Don Honorio Ventura State University

Bacolor, Pampanga

College of Engineering and Architecture

A. Course Code / Title : MATHWORLD 113 - Mathematics in the Modern World

B. Module Number : Module 2 – Speaking Mathematically

C. Time Frame : Week 7-10

D. Description : This module tackles the different languages of mathematics, such as

converting sentences mathematically, analyzing and
understanding mathematical statements, understanding the
different types of sets and using set builder notation and other
symbolic names. Venn diagrams and set operations such as union
of sets and intersection of sets are also included in this chapter.
Moreover, functions and relations are also discussed including
arrow diagram of relations.

E. Objectives : At the end of this module, the students are expected to :

1. Learn how to convert sentences into mathematical equations

using variables

2. Understand the differences between universal statement,

existential statement, and conditional statement as well as
combination statements such as universal conditional
statement, universal existential statement, and existential
universal statement.

3. Have an in-depth understanding of sets, including the different

types of sets and the set symbols.

4. Learn and understand the difference between functions and

relations.

F. Contents :

 2.0 SPEAKING MATHEMATICALLY

2.1 Writing Sentences Using Variables

2.2 Mathematical Statements

A. Universal Statement
B. Conditional Statement
C. Existential Statement
D. Universal Conditional Statement
E. Universal Existential Statement
F. Existential Universal Statement

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2.3 Sets
A. Empty Set
B. Set Element Symbol
C. Equality
D. Cardinality
E. Intersection of Sets
F. Union of Sets
G. Universal Sets
H. Subsets
I. Special Symbolic Names

2.4 Venn Diagram

2.1 Writing Sentences into Variables

In analyzing mathematical sentences such as those of worded problems, we make use of

variables as placeholders to the missing values. The advantage of using variables is that it
allows you to give temporary name to what you are seeking so that you can perform concrete
computations with it to help discover its possible values.

Examples:

1. The sum of two numbers is 15 and their difference is 6.

Mathematically, we can rewrite this as

Since we do not know the values of the two numbers, we denoted them as x and y. These
are the variables of the mathematical expression.

2. Given any real number, its square is nonnegative.

We can rewrite this as:

Given any real number r, r2 is nonnegative.

For any real number r, r2 ≥0.

For all real numbers r, r2 ≥0.

3. The sum of the squares of two numbers is equal to the square of their sum.
Mathematically:

Exercise 1: Rewrite the sentences mathematically using x and y as a variables.

a. The sum of the product and quotient of two numbers is equal to four times their
difference.
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b. The age of Kevin now is two times the age of his younger brother three years ago.
c. Subtracting two from both the numerator and denominator of an unknown fraction
yields to an answer of .

2.2 Mathematical Statements

A. Universal Statement
- says that certain property is true for all elements in a set.
- For example: All positive numbers are greater than zero.

B. Conditional Statement
– says that if one thing is true then some other thing also has to be true.
– For example: If 378 is divisible by 18, then 378 is divisible by 6.

C. Existential Statement
– given a property that may or may not be true, this statement says that there is at least one
thing for which the property is true.
– For example: There is a prime number that is even.

D. Universal Conditional Statement

- A universal conditional statement contains some variation of the words “for all” and a
conditional statement contains version of the words “if-then”. A universal conditional
statement is a statement that is both universal and conditional.
- For Example:
• For all animals x, if x is a dog, then x is a mammal.
• For all polygons P, if P has three sides, then P is a triangle.

Exercise 2: Try to rewrite the statement below by filling in the blanks.

Statement: For all real numbers x, if x is nonzero, then x2 is positive.

a. If a real number is zero, then its square is ________.

b. For all nonzero real numbers x, ________.
c. If x _________, then _________.
d. The square of any nonzero real number is _________.
e. All nonzero real numbers have _________.

E. Universal Existential Statement

- A universal existential statement is a statement that is universal because its first part says
that a certain property is true for all objects of a given type, and it is existential because its
second part asserts the existence of something.

- Example:

• Every real number has an additive inverse

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- In this statement, the property “has an additive inverse” applies universally to all real
numbers. “Has an additive inverse” asserts the existence of something–an additive
inverse–for each real number. However, the nature of the additive inverse depends on
the real number; different real numbers have different additive inverses. Knowing that
an additive inverse is a real number, you can rewrite this statement in several ways,
some less formal and some more formal:

• All real numbers have additive inverse.

• For all real numbers r, there is an additive inverse for r.
• For all real numbers r, there is a real numbers such that s is an additive inverse for r.

Exercise 3: Fill in the blanks to rewrite the statement below.

Statement: Every pot has a lid.

a. All pots _____.

b. For all pots P, there is _____.
c. For all pots P, there is a lid L such that ______.

F. Existential Universal Statement

- An existential universal statement is a statement that is existential because its first part
asserts that a certain object exists and is universal because its second part says that the
object satisfies a certain property for all things of a certain kind.
- For Example:
 There is a positive integer that is less than or equal to every positive integer.

