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1 Sets
Informally we think of a set as a collection of objects (things). For a set A we say
that a is an element of A when a is one of the objects in A and write a ∈ A; if a
is not an element of A then we will write a ∈ / A. Sets are completely determined
by their elements, meaning that two sets A and B are equal (written as A = B)
if they have the same elements, i.e. each element of A is an element of B, and
each element of B is an element of A. Sets can be finite (meaning that they
contain finite number of elements), or infinite (meaning that they containing
infinite number of elements). A set which has no elements, is called the empty
set and is denoted usually by ∅.
Some important examples of infinite sets are:
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above are divisible by 2. Then we can write B as the set {x ∈ R|x = 2k, k ∈ Z},
or {x ∈ R : x = 2k, k ∈ Z}, we could have also written {x ∈ Z|x = 2k, k ∈ Z}.
In this notation, “|”, or “:” means “such that” (for which), and we read it as
“the set of all those x in R such that..”. Now in general, if X is a set and we
denote by P (x) a property (statement) on x, then {x ∈ X|P (x)} will be the set
of all those x in X which have this property.
N⊂Z⊂Q⊂R⊂C
Note that any non-empty set A has always at least two subsets, they are A
itself and Ø.
Exercise 1.1.1. How many subsets does a set with n elements have?
Definition 1.1.2. Let X be a set and let A and B be subsets of X.
- The union of A and B, denoted by A ∪ B, is the set which consists of all
those elements which are in A or B. We can write this as:
A ∪ B = {x ∈ X|x ∈ A or x ∈ B}
A ∩ B = {x ∈ X|x ∈ A and x ∈ B}
A \ B = {x ∈ X|x ∈ A and x ∈
/ B}
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Two sets A and B are said to be disjoint if they do not have common
elements, or equivalently their intersection is an empty set: A ∩ B = ∅.
Exercise 1.1.2. 1. Let A = {a, b, c, d}, B = {b, d, f, h}, and C = {c, d, e, f }.
Find:
(a) A ∩ B, A ∩ C, B ∩ C;
(b) A ∪ B, A ∪ C, B ∪ C;
(c) A \ B, B \ A, B \ C, C \ B, A \ C, C \ A.
2. Given the set R of real numbers, let A = {x ∈ R| 1 ≤ x ≤ 3} and
B = {x ∈ R| 2 ≤ x ≤ 4}. Find:
(a) A ∩ B;
(b) A ∪ B;
(c) (R \ A) ∩ B;
(d) (R \ B) ∩ A;
(e) (R \ A) ∩ (R \ B);
(f ) (R \ B) ∪ (R \ A);
(g) B ∪ (A ∩ (R \ B));
(h) ((R \ A) ∩ B) ∪ ((R \ B) ∩ A).
3. Let A, B, and C be any three sets. Prove the following:
(a) A ∩ A = A;
(b) A ∩ B = B ∩ A;
(c) A ∩ (B ∩ C) = (A ∩ B) ∩ C;
(d) A ∩ B ⊂ A, and A ∩ B ⊂ B;
(e) A ∩ ∅ = ∅;
(f ) A ∪ A = A;
(g) A ∪ B = B ∪ A;
(h) A ∪ (B ∪ C) = (A ∪ B) ∪ C;
(i) A ⊂ A ∪ B, and B ⊂ A ∪ B;
(j) A ∪ ∅ = A;
(k) A ∩ (B ∪ C) = (A ∩ B) ∪ (A ∩ C);
(l) A ∪ (B ∩ C) = (A ∪ B) ∩ (A ∪ C).
4. Let A and B be any two sets. Prove the following:
(a) A \ A = ∅;
(b) A \ ∅ = A;
(c) ∅ \ A = ∅;
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(d) B \ A = ∅ if and only if B ⊂ A;
(d) (A \ B) ∩ (B \ A) = ∅;
(e) A ∩ (B \ A) = ∅;
(f ) A \ B = B \ A is not always true.
