IS MATHEMATICS

INVENTED
DESCRIBE OR
WHAT 5.
BIRTH OF SET THEORY AND
4. 3. 2. 1.

WHAT
CREATED? IS
MATHEMATICS
PROBLEMS IN DO?
THE
MODERN ALGEBRA AND
MATHEMATICS?
FOUNDATION
NUMBER THEORY OF
MATHEMATICS
 Modern Algebra and Number
Theory
• Modern algebra, also called abstract algebra, branch
of mathematics concerned with the general algebraic
structure of various sets (such as real
numbers, complex numbers, matrices, and vector
spaces), rather than rules and procedures for
manipulating their individual elements.
 Structural axioms
The basic rules, or axioms, for addition and multiplication are
shown in the table, and a set that satisfies all 10 of these rules is
called a field. A set satisfying only axioms 1–7 is called a ring, and
if it also satisfies axiom 9 it is called a ring with unity. A ring
satisfying the commutative law of multiplication (axiom 8) is
known as a commutative ring. When axioms 1–9 hold and there
are no proper divisors of zero (i.e., whenever ab = 0 either a = 0
or b = 0), a set is called an integral domain. For example, the set
of integers {…, −2, −1, 0, 1, 2, …} is a commutative ring with unity,
but it is not a field, because axiom 10 fails. When only axiom 8
fails, a set is known as a division ring or skew field.
 Field axioms
Closure: the combination (hereafter indicated by addition or
axiom 1 multiplication) of any two elements in the set produces an element
in the set.

axiom 2 Addition is commutative: a + b = b + a for any elements in the set.

Addition is associative: a + (b + c) = (a + b) + c for any elements in the

axiom 3 set.
Additive identity: there exists an element 0 such that a + 0 = a for
axiom 4 every element in the set.
Additive inverse: for each element a in the set, there exists an
axiom 5 element -a such that a + (-a) = 0.

axiom 6 Multiplication is associative: a(bc) = (ab)c for any elements in the set.

Distributive law: a(b + c) = ab + ac and (a + b)c = ac + bc for any

axiom 7 elements in the set.

axiom 8 Multiplication is commutative: ab = ba for any elements in the set.

Multiplicative identity: there exists an element 1 such that 1a = a for

axiom 9 any element in the set.
Multiplicative inverse: for each element a in the set, there exists an
axiom 10 element a-1 such that aa-1 = 1.
 Rings
Rings in number theory
-Rings can arise naturally in solving
mathematical problems, as shown in
the following example: Which whole
numbers can be written as the sum of
two squares? In other words, when
can a whole number n be written
as a2 + b2?
Rings in algebraic geometry
-Rings are used extensively
in algebraic geometry. Consider a
curve in the plane given by an
equation in two variables such
as y2 = x3 + 1. The curve shown in
the figure consists of all points (x, y)
that satisfy the equation. For example,
(2, 3) and (−1, 0) are points on the
curve. Every algebraic function in two
variables assigns a value to every
point of the curve. For example, xy +
2x assigns the value 10 to the point (2,
3) and −2 to the point (−1, 0).
Rings
Rings in algebraic geometry

