MODULE 2

ALGEBRA OF SETS
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1.1 SETS
INTRODUCTION

One of the basic and useful concepts in mathematics is set. The basic notion of
a set was first developed by Georg Cantor toward the end of the nineteenth century.
Both counting and measurement lead to numbers and sets, and through the use of
numbers and sets it is possible to obtain much insight in every field of mathematics.
Sets is any collection of objects such as (a) the points of a given line segment,
(b) the lines through a given point in ordinary space, (c) the natural numbers less than
10, (d) the five Jones boys and their dog, (e) the pages of this module ... will be called a
set or class. The individual points, lines, numbers, boys and dog, pages, ... will be called
elements of the respective sets. Generally, sets will be denoted by capital letters, and
arbitrary elements of sets will be denoted by lowercase letters.
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To specify a set, we must describe its members and this is

usually done in one of two ways:

(a) listing the members of the set, enclosing the list by a pair of brace

brackets .

(b) giving a property which distinguishes members of the set from

objects not in the set.

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Representation of a Set
A set is often represented in the following two ways:

1. Roster method (Tabular form)

In this method a set is described by listing elements separated by

commas, within braces { }. For example, the set of even natural numbers can
be described as {3, 6, 91, ...}.

A=
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2. Set Builder Method

In this method, a set is described by a characterizing property

P(x) of its element x. In such a case the set is described by {x : P(x) holds}
or {x / P(x) holds}
The symbol ‘|’ or ‘:’ is read as ‘such that’.

Example:
A= { x | x is a vowel in the alphabet}

EXAMPLES
A is the set of items you
wear
B is set of types of finger
B is the set of counting
numbers between 2 and 7
D is the set of even
numbers
E is the set of odd numbers
Roster or Listing Method
A= {socks, shoes,
watches, shirts,….}
B= {index, middle, ring,
pinky}
B={3, 4, 5, 6}
D={.., -4, -2, 0, 2, 4, ..}
E= {..., -3, -1, 1, 3, ...}
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Rule or Set Builder Notation
A={x | x is an item you wear}
B={x | x is a type of finger}
C={x | x is a month of the
year that has 31 days}
D={x | x is an even number}
E={x | x is an odd number}
 EXAMPLES:

1. Let A be the set of numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.

We could write 𝐴 = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 (′𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑟 𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔′ 𝑚𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑑 𝑎 )

or 𝐴 = 𝑥: 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑛 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑔𝑒𝑟, 1 ≤ 𝑥 ≤ 5 ′𝑠𝑒𝑡 𝑏𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑑𝑒𝑟 ′ 𝑚𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑑 𝑏 .

NOTE:
In the second notation, the
brackets again denote ‘is the set of
. . .’ and the colon after 𝑥 is used to
denote ‘such that . . .’ so, the
second method of describing 𝐴
reads: ‘𝐴 is the set of all elements
such that 𝑥 is an integer greater
than or equal to 1 and less than or
equal to 5.’
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Following are the some examples of sets:

• The collection of vowels in English alphabets,
i.e. A = {a, e, i, o, u}.
• The collection of all states in the Indian Union.
• The collection of all past presidents of the Indian Union
etc.
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✘ DEFINITION 1.1: Let A be the given set, and let p

and q denote certain objects. When p is an element
of A, we shall indicate this fact by writing 𝑝 ∈ 𝐴;
when both p and q are elements of A, we shall write
𝑝, 𝑞 ∈ 𝐴 instead of 𝑝 ∈ 𝐴 and 𝑞 ∈ 𝐴; when q is not
an element of A, we shall write 𝑞 ∉ 𝐴.
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The following sets, we will use frequently in this session and

following sessions:
✘ ℕ to denote the set of all-natural numbers
✘ ℤ 𝑜𝑟 𝐼 to denote the set of all integers
✘ ℤ + or I+: For the set of all positive integers
✘ ℚ to denote the set of all rational numbers
✘ ℚ + : For the set of all positive rational numbers
✘ ℝ + : For the set of all positive real numbers
✘ ℝ to denote the set of all real numbers
✘ ℂ to denote the set of all complex numbers
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EXAMPLE 1

a) 1 ∈ ℕ and 205 ∈ ℕsince 1 and 205 are natural numbers; 12 , −5 ∉ ℕ since 12 and −5 are
not natural numbers they are integers.