5. Let A = {1, 0}, state whether each of the following statements are true or
false:
(a) {1} ∈ A;
(b) ∅ ∈ A;
(c) {1} ⊂ A;
(d) 0 ∈ A;
(e) 1 ⊂ A.
6. Determine which of the following five sets are equal: {a, b, c}, {b, c, a, b},
{c, a, c, b}, {b, c, b, a}, {a, b, c, d}.
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1.2 Intervals
For real numbers a and b such that a < b the sets
are called intervals. Furthermore, the intervals (a, b), (a, ∞), (−∞, b), and
(−∞, ∞) are called open intervals, while the intervals [a, b], [a, ∞), (−∞, b],
and (−∞, ∞) are called closed intervals.
Note that −∞ and ∞ are not numbers!!
1.3 Inequalities
For real numbers a, b, c, and d, we have:
1. If a < b and b < c then a < c;
2. If a < b, then a + c < b + c;
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(a) 1+x < 7x+5 We have:
1 + x < 7x + 5
⇔(1 + x) + (−1 − 7x) < (7x + 5) + (−1 − 7x) using Rule 1
⇔ − 6x < 4
−1 −1
⇔ − 6x( ) > 4( ) using Rule 4
6 6
−2
⇔x >
3
(b) 1 − x > 2x + 1.
Recall that a ≤ b is equivalent to the statement a < b or a = b. It is not
difficult to check that the rules of inequalities listed at the beginning of this
section also hold if we replace < by ≤ carefully i.e. we have:
1. If a ≤ b, then a + c ≤ b + c
2. If a ≤ b and c ≤ d, then a + c ≤ b + d;
3. If a ≤ b and c ≥ 0, then ac ≤ bc;
4. If a ≤ b and c ≤ 0, then ac ≥ bc;
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5. If 0 < a ≤ b, then a ≥ 1b .
2 Functions
Let us recall the definition of a function from the textbook: Let A and B be
sets. A function f from A to B, written as f : A → B, is a “rule” which
assigns to each element x of A a unique (one and only one) element f (x) in
B. A is called the domain of f and B is called the codomain of f . The range
of f is the set of all possible values of f (x). That is, the range of f is the set
{y ∈ B|∃x ∈ A with y = f (x)}, where the symbol ∃ denotes the word “exist”.
Note that the range of f is a subset of the codomain of f .
Remark 2.0.1. Note that f (x) is not a function! Here, f is a function while
f (x) is the value of f at x. When A and B are subsets of real numbers, then
f (x) is simply a number.
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Example 2.0.1. Let f be a function defined by f (x) = x2 . The domain of this
function is R, while the range is [0, ∞).
Example 2.0.2. Let f be a function defined by f (x) = x. The domain and the
range of f is R.
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3. f (x) = x2 +2x−3 .
1. f (x) = x + 1;
2. f (x) = √1 ;
x+1
1
3. f (x) = x2 +2x−3 ;
x x
−4 −2 2 4 −4 −2 2 4
−5 −5
−10 −10
is a function by checking that each line x = c intersects the graph at most one
place. Note that this is sometimes called the vertical line test. Given a curve,
for instance the one defined by 12 y 2 − 3 − x = 0
7
6 y
x
−4 −2 2 4
−2
−4
−6
which is not a function, it is possible to find functions f and g defined in this
case by
√
f (x) = 2x + 6
√
g(x) = − 2x + 6
whose graphs are contained in the graph of the given curve. Note that for the
above curve x is a function of y.
Exercise 2.0.3. Are the two functions f and g the only possible ones? If so
prove that they are only these two. If not how many are there?
By this we mean that for x ∈ R the number f (x) is defined by the formula x + 1
if x > 5 and by the formula x2 − 9 if x ≤ 5.
Exercise 2.1.1. If f is defined as above, find the following values:
1. f (1);
2. f (2);
3. f (3);
4. f (4);
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5. f (5);
6. f (6);
7. f (7);
8. f (2π).
(d) | − π|.
Example 2.2.1. Express |3x − 4| without using absolute value symbols.
According to the definition we have
a if a ≥ 0
|a| =
−a if a < 0.
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2.3 Properties of absolute values
For all a, b ∈ R and n ∈ Z:
√
1. a2 = |a|;
2. |ab| = |a||b|, b 6= 0;
3. ab = |a|
|b| ;
4. |an | = |a|n ;
5. If a > 0 then |x| = a if and only if x = a or x = −a;
1. |2x − 7| = 4;
2. |x − 7| < 2;
3. |5x − 3| ≥ 2;
4. |x − 4| < |x − 7|;
5. |x2 − 2x − 3| < 1;
6. |x − 1| < |x − 2| + |x − 3|.
This inequality is called the triangle inequality (and holds in a more general
context from which its name is derived). Here are two different proofs:
(i) We have
−|a| ≤ a ≤ |a|
−|b| ≤ b ≤ |b|
where the last equivalent statement follows from Properties 2.3.4 and 2.3.5.
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(ii) Since
|a + b|2 = (a + b)2 = a2 + 2ab + b2
and
(|a| + |b|)2 = |a|2 + 2|a||b| + |b|2 = a2 + 2|ab| + b2
it follows that
Therefore since (|a| + |b| + |a + b|) > 0 – unless a = b = 0 (in which case
the identity is trivially true) – it follows that
|a| + |b| − |a + b| ≥ 0
Example 2.4.2. Using the triangle inequality show that if |x − 5| < 0.1 then
|x2 − 4x − 5| < 0.61.
2.5 Symmetry
Let f be a function (with domain and codomain subsets of R), we will denote
by Df the domain of f . f is called an even function if for each x ∈ Df
(i) −x ∈ Df ;
(ii) f (x) = f (−x).
f is called an odd function if for each x ∈ Df
(i) −x ∈ Df ;
(ii) f (x) = −f (−x).
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As follows from the above definitions, the graph of an even function is sym-
metric with respect to the y-axis, and the graph of an odd function is symmetric
about the origin.
Exercise 2.5.1. Let f be the function defined by:
(a) f (x) = x2 + 1;
(b) f (x) = |x|;
(c) f (x) = x3 − x;
(d) f (x) = x1 ;
(e) f (x) = x2 − x;
(f ) f (x) = cos(x);
(g) f (x) = cos(sin(x)).
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3 Basic functions
3.1 Linear functions
These are the straight lines we talked about before. Recall that the general
equation was
ax + by + c = 0
where a and b are not both zero. However note that vertical lines are not
functions (why?) and hence only those where b 6= 0 are functions. This means
that a function f (with domain and codomain R) is a straight line if there exist
m and d in R such that for each x ∈ R, f (x) = mx + d.
The numbers ai are called the coefficients of the polynomial and ai xi is called a
term of the polynomial. The degree of the polynomial f is largest non-negative
integer 0 ≤ m ≤ n such that am 6= 0, or equivalently it is the largest element in
the set {i | i ∈ Z, 0 ≤ i ≤ n, ai 6= 0}.
Example 3.2.1. Find the degree of each of the polynomial functions
(a) f defined by f (x) = 1 + x + x2 ;
√
(b) p defined by p(x) = πx3 + 3x5 + 2;
√
(c) q defined by q(x) = πx3 + 3x5 + (81 − 34 )x9 .
Given a polynomial p(x), a real number a is called a zero, or a root of the
polynomial p(x) if p(a) = 0.
Exercise 3.2.1. Explain why a polynomial can’t have more roots than its degree.
