Republic of the Philippines 1

Cagayan State University

CARIG CAMPUS

SECTION 1. The Nature of Mathematics

II. Mathematics Language and Symbols
 Characteristics of mathematical language, precise, concise, powerful
 Expressions vs. Sentences
 Conventions in the mathematical language
 Four basic concepts, sets, functions, relations, binary operations
 Elementary logic: connectives, quantifiers, negation, variables.
 Formality

Introduction to Mathematics Language and Symbols

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.

Instructor: Melowin Bibes Mamba, ECE, ECT Subject: MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD
 Republic of the Philippines 2
Cagayan State University
CARIG CAMPUS

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.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

1. Discuss the language, symbols, and conventions of mathematics
2. Explain the nature of mathematics as a language
3. Perform operations on mathematical expressions correctly
4. Acknowledge that mathematics is a useful language

Instructor: Melowin Bibes Mamba, ECE, ECT Subject: MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD
 Republic of the Philippines 3
Cagayan State University
CARIG CAMPUS

PRESENTATION OF CONTENT

II. Mathematics Language and Symbols

 CHARACTERISTICS OF MATHEMATICAL LANGUAGE, PRECISE, CONCISE, POWERFUL
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:

Mathematics is a symbolic language. Some of the symbols you may encounter are the following.

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 vegetable; the use of mathematical modeling in biological disease modeling; 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. Is it 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 rules that govern such things. You
do this mental task most of the time using the language that you use as part of your 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.

Instructor: Melowin Bibes Mamba, ECE, ECT Subject: MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD
 Republic of the Philippines 4
Cagayan State University
CARIG CAMPUS

 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 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:

 Truth of Sentences
Mathematical sentences may either be true or false but not both.

Instructor: Melowin Bibes Mamba, ECE, ECT Subject: MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD
 Republic of the Philippines 5
Cagayan State University
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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 Lingayen is 2401.
3. The name of the shop is ”578.” Moreover mathematical objects may be represented in many ways such
as sets and functions.

 CONVENTIONS IN THE MATHEMATICAL LANGUAGE

A mathematical convention is a fact, name, notation, or usage which is generally agreed upon by
mathematicians. For instance, the fact that one evaluates multiplication before addition in the expression
2 + 3 x 4 is merely conventional: there is nothing inherently significant about the order of operations.
Mathematicians abide by conventions in order to allow other mathematicians to understand what they
write without constantly having the redefine basic terms. (Imagine if every mathematical paper began
with an explanation of PEMDAS (Parentheses Exponentiation Multiplication Division Addition
Subtraction)

 FOUR BASIC CONCEPTS, SETS, FUNCTIONS, RELATIONS, BINARY OPERATIONS

Note: This topics are included in the subjects (Mathematics for Engineers and/or Mathematics for
Architecture). But additional knowledge about binary operations will be discussed here.

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 ×, be a binary operation, then 4 × 6 yields the real number 24 on 4
× 6 = 24.
Additional examples are given below:
1. Addition (e.g., 4 + 5 = 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:
1. Closure of Binary Operations
The product and the sum of any two real numbers is also a real number. In symbols, we write

∀x, y, ∈ ℝ, x + y ∈ ℝ and x · y ∈ ℝ

2. Commutativity of Binary Operations

Addition and multiplication of any two real numbers is commutative as seen in the mathematical
symbols these are written in:

∀x, y ∈ ℝ, x + y = y + x (Addition)
x, y ∈ ℝ, x · y = y · x (Multiplication)

Instructor: Melowin Bibes Mamba, ECE, ECT Subject: MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD
 Republic of the Philippines 6
Cagayan State University
CARIG CAMPUS

For example:
1+2=2+1 (addition)
2·3=3·2 (multiplication)

3. Associativity of Binary Operations

Given any three real numbers you may take any two and perform addition or multiplication as the
case may be and you will end with the same answer. For addition in symbols we write,

∀x, y, z ∈ ℝ, (x + y) + z = x + (y + z).

As an example, consider (1 + 2) + 3 = 1 + (2 + 3).

On the other hand, for multiplication we write,

∀x, y, z ∈ ℝ, (x · y) · z = 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.

4. Distributivity of Binary Operations

Distributivity applies when multiplication is 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,

∀x, y, z ∈ ℝ, z(x ± y) = zx ± zy.

The term z is distributed over the sum (x + y). Note, however, that addition is not distributive over
multiplication.