b) The symbol ∈ indicates membership and may be translated as ‘‘in,’’ ‘‘is in,’’ ‘‘are in,’’
‘‘be in’’ according to context. Thus, ‘‘Let r ∈ ℚ" may be read as ‘‘Let r be in ℚ’’ and
‘‘For any p, q ∈ ℤ’’ may be read as ‘‘For any p and q in ℤ.’’ We shall at times write
n ≠ 0 ∈ ℤ instead of n ≠ 0, n ∈ ℤ; also p ≠ 0, q ∈ ℤ instead of p, q ∈ ℤ with p ≠ 0.
The sets to be introduced here will always be well defined—that is, it will always be
possible to determine whether any given object does or does not belong to the particular set. The
sets on the example a above were defined by means of precise statements in words.
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At times, a set will be given in tabular form by exhibiting its elements

between a pair of braces; for example,
𝐴 = 𝑎 is the set consisting of the single element 𝑎.
𝐵 = {𝑎, 𝑏} is the set consisting of the two elements 𝑎 and 𝑏.
𝐶 = {1, 2, 3, 4} is the set of natural numbers less than 5.
𝐾 = {2, 4, 6, . . . } is the set of all even natural numbers.
𝐿 = {. . . , −15, −10, −5, 0, 5, 10, 15, . . . } is the set of all integers having 5 as a factor
The sets C, K, and L above may also be defined as follows:
𝐶 = {𝑥: 𝑥 ∈ ℕ, 𝑥 < 5}
𝐾 = {𝑥: 𝑥 ∈ ℕ, 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑛 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛}
𝐿 = {𝑥: 𝑥 ∈ ℕ, 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑑𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑏𝑦 5}

Here each set consists of all objects 𝑥 satisfying the conditions following the colon.
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The symbols ∈ and ∉

The phrases ‘is an element of’ and ‘is not an element of’ occur so often in
discussing sets that the special symbols ∈ and ∉ are used for them. For example, if
A = {3, 4, 5, 6}, then

3 ∈ A (Read this as ‘3 is an element of the set A’.)

8 ∉ A (Read this as ‘8 is not an element of the set A’.)

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1.2 EQUAL SETS

DEFINITION 1.2: When two sets A and B consist of the same elements,
they are called equal and we shall write 𝐴 = 𝐵. To indicate that A and B
are not equal, we shall write𝐴 ≠ 𝐵.
EXAMPLE 2
(i) When 𝐴 = 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑦, 𝐻𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑛, 𝐽𝑜ℎ𝑛 and 𝐵 = {𝐻𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑛, 𝐽𝑜ℎ𝑛, 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑦}, then 𝐴 = 𝐵. Note
that a variation in the order in which the elements of a set are tabulated is immaterial.
(ii) When 𝐴 = 2, 3, 4 and 𝐵 = {3, 2, 3, 2, 4}, then 𝐴 = 𝐵 since each element of A is in B
and each element of B is in A. Note that a set is not changed by repeating one or more of
its elements.
(iii) When 𝐴 = {1, 2}, and 𝐵 = {1, 2, 3, 4}, then 𝐴 ≠ 𝐵 since 3 and 4 are elements of B
but not A.
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1.3 SUBSETS OF A SET 15

DEFINITION 1.3: Let S be a given set. Any set A, each of whose elements is
also an element of S, is said to be contained in S and is called a subset of S.

EXAMPLE 3
The sets 𝐴 = 2 , 𝐵 = 1, 2, 3 , and 𝐶 = 4, 5 are subsets of 𝑆 = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}. Also,
𝐷 = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 = 𝑆 is a subset of S.

The set 𝐸 = {1, 2, 6} is not a subset of S since 6 ∈ 𝐸 but 6 ∉ 𝑆.

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DEFINITION 1.4: Let A be a subset of S. If 𝐴 ≠ 𝑆, we shall call 𝐴 a proper

subset of S and 𝐴 ⊆ 𝑆 (to be read ‘‘A is a proper subset of S’’ or ‘‘A is properly
contained in S’’).
More often and in particular when the possibility 𝐴 = 𝑆 is not excluded, we
shall write 𝐴 ⊂ 𝑆 (to be read ‘‘A is a subset of S’’ or ‘‘A is contained in S’’). Of all
the subsets of a given set S, only S itself is improper, that is, is not a proper subset
of S.
EXAMPLE 4
For the sets of Example 3 we may write 𝐴 ⊆ 𝑆, 𝐵 ⊆ 𝑆, 𝐶 ⊆ 𝑆, 𝐷 ⊆ 𝑆, 𝐸 ⊈ 𝑆. The precise
statements, of course, are 𝐴 ⊂ 𝑆, 𝐵 ⊂ 𝑆, 𝐶 ⊂ 𝑆, 𝐷 = 𝑆, 𝐸 ⊈ 𝑆.

Note carefully that ∈ connects an element and a set, while ⊂ and ⊆ connect two sets.
Thus, 2 ∈ 𝑆 and {2} ⊂ 𝑆 are correct statements, while 2 ⊂ 𝑆 and 2 ∈ 𝑆 are incorrect.
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DEFINITION 1.5: Let A be a proper subset of S with S consisting of the

elements of A together with certain elements not in A. These latter elements, i.e.,
{𝑥: 𝑥 ∈ 𝑆, 𝑥 ∉ 𝐴}, constitute another proper subset of S called the complement of
the subset A in S.

EXAMPLE 5
For the set 𝑆 = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5} of Example 3, the complement of 𝐴 = {2} in S is
𝐹 = 1, 3, 4, 5 . Also, 𝐵 = {1, 2, 3} and 𝐶 = {4, 5} are complementary subsets in S.

Our discussion of complementary subsets of a given set implies that these subsets be
proper. The reason is simply that, thus far, we have been depending upon intuition
regarding sets; that is, we have tacitly assumed that every set must have at least one
element. In order to remove this restriction (also to provide a complement for the
improper subset S in S), we introduce the empty set or null set ∅.
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DEFINITION 1.6: The empty or the null set ∅ is the set having no elements.
There follows readily
(i) ∅ is a subset of every set S.
(ii) ∅ is a proper subset of every set 𝑆 ≠ ∅.

EXAMPLE 6
The subsets of 𝑆 = 𝑎, 𝑏, 𝑐 𝑎𝑟𝑒, 𝑎 , 𝑏 , 𝑐 , 𝑎, 𝑏 , 𝑎, 𝑐 , 𝑎𝑛𝑑 {𝑎, 𝑏, 𝑐}. The pairs of
complementary subsets are
𝑎, 𝑏, 𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 ∅ 𝑎, 𝑏 𝑎𝑛𝑑 {𝑐}
𝑎, 𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 {𝑏} 𝑏, 𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 {𝑎}
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1.4 UNIVERSAL SETS

DEFINITION 1.7: It is a set which includes all the sets under considerations, it
is a super set of each of the given set. Thus, a set that contains all sets in a given
context is called the universal set. It is denoted by ∪.

EXAMPLE 7
𝐴 = 1, 2, 3 , 𝐵 = 2, 4, 5, 6 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐶 = 1, 3, 5, 7 , 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑛 ∪
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑏𝑒 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑠 universal set.
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1.5 INTERSECTION AND UNION OF SETS

DEFINITION 1.8: Let A and B be given sets. The set of all elements which belong to
both A and B is called the intersection of A and B. It will be denoted by A ∩ B (read
either as ‘‘the intersection of A and B’’ or as ‘‘A cap B’’). Thus,
𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 = {𝑥: 𝑥 ∈ 𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑥 ∈ 𝐵}
EXAMPLE 8
Let 𝐴 = 1, 2, 3, 4 and 𝐵 = 2, 3, 5, 8, 10 ; then 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 = 2, 3 .

If A  {2,4,6,8} and B  {0,1,2,3,4}, then A  B  {2,4}.

If C  {5,10,15} and D  {1,2,3}, then C  D  {}.

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DEFINITION 1.9: The set of all elements which belong to A alone or to B alone or to
both A and B is called the union of A and B. It will be denoted by A ∪ B (read either as
‘‘the union of A and B’’ or as ‘‘A cup B’’). Thus,
𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 = {𝑥: 𝑥 ∈ 𝐴 𝑎𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑜𝑟 𝑥 ∈ 𝐵 𝑎𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑜𝑟 𝑥 ∈ 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵}
More often, however, we shall write
𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 = {𝑥: 𝑥 ∈ 𝐴 𝑜𝑟 𝑥 ∈ 𝐵}
The two are equivalent since every element of A ∩ B is an element of A.

EXAMPLE 9
Let 𝐴 = 1, 2, 3, 4 and 𝐵 = 2, 3, 5, 8, 10 ; then 𝐴 ∪ 𝐵{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 10}

If A  {1,2,3} and B  {b, c, d}, then A  B  {1,2,3, b, c, d}.

If C  {1,3,5,8} and D  {2,3,4,5}, then C  D  {1,2,3,4,5,8}.

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DEFINITION 1.10: Two sets A and B will be called disjoint if they have no element
in common, that is, if 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 = ∅.
In Example 6, any two of the sets 𝑎 , 𝑏 , {𝑐} are disjoint; also, the sets
𝑎, 𝑏 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑐 , the sets 𝑎, 𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑏 , and the sets 𝑏, 𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎 are disjoint.

Example 10

Given that U= {1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10}

Set A={ 1,2,3,4,5}

Set C={ 8,10}

No common elements hence set A and C are disjoint set.

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Thanks!
PREPARED:

Finella Marie Y. Cawaling

Lecturer