For polynomials p(x) and d(x) (where d(x) is not the zero polynomial), it
turns out that there are unique polynomials q(x) and r(x) such that p(x) =
q(x)d(x) + r(x) and the degree of r(x) is less than the degree of d(x) - this is
known as a Division Theorem for Polynomials. Given p(x) and d(x), to obtain
q(x) and r(x), we divide p(x) by d(x) using polynomial long division. Let us
look at an example:
Let p(x) = x5 + 2x4 − x2 + 5 and d(x) = x2 − x − 1. We write
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x2 − x − 1 x5 + 2x4 − x2 + 5
and then we ask: what should we multiply the highest powered term of x2 −x−1
(which is x2 ) by to make it equal to the highest powered term of x5 +2x4 −x2 +5
(which is x5 ). We put the answer x3 on the top as follows:
x3
x2 − x − 1 x5 + 2x4 − x2 + 5
x3
x2 − x − 1 x5 + 2x4 − x2 + 5
x5 − x4 − x3
x3 + 3x2 + 4x + 6
x2 − x − 1 x5 + 2x4 − x2 + 5
x5 − x4 − x3
3x4 + x3 − x2 + 5
After this we repeat these steps until the degree of what remains after subtract-
ing is less than the degree of x2 − x − 1. We obtain:
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x3 + 3x2 + 4x + 6
x2 − x − 1 x5 + 2x4 − x2 + 5
x5 − x4 − x3
3x4 + x3 − x2 + 5
3x4 − 3x3 − 3x2
4x3 + 2x2 + 5
4x3 − 4x2 − 4x
6x2 + 4x + 5
6x2 − 6x − 6
10x + 11
From the above we conclude that q(x) = x3 +3x2 +4x+6 and r(x) = 10x+11.
So, we have:
Which is equivalent to
x5 + 2x4 − x2 + 5 10x + 11
= (x3 + 3x2 + 4x + 6) + 2
x2 − x − 1 x −x−1
Now suppose p(x) is any polynomial with the degree more then 0 and suppose
we take d(x) = (x − a) where a is some real number. By Division Theorem of
Polynomials, there exist polynomials q(x) and r(x) such that p(x) = q(x)(x −
a) + r(x) where the degree of r(x) is less then the degree of x − a. Since
the degree of x − a is 1, it follows that the degree of r(x) must be 0, which
means that r(x) = C is a constant (C is some real number). So, we can
write p(x) = q(x)(x − a) + C. Having this in mind, using Division Theorem of
Polynomials, we can now prove Factor Theorem of Polynomials:
Theorem 3.2.1. Let p(x) be a polynomial and a a real number. The following
conditions are equivalent:
(i) a is a zero of the polynomial p(x);
(ii) x − a is a factor of the polynomial p(x).
Proof. We need to prove two things: (a) assuming that (i) is true, we need to
prove that (ii) is true, so we need to prove that (i) ⇒ (ii) ((i)implies(ii)); (b)
assuming that (ii) is true, we need to prove that (i) is true, so we need to prove
that (ii)⇒(i) ((ii) implies (i)).
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(i)⇒(ii): Suppose a is a zero of p(x), then, by definition, p(a) = 0. By Di-
vision Theorem of Polynomials, for any polynomials p(x) and d(x) there exist
polynomials q(x) and r(x) such that the degree of r(x) is less then the degree
of d(x) and p(x) = q(x)d(x) + r(x). Taking d(x) = x − a as above, we obtain
p(x) = q(x)(x − a) + C. Since, by assumption, p(a) = 0, replacing x with a in
the last equality we obtain 0 = p(a) = q(a)(a − a) + C, so C = 0 and therefore
p(x) = q(x)(x − a), which proves that x − a is a factor of p(x).
Conversely, to prove (ii)⇒ (i), we assume that x − a is a factor of p(x). Then
we can write p(x) = q(x)(x−a) where q(x) is some polynomial. But then taking
x = a gives p(a) = q(a)(a − a) = 0, so p(a) = 0, which proves that a is a zero of
p(x).
f (x) = a0 + a1 x + a2 x2 + ... + an xn .
Show that f = 0 if and only if each coefficient is zero, where 0 is the function
defined by 0(x) = 0.
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3.4 Rational functions
A function f is a called a rational function if there exist two polynomial functions
p and q such that for each x in the domain of f
p(x)
f (x) =
q(x).
2x3 + x2 + x + 1
f (x) =
x2 − 9
(a) What is the domain of f ;
a b
f (x) = p(x) + + .
x−3 x+3
then it is algebraic.
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