The statement is true because the number one is a positive integer, and it satisfies the
property being less than or equal to every positive integer. We can rewrite the
statement in several ways, some less formal and some more formal:

 Some positive integer is less than or equal to every positive integer.

o There is a positive integer m that is less than or equal to every positive
integer.
o There is a positive integer m such that every positive integer is greater than
or equal to m.
o There is a positive integer m with the property that for all positive integers n,
m≤n.

Exercise 4: Fill in the blanks to rewrite the following statement in three different ways.

Statement: There is a person in my class who is at least as old as every person in my class.
a. Some _____ is at least as old as _____.
b. There is a person P in my class such that P is _____.
c. There is a person P in my class with the property that for every person Q in my class, P
is _____.

2.3 Sets
A set is a collection of distinct objects. This means that {1, 2, 3} is a set but {1, 1, 3} is not
because 1 appears twice in the second collection. The second collection is called a multiset.
Sets are often specified with curly brace notation. The set of even integers can be written:
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{2n : n is an integer}

The opening and closing curly braces denote a set, 2n specifies the members of the set, the
colon says “such that” or “where” and everything following the colon are the conditions that
explain or refine the membership. This is called the set builder notation.

All correct mathematics can be spoken in English. The set definition above is spoken:
“The set of twice n where n is an integer”.

Examples:

1. If C is the set of countries that are currently in United Nations, then the United States is
an element of C.
2. If S is the set of all integers from 1 to 100, then the number 25 is an element of I.

A. Empty Sets
The empty set is a set containing no objects. It is written as a pair of curly braces with
nothing inside {} or by using the symbol ∅.
As we shall see, the empty set is a handy object. It is also quite strange. The set of all
humans that weigh at least eight tons, for example, is the empty set. Sets whose definition
contains a contradiction or impossibility are often empty. Empty sets are also called null
sets.

B. Set Element Symbol

The set membership symbol ∈ is used to say that an object is an element of a set. It has a
partner symbol ∈ which is used to say an object is not in a set.

A variation of the notation is sometimes used to describe a very large set.

Example: {1, 2, 3, •••, 100} refer to the set of all integers from 1 to 100.

A similar notation can also describe an infinite set.

Example: {1, 2, 3, •••} refer to the set of all positive integers.

Note: the symbol ••• is called an ellipsis and is read “and so forth”.

C. Equality
We say two sets are equal if they have exactly the same elements.

Example: If
S = {1, 2, 3}
Then, 3 ∈ S and 4 ∈ S.

The set element symbol is often used in defining operations that manipulate sets.

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The set:
T = {2, 3, 1}

is equal to S because they have the same members: 1, 2, and 3. While we usually list the
members of a set in a “standard” order (if one is available) there is no requirement to do so
and sets are indifferent to the order in which their members are listed.

D. Cardinality
The cardinality of a set is its size. For a finite set, the cardinality of a set is the number of
elements it contains. In symbolic notation the size of a set S is written |S|.

For the set S = {1, 2, 3}, we show cardinality by writing |S| = 3. (There are three elements in
the set)

E. Intersection of Sets
The intersection of two sets S and T is the collection of all objects that are in both sets. It is
written S ∩ T . Using curly brace notation,

S ∩ T = {x : (x ∈ S) and (x ∈ T )}

The symbol and in the above definition is an example of a Boolean or logical operation. It is
only true when both the propositions it joins are also true. It has a symbolic equivalent ∧.
This lets us write the formal definition of intersection more compactly:

S ∩ T = {x : (x ∈ S) ∧ (x ∈ T )}

For Example:
Suppose S = {1, 2, 3, 5},
T = {1, 3, 4, 5}, and
U = {2, 3, 4, 5}.
Then:
S ∩ T = {1, 3, 5},

S ∩ U = {2, 3, 5}, and

T ∩ U = {3, 4, 5}

Note: If A and B are sets and A ∩ B = ∅, then we say that A and B are disjoint, or disjoint
sets.

F. Union of Sets
The union of two sets S and T is the collection of all objects that are in either set. It is
written S ∪ T . Using curly brace notion,

S ∪ T = {x : (x ∈ S) or (x ∈ T )}

The symbol or is another Boolean operation, one that is true if either of the propositions it
joins are true. Its symbolic equivalent is ∨ which lets us re-write the definition of union as:
S ∪ T = {x : (x ∈ S) ∨ (x ∈ T )}

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For Example:
Suppose S = {1, 2, 3},
T = {1, 3, 5}, and
U = {2, 3, 4, 5}
Then:
S ∪ T = {1, 2, 3, 5},
S ∪ U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}, and
T ∪ U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}

When performing set theoretic computations, you should declare the domain in which you
are working. In set theory this is done by declaring a universal set.

G. Universal Sets
The universal set, at least for a given collection of set theoretic computations, is the set of
all possible objects.
If we declare our universal set to be the integers then is not a well-defined set because
the objects used to define it are not members of the universal set. The symbols { do
define a set if a universal set that includes and is chosen. The problem arises from the
fact that neither of these numbers are integers. The universal set is commonly written U.