5. Identity Elements of Binary Operations

An element of the set of real numbers is an identity element for addition if,

∀x ∈ ℝ, x + e = e + x = 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.

6. Inverses of Binary Operations

Now what do you add to any real number x to get the identity element e = 0 as a result? The answer
is the negative of that number, −x. In symbol, we state it as,

∀x ∈ ℝ, x + (−x) = −x + x = 0.

Meanwhile, for multiplication we have the familiar,

1 1
x·( )=( )·x=1
𝑥 𝑥

1
in which case the inverse of x under multiplication is , x ≠ 0.
𝑥

Instructor: Melowin Bibes Mamba, ECE, ECT Subject: MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD
 Republic of the Philippines 7
Cagayan State University
CARIG CAMPUS

 ELEMENTARY LOGIC: CONNECTIVES, QUANTIFIERS, NEGATION, VARIABLES.

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 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.

The Truth Table

A truth table is a table that show the truth value of a compound statement for all possible truth values of
its simple statements.

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
∨, respectively. If two statements are joined like P and Q, denoted by P ∧ Q, then P ∧ Q 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
P ∨ 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.

Instructor: Melowin Bibes Mamba, ECE, ECT Subject: MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD
 Republic of the Philippines 8
Cagayan State University
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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 ∀.
2. The existential quantifier is expressed in words as ”there exists” or ”for some.” This quantifier is
denoted by ∃.

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 ∀x, ∀y, P(x, y) is the same as ∀y, ∀x, P(x, y).
Similarly, the quantified sentence ∃x, ∃y, P(x, y) is equivalent to ∃y, ∃x, P(x, y). For mixed quantifiers,
order is definitely important. The statement ∀x, ∃y, P(x, y) is never always equivalent to the sentence ∃y,
∀x, P(x, y).

Negation
A statement is negation of another if the word is not introduced in the negative statement. Let P be
a proposition. The negation of P is ”not P” or ¬P. The following is its truth table:

Variables
Variable is sometimes thought of as a mathematical “John Doe” because you can use it as a
placeholder when you want to talk about something but either (1) you imagine that it has one or more
values but you don’t know what they are, or (2) you want whatever you say about it to be equally true

Instructor: Melowin Bibes Mamba, ECE, ECT Subject: MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD
 Republic of the Philippines 9
Cagayan State University
CARIG CAMPUS

for all elements in a given set, and so you don’t want to be restricted to considering only a particular,
concrete value for it. To illustrate the first use, consider asking

 Is there a number with the following property: doubling it and adding 3 gives the same result
as squaring it?

In this sentence you can introduce a variable to replace the potentially ambiguous word “it”:

 Is there a number x with the property that 2x + 3 = x2 ?

The advantage of using a variable is that it allows you to give a temporary name to that you are
seeking so that you can perform concrete computations with it to help discover in possible values. To
emphasize the role of the variable as a placeholder, you might write the following:

 Is there a number □ with the property that 2⦁□ + 3 = □2 ?

The emptiness of the box can help you imagine filling it in with a variety of different values, some
of which make the two sides equal and others of which might not.

To illustrate the second use of variables, consider the statement:

No matter what number might be chosen, if it is greater than 2, then its square is greater than 4.

In this case introducing a variable to give a temporary name to the (arbitrary) number you might
choose enables you to maintain the generality of the statement, and replacing all instances of the word
“it” by the name of the variable ensures that possible ambiguity is avoided:

No matter what number n might be chosen, it n is greater than 2, then n2 is greater than 4.

 Formality
One of the major parts of formality in mathematics is the definition itself. When we say
definition, it is a formal statement of the meaning of a word or group of words and it could stand alone.

Example of this is a definition of a right triangle. What is the exact or formal definition of this? A
right triangle consists of two legs and a hypotenuse. The two legs meet at a 90° angle and the hypotenuse
is the longest side of the right triangle and is the side opposite the right angle. Here, you will see the
exactness and the precision of the definition of a right triangle.

APPLICATION

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Activity #1

REFERENCES:
https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/batangas-state-university/advance-mathematics/definition-
mathematics-in-modern-world-lesson-4/12011541

Aufmann, R.,Lockwood, J., Nation, R., et.al.,2018. Mathematics in the Modern world. Rex Book Store, Inc.

Instructor: Melowin Bibes Mamba, ECE, ECT Subject: MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD