CHAPTER Mathematical Language and Symbols 2.1 The Language of Mathematics 2.2 Expressions vs. Sentences 2.3. Unary and Binary Operations 2.4 Some Fundamentals of Logic LEARNING OBJECTIVES At the end of the chapter, the student is expected to: 1. discuss the language, symbols, and conventions used in mathematics; 2. explain the nature of mathematics as a language; 3. evaluate mathematical expressions correctly; and 4. recognize that mathematics is a useful language. &D KEYworDS Expressions vs. Sentences _ Logical Connectives Sets Quantifiers Functions Negation Relations Free and Bound Variables Unary and Binary Operations Converse Inverse Propositions ah e ContrapositiveMathematical Language and Symbols ENGLISH versus MATHEMATICS ENGLISH Ou SENTENCE {name given to object of interest) {must state a complete thought) PERSON PLACE THING TRUE (T) FALSE (F) SOMETIMES TRUE/ SOMETIMES FALSE (ST/SF) | Carol Manila dog_—The capital of ‘The capital of The dog, the Philippines the Philippines is black, is Manila. is Makati MATHEMATICS EXPRESSION SENTENCE (name given to (must state a mathematical object of interest) complete thought) | | | | | NUMBER SET FUNCTION MATRIX ORDERED TRUE FALSE ST/SF 8 8) a ee] ro) 141-2 1t1el1 xl [ie Lie i | f(x) 2.1 The Language of Mathematics Can you imagine how you would be able to communicate with a seatmate in the bus who speaks an entirely different language from yours? You may be able to tell him or her to watch over your bag as you get off the bus for a while to buy something through certain nonverbal gestures. That can be done with sign language. Language facilitates communication and meaning-making. It allows people to express themselves and maintain their identity. Likewise, language bridges the gap among people from various 214 Mathematics in the Modern World ——————__ cultural origins without prejudice to their background ang upbringing. If you plan to marry someone with a different language and culture, you need to know his or her language and culture to be able to live with him or her as a spouse, Have you seen the characters of the Mandarin language? The Mandarin language has different characters for sun, moon, stars, things like house, chair, table, furniture, trees, plants, flowers, and relationships like grandfather, grandmother, father, mother, sister, brother etc. These unfamiliar characters in the written Mandarin language may make learning Mandarin more difficult than the Greek language even if Greek letters are different from the English alphabet. Mathematics is also a language. It has its own symbol system, the same way the English or Greek languages have their own alphabet. Characteristics of Mathematical Language Mathematical language is precise which means it is able to make very fine distinctions or definitions among a set of mathematical symbols. It is concise because a mathematician can express otherwise long expositions or sentences briefly using the language of mathematics. The mathematical language is powerful, that is, one can express complex thoughts with relative ease. For example, consider the sentence “The sum of any two real numbers is also a real number.” In mathematical notation, this declarative sentence can be written as : Va,beR,atbeR Mathematics is a symbolic language. Some of the symbols you may encounter as you read this book are the following, x the sum of 3 there exists Vv for every (for any) © element of (or member off 22Mathematical Language and Symbols € not an element of (or not a member of) s subset of => if.., then = ifand only if R set of real numbers N set of natural number Z set of integers Q set of rational numbers cy infinity Mathematical language can describe a subset of the real world using only the symbols above. Problems in physics like freely falling bodies, speed, and acceleration; quantities like the chemical content of vegetables; the use of mathematical modeling in biological disease modelling; and the formulas employed in the social sciences can all be expressed using mathematical sentences or formulas Mathematics describes abstract structures as well. There are areas of pure mathematics which deal with abstract structures, which have no known physical counterparts at all. These are studied in areas of mathematics like abstract algebra, linear algebra, topology, real analysis, and complex analysis. Mathematics, therefore, is the language of the sciences, business, economics, music, architecture, arts, and even politics. There is an intimate connection between the language of mathematics and the English language. The left brain hemisphere which is responsible for controlling language is also the same part of the brain in charge of tasks involving mathematics. It is the left brain hemisphere