H. Subsets

For two sets S and T, we say that S is a subset of T if each element of S is also an element of
T. In formal notation S ⊆ T if:

for all x ∈ S we have x ∈ T

If S ⊆ T then we also say T contains S which can be written T ⊇ S.

If S ⊆ T and S T then we write S ⊂ T and we say S is a proper subset of T.

The formula in getting the number of subsets is 2k , where k is the number of elements

For Example:
If A = {a, b, c}
Then,
A has eight different subsets:
∅, {a}, {b}, {c},{a, b}, {a, c}, {b, c}, {a, b, c}

Notice that A ⊆ A and in fact each set is a subset of itself. The empty set ∅ is a subset of
every set.

Exercise 5: Given the following sets:

A = {1, 2, 4, 8, 9}
B = {1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9}
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C = {3, 5, 7, 8, 9}

a. Find A ∩ B
b. Find A ∪ B and | A ∪ B |
c. Fill in the blank: C ⊆ ___.
d. How many subsets does Set B have?

I. Special Symbolic Names

Symbol Set

R set of all real numbers

Z set of all integers

Q set of all rational numbers, or quotients of integers

Table 1: Special Set Symbols

Note: The Z is the first letter of the German word for integers, Zahlen. It stands for the set
of all integers and should not be used as shorthand for the word integer.

Addition of superscript + or – or the letters nonneg indicates that the only positive or
negative or nonnegative elements of the set, respectively, are to be included.

Examples:
 R+ --- denotes the set of positive real numbers
 R- --- denotes the set of negative real numbers
 Znonneg --- denotes the set of nonnegative integers: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, and so on and so forth.

Some authors refer to the set of nonnegative integers as the set of natural numbers and
denotes it as N, while some authors refer to the set of positive integers the set of natural
numbers denoted by N as well.

Example:

1. Let A = Z+, B ={n Z | 0 100}, and C = {100, 200, 300, 400, 500}. Evaluate the truth and
falsity of each statement.

a. B A
b. C is a proper subset of A
c. C and B have at least one element in common
d. C B
e. C C

2. Which of the following statements are true.?

a. 2 {1, 2, 3}
b. {2} {1, 2, 3}
c. {2} {{1}, {2}}
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Solution:
1.a) B A is false. The element 0 is not a positive integer. Also, 0 is in B but not present in A. So, B
A.
1.b) C is a proper subset of A is true. All elements of C are positive integer, are in A, and there are
elements in A that are not present in C.
1.c) C and B have at least one element in common is true because 100 is present in both of C and B.

1.d) C B is false. There are elements in C that are not in B, for example 200.

1.e) C C is true. The elements of C are also present in C itself. Generally, the definition of subset
implies that all sets are subsets of themselves.

2.a) False. It is true if the number 2 would have to be a set and every element in the set 2 would have
the element of {1, 2, 3}
2.b) True.
2.c) False. It is true if every element of in the set containing only the number 2 would have to be an
element of the set whose elements are {1} and {2}. But 2 is not equal either to {1} or {2}.

2.4 Venn Diagram

- Graphical representation of a set.

- Is a rectangle (the universal set) that includes circles depicting the subsets. The diagram is

named after the English logician John Venn (1834-1923) in 1880.

Figure 1: Venn Diagram

Examples:

Let A = {1, 2, 3} and B = {2, 3, 4}

Find:

a. A ∩ B

b. A B

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Solution:

a. A B A B = {1, 2, 3, 4}

1. Let A = {1, 3, 5} and B = {1, 2, 3}, what is the intersection of A and B?

A ∩ B = {1, 3}

2. The union and intersection of A, B, C

Figure 10: A B C Figure 11: A B C

3. Let A = {0, 2, 4, 6, 8}, B = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4}, and C = {0, 3, 6, 9}. What are A B C and A B C?

A B C = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9} A B C = {0}

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Table 2: Set Identities

Identity Name
A A Idempotent laws
A A
A B=B A Commutative laws
A B=B A
A (B C) = (A B) C Associative laws
A (B C) = (A B) C
A (B C) = (A B) (B C) Distributive laws
A (B C) = (A B) (B C)

1. Let’s prove the Associative law using the sets, A = {0, 2, 4, 6, 8}, B = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4}, and C = {0, 3,

6, 9}.

A (B C) = (A B) C

A (B C) = {0, 2, 4, 6, 8} ({0, 1, 2, 3, 4} {0, 3, 6, 9})

A (B C) = {0, 2, 4, 6, 8} {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 9}

A (B C) = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9}

(A B) C = ({0, 2, 4, 6, 8} 0, 1, 2, 3, 4}) {0, 3, 6, 9}

(A B) C = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8} {0, 3, 6, 9}

A (B C) = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9}

A (B C) = (A B) C

A (B C) = {0, 2, 4, 6, 8} ({0, 1, 2, 3, 4} {0, 3, 6, 9})

A (B C) = {0, 2, 4, 6, 8} {0, 3}

A (B C) = {0}

(A B) C = ({0, 2, 4, 6, 8} {0, 1, 2, 3, 4}) {0, 3, 6, 9}

(A B) C = {0, 2, 4} {0, 3, 6, 9}

A (B C) = {0}

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