coefficient while 2 is called numerical
coefficient. Meanwhile, 5 in the same expression is called constant whose value is
irreplaceable.
Mathematical expressions may be classified according to the number of terms as
follows:
1. Monomial contains one term only.
Examples are 2x; 5y; -3m; 4n;

2. Binomial contains two terms.


Examples are 2x – 3y; 5x + 9y; -3m + 2n;

3. Trinomial contains three terms.


Examples are 2a – 3b + 4c; 5x – 3y + 2z

4. Multinomial contains four or more terms.


Examples are 2a - 3b + 4c - d; 5x -3y +2z + 4

2/3x + 4
Mathematical Sentence

Mathematical Sentence is a combination of two mathematical expressions using


a comparison operator.
1. Equation
ex. 4x + 3 = 19
2. Inequality
ex. 15x - 5 < 3y

An ​open sentence​ in math means that it uses variables, meaning that it is not known
whether or not the mathematical sentence is true or false
ex. 2xy < 3y
A ​closed sentence​, is a mathematical sentence that is known to be either true or false
ex. 2(x + y) = 2x + 2y

2+3=7
m*n= mn (2)(3)= 6
m= 2 n = 3

2x + 4 = 4

Four Basic Concepts


1. Set is well-defined collection of distinct objects.
C = {primary colors}
C = {red, blue, yellow}

{red} ϵ C
{blue} ϵ C
V = {set of vowels in the English alphabet}
V = {a,e,i,o,u} {a} ϵ V {e} ϵ C {I} ϵ V

2. Functions are mathematical quantities that give unique outputs to particular


inputs.
3. Relations are correspondence between a first set of variables such that for some
elements of the first set variables, there correspond at least two elements of the
second set of variables.
4. Binary Operations are rules for combining two values to produce a new value.

Sets

Two ways to describe a Set


1. Roster/Tabular Method (ex. E = {a, e, i , o, u})
2. Rule/Descriptive Method (ex. E = {x/x is a collection of vowel in the English alphabet})

Kinds of Sets

1. Empty/Null/Void Set is a set that contains no element


Ex. C = {x/x is an integer less than 2 but greater than 1}

2. Finite Set is a set that contains a countable number of elements.


Ex. A = {a,b,c}
3. Infinite Set is a set that contains an uncountable number of elements.
Ex. A = {…, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, …} and B = {x/x is a set of whole numbers}

4. Universal Set is a set that contains all elements under consideration.


Ex. U = {x/x is an animal in Manila Zoo} and U = {1, 2, 3, …,100}

5. Unit Set (Singleton) is a set that contains only one element.


Ex. E = {x/x is a whole number greater than 1 but less than 3}

6. Equal Sets are sets that contain exactly the same elements.
Ex. A = {0,1,2,3} B = { 2, 0, 1,3}

7. Equivalent Sets are sets that contain the same number of elements.
Ex. A = {a, b, c, d} B = { 2, 0, 1,3}

8. Joint Sets are sets that have at least one common element.
Ex. A = {a, b, c, d} B = {d, e, f, g, h}

9. Disjoint Sets are sets that contain no common element.


Ex. A = {a, b, c, d} B = { e, f, g, h}

Venn Diagram and Set Operations (See attached video lecture)

Functions
is a relation in which, for every value of the first component of the ordered pair,
there is exactly one value of the second component.
Functions have three most important parts:
1. Input
2. Relationship
3. Output

Example
1. Let set X consists of four students and set Y consists of their favorite subjects,
respectively:
X = {Alyssa, Elijah, Steph, Shei}
Y = {Chemistry, Math, Physics, Statistics}
The result is a set of ordered pairs of the form (x, y), written as:
{(Alyssa, Chemistry), (Elijah, Math), (Steph, Physics), (Shei, Statistics)}

The ​Composition of Functions​ ​f​ with ​g​ is denoted by f ® g and is defined by the
equation
(f ® g) (x) = f (g(x)). The domain of the composition function f ® g is the set of all x such
that:
1. x is in the domain of g and ;
2. g(x) is in the domain of ​f.​

Ex 1. Given f(x) = 4x -5 and g(x) = x​2​ + 4, find (a) (f 0​ ​g) (x) and (b) (g 0​ ​ f) (x)
Ex 2. Given f(x) = x -1 and g(x) = 2x​2​ + x - 3, find (a) (f 0​ ​ g) (x) and (b) (g 0​ ​ f) (x)
Ex 3. Given f(x) = x​2​ + 3 and g(x) = x​2​ - 1, find (a) (f 0​ ​ g) (x) and (b) (g 0​ ​ f) (x)

LINEAR FUNCTION
A linear function ​f is a ​constant function if f(x) = mx + b, where m = 0 and b is a real
number, thus f(x) = b. While a linear function ​f is an ​identity function if f(x) = mx + b,
where m = 1 or any real number and b = 0, thus f(x) = x.

Relations
Relations are correspondence between a first set of variables such that for some
elements of the first set variables, there correspond at least two elements of the second
set of variables.
Binary Operations

Binary Operations are rules for combining two values to produce a new value.
Logic​ is the science of formal principles of reasoning or correct inference.
Mathematical Logic​ is the study of reasoning in mathematics. Mathematical reasoning
is deductive; meaning it consists of drawing conclusions from the given hypothesis.
Formality​ is a relational concept. It is an expression can be more or less relative to
another expression, entailing an ordering of expressions; yet, no expression can be
absolutely formal or absolutely informal.
Existential Quantifiers
ex. There exists an x such that x is odd number and 2x is even number.
Universal Quantifiers
ex. For all x, if x is a positive integer, then 2x + 1 is an odd number
Reference: Mathematics in the Modern World. Cordial, R.R., Narzoles, A.B., Amoin, M.P., Catolos,
E.C., Boca, A.B., Beringuel, J.T..Panday-Lahi Publishing House Inc. Muntinlupa. 2018 ISBN
978-621-8094-11-6

Step 2:
Write the left most column d
hen three or more numbers
must be
added, the chances of
making a mistake
becomes much smaller if the
first two
numbers are added and then
the third one

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