that coordinates logical or analytical thinking while the right brain hemisphere is responsible for creative thinking. When you think about something, you first ask what this thing really is. Then you relate it with what you already know or even classify it in your mind. Next, you think about Tules that govern such things. You do this mental task most of the time using the language that you use as part of your 23—_—————— Mathematics in the Modem World thought process. When you think about mathematics in your class in elementary, junior, or senior high school, you usually look for a definition of the mathematical word or concept you heard. You then apply this concept based on the meanings attributed to it, most likely by identifying valid applications or operations of the concept. With repeated practice, you then grasp the rules that govern its defined application. Chinese, Greek, and English languages are the same because they communicate ideas through symbols that feed the mind with information. More often however, a Chinese word or symbol may mean differently in the Greek or English language resulting in confusion. Mathematics tries to avoid this difficulty by adopting a universally understood symbolic system for its language. Thus, the language of mathematics can be considered a common language of the world. Any student learning mathematics in all parts of the globe should be able to understand mathematics even if he or she does not understand English or Filipino. 2.2 Expressions vs. Sentences A sentence must contain a complete thought. In the English language an ordinary sentence must contain a subject and a predicate. The subject contains a noun or a whole clause. “Manila” for example is a proper noun but is not in itself a sentence because it does not state a complete thought. Similarly, a mathematical sentence must state a complete thought. An expression is a name given to a mathematical object of interest. The term “1+2” is a mathematical expression but not a mathematical sentence. Below are examples of mathematical expressions: a. An ordered triple (a,b,c) b. Amatrix |) 4 -2 3 ¢. Afunction f(x) d. The set {1,3,5} 24———— Mathematical Language and Symbols —————— Truth of Sentences Mathematical sentences may either be true or false but not both. Example 1: Write as English sentences and say whether they are true or false. a. VxeR, x? 20 b. Vx,yeR, (xty) =x? +2xy ty? ce. imyneZ,m-nsmin d. Va,beQ,ab=0>a=0vb=0 Solution: a. For any real number x, its square is greater than or equal to 0. TRUE b. For any real numbers x and y, the square of their sum is equal to the sum of their squares plus twice their product. TRUE . There exist integers m and n such that m minus nis less than or equal to m plus n. TRUE d. For any rational numbers a and }, if their product is zero then either a or b equals 0. TRUE ° Example 2: Write as mathematical sentences. Discuss how the word “is” is used. a. Ten is the square root of 100. b. Ten is greater than 9. c. Ten is an even number. d. Ten is a multiple of 5. 25Mathematics in the Modem World cca, | Solution: a. J100 =10 b. 10>9 c. 10€{2n,neN} d. 10€{5n, ne N} If you notice, the word “is” could mean equality, inequality or membership in a set. In the first example, “is” is used for equality, in the second for inequality, and in the third, and fourth, it is used to say that the number 10 belongs to the set of multiples of 2 and the set of multiples of 5. Numbers can be cardinal, ordinal and nominal, Cardinal numbers are used for counting and answer the question “how many?” Ordinal numbers tell the position of a thing in terms of first, second, third, etc. Nominal numbers are used only as a name, or to identify something (not as an actual value or position). Examples of nominal numbers are: 1. The number at the back of Michael Jordan is “23.” 2. The postal zip code of Marilao is 3019. 3. The name of the shop is “680.” Moreover mathematical objects may be represented in many ways such as sets and functions. 2.3 Unary and Binary Operations atics involve two operands ssion 2+3=5. The plus dition. Not all operations in mathem: or numbers such as in the expre: sign between 2 and 3 signifies the operation of ad: The plus symbol here involves a binary operation. AS = may guess, a unary operation accepts only one value 0 operand. 7 The plus and minus signs may not mean ens subtraction when they are attached before a single DUT” d negative sign’ Instead, they are read as positive an a.Mathematical Language and Symbols When written this way they are called unary operations. They accept only one value when they do arithmetic, The positive sign is very much like the addition operation but has a different meaning when attached to only one number. For example, consider this expression: +4 (read as ‘positive four). It does not really mean ‘add four’. The value of four represented by the number 4 is considered as a single operand by the unary operator, ‘+’, and that operation produces a value of Positive four. Obviously, ‘+4’ and ‘4’ each represent the same value. So, one can say that an ‘invisible’ positive sign exists before any number. The negative, (or Opposite), sign is a unary operator. Consider this expression: ~4. Technically here, the negative sign operator accepts a value of four as its operand and produces a value of negative four. Obviously, ‘4’ and ‘4° represent different values. There are no invisible negative signs in math expressions. In summary, unary operations involve only one value. There are many unary operations on the set of real numbers. For example, negation is a unary operation. The others are the trigonometric functions, the single-variable function f(x), the factorial denoted n!, the transpose of a matrix AT, the square root of 100 among others. Additional examples of unary operations are given below: 1. -5 2. sin x 3. cos 45° a 4. tang On the other hand, when “+” and “” can act on two Operands, then it is called a binary operation. Among the binary operators, the ‘#’ and “’ require more attention than all other binary operations. To understand this better, Tecall the concept of ‘double negative’ you learned in high School. The double negative is taught to be equivalent to the statement ‘two negatives make a positive.’ Consider this expression: 3-(-2). In this expression, two operations 7Mathematics in the Modern World ———————__ are present using the symbol ~’. However, the two ia should not be interpreted to represent two identical operations. The first symbol (left most), is the binary subtraction operation, The other (right before the integer 2) is the unary negative sign operator. So what do you do to this expression? The negative sign operator has precedence over the subtraction operator, so it accepts operands first. In the number line you go three units to the right of zero to locate 3. To subtract two from three means you go two units to the left of three but to subtract a negative two means you count the opposite of negative two from three which is counting two units to the right of three. The result of this is five, represented by the number line 5 units from zero. 44+ +++ + + + | | }+}|!"|} }|]| |+— +4 -10-9-8 7654321012345 678910 We write: 5=3-(-2). This expression also equals: 5=34+2. Since both expressions are equal to five, then the right-hand sides must equal one another. Hence, 3+2=3-(-2). The binary operation is differentiated with the unary operator in the following figure. Unary negative sign operator 3-2 Binary operations take two values, and include the operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and exponentiation. There are many binary operations on real numbers. An operation is binary if it takes two real numbers as arguments to produce another real number. If we let multiplication, denoted by the symbol x, be 4 binary operation, then 4x6 yields the real number 24 oF 4x6=24. Binary subtraction operator 28—— Mathematical Language and Symbols Additional examples are given below: 1, Addition (e.g., 445 = 9). 2. Subtraction (e.g., 10-8 = 2). The properties of two binary operations, addition and multiplication, over the set of real numbers are as follows: i, Closure of Binary Operations The product and the sum of any two real numbers is also a real number. In symbols, we write Vx,YeR, x+yeR and x-yeR ii, Commutativity of Binary Operations Addition and multiplication of any two real numbers is commutative as seen in the mathematical symbols these are written in: Vay eR, x+y-y+x (addition) vxyeR, x-y=y-x (multiplication). For example: 1+2=2+1 (addition) and 2-3=3-2 (multiplication). iii. Associativity of Binary Operations Given any three real numbers you may take any two and perform addition or multiplication as the case maybe and you will end with the same answer. For addition in symbols we write, Vx,y,ZER, (x+y)+z=x+(y+z). As an example, consider (1+2)+3=1+(2+3). On the other hand, for multiplication we write, Vx, YZ ER, (x-y)-2=x-(y-z). This is illustrated by the example (2-3)-4=2-(3-4) in which both sides of the equation are equal to 24. 29Mathematics in the Modern World —————___ iv. Distributivity of Binary Operations Distributivity applies when multiplication jg performed on a group of two numbers added or subtracted together. Given three real numbers x, y, and z, this property is stated in symbolic notation as, Vx, y,Z ER, 2(x + y) = 2x + Zy. The term z is distributed over the sum (x+y). Note, however, that addition is not distributive over multiplication. v. Identity Elements of Binary Operations An element of the set of real numbers is an identity element for addition if, WxeR, x+e=e+xX=x. This means that the identity is the number that you add to any real number and the result will be the same real number. The only number that satisfies this property is the number zero for addition. This is evident in the example below, 5+0=0+5=5. Therefore, the identity element e in the above definition is zero or e = 0. What then is the identity element under multiplication? Obviously, the identity for multiplication is 1 since x-1=1-x=x for any real number x. For example, 4-1=4 and 1-4=4. vi. Inverses of Binary Operations Now what do you add to any real number x to get the identity element e =O as a result? Yes you are right! The answer is the negative of that number, —x. In symbols, we state it as, Wx eR, x+(-x)=-x+x=0, 30Mathematical Language and Symbols Meanwhile, for multiplication we have the familiar, 1 »(Z)-()*-3 x) Lx in which case the inverse of x under multiplication is 1 ixcz0. x 2.4 Some Fundamentals of Logic Why do most people argue over some issue and never get to the bottom of it? Sometimes people in dispute say that “they do not see eye to eye.” This expression means that the people involved in an argument never get to agree on the issues at hand. In many cases, the disagreement lies on not being able to present sound arguments based on facts, or the failure to convince the contending party using logical arguments. To avoid such a scenario in mathematics and to uphold certainty in the validity of mathematical statements, mathematics employs the powerful language of logic in asserting truths of statements. The use of logic illustrates the importance of precision and conciseness in communicating mathematics. Propositions Many times, propositions are made in people’s statements. A proposition is a statement which is either true (T) or false (F). The senior citizens may claim that the best movie they ever saw is Sound of Music, a movie that was produced in 1965. This statement is a proposition that is either T or F and cannot be both. Example 1: Each of the following statements is a proposition. Some are true and some are false. Can you tell which are true, and which are false? If it is false, state why. a. 9 is a prime number. b. 543=8yy Mathematics in the Modern World ——————___ c. x +y?20 d. 10<-3 Answers: a. False. Prime numbers have no other factors than 1 ang itself. 9 can be expressed as 3-3. b. True. c. True, d. False. A negative number is always less than a positive number. The Truth Table A truth table is a table that shows the truth value of a compound statement for all possible truth values of its simple statements. Negation A statement is a negation of another if the word is not introduced in the negative statement. Let P be a proposition. The negation of Pis “not P” or 4P. The following is its truth table: [cane Pr eRe Ron Po gie Example 2: What is the negation of the following statements? a. P: /2is a rational number. b. R: 6 is an odd number. Solution: a. J2 is not a rational number or y2 is irrational. In symbols, +P. b. 6 is not an odd number or 6 is an even number. In symbols, +R. 32 ygMathematical Language and Symbols Logical Connectives Let P and Q be propositions. A logical connective is the mathematical equivalent of a conjunction in english. The most common conjunctions in mathematics are “and” and “or”, which are denoted by » and v, respectively. If two statements are joined like P and Q, denoted by PAQ, then PAQ is a statement that is true if and only if both P and Q are true. Another logical connective is the word “or”. The statement Pv@Q is true if and only if P is true or Q is true, which is taken to include the case when they are both true. The following is the truth table. Implications Suppose P and Q are propositions. The proposition P=@Q (read as “if P, then Q”) is called an implication P is called the premise and Q is called the conclusion. In ordinary language statements like “If it rains, then I bring my umbrella” is an implication. “If it rains” is P or the premise while “I bring my umbrella” is the conclusion. Other ways of reading P= Q are: Pimplies Q QifP Qis implied by P Qonly if P 33Mathematics in the Modem World ——————__ A more complicated form of implication is the bi implication or the biconditional denoted by the symbol <>. The statement P Q is equivalent to the statement Pe>Q=(P>Q)A(Q=>P). Construct the truth table for the logical operator <= and check that indeed it is equivalent to (P= Q)a(Q= P). A biconditional is often stated as, Pif and only if Q Pis necessary and sufficient for Q. Example 3: Write the following in symbolic form using P, Q, and R for statements and the symbols —, A, v,>, < where P: Pres. Duterte is a good president. Q: Government officials are corrupt. R: People are happy. a. If Pres. Duterte is a good president, then government officials are not corrupt. b. If government officials are not corrupt, then the people are happy. c. If Pres. Duterte is a good president and people are happy, then government officials are not corrupt 34Mathematical Language and Symbols d. Pres. Duterte is not a good president if and only if government officials are corrupt and the people are not happy- Answers: a. P=>-Q b. -O>R c. PAR=>=Q d. aP. (QAR) Converse, Inverse, Contrapositive Suppose P and Q are propositions. Given the implication P=>Q. Its converse is Q= P, its inverse is .P > —Q, and its contrapositive is sQ => +P. That is, Given: If Pthen Q. Inverse: If not P then not Q. Converse: If Q then P. Contrapositive: If not Q then not P. To determine whether the conditional statement is true or false, we come up with the following truth table. Referring to the truth table of the implication statement P > Q below, we then create the truth table for the inverse, converse, and contrapositive statements. 35a | Mathematics in the Modern World ————_ Truth table of the inverse, converse, and contrapositive of P>Q. Inverse Converse Contrapositive =P =>30 Q=P =Q=-—P T 7 T F F T T ‘7 F - T + Example 4: Give the converse, inverse, and contrapositive of the following implications: a. If this movie is interesting, then I am watching it. b. If pis a prime number, then it is odd. Answers: a. Inverse: If this movie is not interesting, then I am not watching it. Converse: If I am watching this movie, then it is interesting. Contrapositive: If | am not watching this movie, then it is not interesting. b. Inverse: If p is not a prime number, then it is not odd. Converse: If p is an odd number, then it is prime. Contrapositive: If p is not odd, then it is not a prime number. Example 5: Identify three simple propositions in the statement below and label them P, Q, and R. Then express symbolically the statement using the logical operators AV) Or a. Statement: A function f has an inverse if and only if fis one-to-one and onto. 36Mathematical Language and Symbols Solution: Let P: A function fhas an inverse. Q: f is one-to-one. R: f is onto. Then using the mathematical symbols, the statement is equivalent to P > (QR). The statement can also be written as [P> (QAR A[QaR)=> Pi. | Quantifiers Quantifiers are used to describe the variable(s) in a statement. Types 1. The universal quantifier is usually written in the English language as “for all” or “for every.” It is denoted by the symbol Vv , 2. The existential quantifier is expressed in words as “there exists” or “for some.” This quantifier is denoted by 3. Compound Quantifiers When one quantity is involved in a statement, it is common to encounter more than one quantifier for that statement. Special care must be taken in the order in which these quantifiers appear. Order does not matter if the same quantifier is used. For example, the statement vx,Vy,P(y) is the same as Wy, Vx, P(x, y)- Similarly, for the quantified sentence 3x,Jy,P(x,y) is equivalent to 3y,3x,P(x,y). For mixed quantifiers, order is definitely important. The statement Vx,3y,P(x,y) is never always equivalent to the sentence By, Vx, P(x, y) - 37ite | Mathematics in the Modem World —————_ Example 6: Write as an English sentence and determine if i is true or false. a. Vee, aye R, x+y =10 b. WxeZ", Jy eR, y? =x Answers: a. For every real number x, there exists a real number y such that the sum of x and y is equal to 10. TRUE b. For every positive integer x, there exists a real number y such that the square of y is equal to x. TRUE go EXERCISES SET 2 For Exercises 1 to 5, identify what is wrong in each of the following sentences/expressions: 1, 2cN . (2,3) €f fis a function . x<4 or x<3 is equivalent to 4, >. Let P: The sun is shining. Q: It is raining. R: The ground is wet. 39____— Mathematics in the Modem i —, 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. Ifit is raining, then the sun is not shining. It is raining and the ground is wet. The ground is wet if and only if it is raining and the sun is shining. The sun is shining or it is raining. The ground is not wet. The ground is not wet if and only if the sun is shining. For Exercises 36 to 40, give the converse, inverse, and contrapositive of the following implications. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40, If nis an irrational number then it is a number that goes on forever. If x is the height of a box then it is a positive number. If the year 2020 is a leap year then there has to be 366 days in that year. If i is a complex number then it is not a real number. If x is less than 0 then it is negative.