-Rings are used extensively

in algebraic geometry. Consider a
curve in the plane given by an
equation in two variables such
as y2 = x3 + 1. The curve shown in
the figure consists of all points (x, y)
that satisfy the equation. For example,
(2, 3) and (−1, 0) are points on the
curve. Every algebraic function in two
variables assigns a value to every
point of the curve. For example, xy +
2x assigns the value 10 to the point (2,
3) and −2 to the point (−1, 0).
Number Theory
• Branch of mathematics concerned with properties of the
positive integers (1, 2, 3, …). Sometimes called “higher
arithmetic,” it is among the oldest and most natural of
mathematical pursuits.
• Number theory has always fascinated amateurs as well as
professional mathematicians. In contrast to other branches of
mathematics, many of the problems and theorems of number
theory can be understood by laypersons, although solutions to
the problems and proofs of the theorems often require a
sophisticated mathematical background.
Pythagoras
• According to tradition, Pythagoras(c. 580–500 BCE) worked in
southern Italy amid devoted followers. His philosophy enshrined
number as the unifying concept necessary for understanding
everything from planetary motion to musical harmony.
• For instance, they attached significance to perfect numbers—
i.e., those that equal the sum of their proper divisors. Examples
are 6 (whose proper divisors 1, 2, and 3 sum to 6) and 28 (1 + 2
+ 4 + 7 + 14). The Greek philosopher Nicomachus of
Gerasa (flourished c. 100 CE), writing centuries after
Pythagoras but clearly in his philosophical debt, stated that
perfect numbers represented “virtues, wealth, moderation,
propriety, and beauty.”
Euclid
• Euclid presented number theory without the flourishes. He
began Book VII of his Elements by defining a number as “a
multitude composed of units.” The plural here excluded 1; for
Euclid, 2 was the smallest “number.” He later defined a prime as
a number “measured by a unit alone” (i.e., whose only proper
divisor is 1), a composite as a number that is not prime, and
a perfect number as one that equals the sum of its “parts” (i.e.,
its proper divisors).
Diophantus
• Of later Greek mathematicians, especially noteworthy is Diophantus
of Alexandria (flourished c. 250), author of Arithmetica. This book
features a host of problems, the most significant of which have come
to be called Diophantine equations. These are equations
whose solutions must be whole numbers. For example, Diophantus
asked for two numbers, one a square and the other a cube, such that
the sum of their squares is itself a square. In modern symbols, he
sought integers x, y, and z such that (x2)2 + (y3)2 = z2. It is easy to find
real numbers satisfying this relationship (e.g., x = Square root
of√2, y = 1, and z = Square root of√5), but the requirement that
solutions be integers makes the problem more difficult. (One answer
is x = 6, y = 3, and z = 45.) Diophantus’s work strongly influenced
later mathematics.
Pierre de Fermat
• In 1640 he stated what is known as Fermat’s little theorem—namely, that
if p is prime and a is any whole number, then p divides evenly into ap − a.
• Fermat investigated the two types of odd primes: those that are one
more than a multiple of 4 and those that are one less. These are
designated as the 4k + 1 primes and the 4k − 1 primes, respectively
• In 1638 Fermat asserted that every whole number can be expressed as
the sum of four or fewer squares. He claimed to have a proof but did not
share it.
• Fermat stated that there cannot be a right triangle with sides
of integer length whose area is a perfect square. This amounts to saying
that there do not exist integers x, y, z, and w such that x2 + y2 = z2 (the
Pythagorean relationship) and that w2 = 1/2(base) (height) = xy/2.
  
Prime Number Theorem

• One of the supreme

achievements of 19th-
century mathematics was the
prime number theorem, and it
is worth a brief digression. To
begin, designate the number of
primes less than or equal
to n by π(n). Thus π(10) = 4
because 2, 3, 5, and 7 are the
four primes not exceeding 10.
Similarly π(25) = 9 and π(100)
= 25.
Next, consider the proportion of numbers less than or equal to n that are
prime—i.e., π(n)/n. Clearly π(10)/10 = 0.40, meaning that 40 percent of the
numbers not exceeding 10 are prime.
Number Theory In The 20th Century
• One of the great contributors from early in the 20th century was the
incandescent genius Srinivasa Ramanujan (1887–1920).
Ramanujan, whose formal training was as limited as his life was
short, burst upon the mathematical scene with a series of brilliant
discoveries. Analytic number theory was among his specialties, and
his publications carried titles such as “Highly composite numbers”
and “Proof that almost all numbers n are composed of about
log(log n) prime factors.”
• Twentieth-century number theory reached a much-publicized climax
in 1995, when Fermat’s last theorem was proved by the
Englishman Andrew Wiles, with timely assistance from his British
colleague Richard Taylor. Wiles succeeded where so many had
failed with a 130-page proof of incredible complexity, one that
certainly would not fit into any margin.
BIRTH OF SET THEORY
AND PROBLEMS IN THE
FOUNDATION OF
MATHEMATICS
 Set theory
• Branch of mathematics that deals with the properties of well-defined
collections of objects, which may or may not be of a mathematical nature,
such as numbers or functions. The theory is less valuable in direct application
to ordinary experience than as a basis for precise and adaptable terminology
for the definition of complex and sophisticated mathematical concepts.
• The theory had the revolutionary aspect of treating infinite sets as
mathematical objects that are on an equal footing with those that can be
constructed in a finite number of steps. Since antiquity, a majority of
mathematicians had carefully avoided the introduction into their arguments of
the actual infinite (i.e., of sets containing an infinity of objects conceived as
existing simultaneously, at least in thought). Since this attitude persisted until
almost the end of the 19th century, Cantor’s work was the subject of
much criticism to the effect that it dealt with fictions—indeed, that
it encroached on the domain of philosophers and violated the principles
of religion
Introduction To Naive Set Theory
• Fundamental set concepts
In naive set theory, a set is a collection of objects (called members or
elements) that is regarded as being a single object. To indicate that an
object x is a member of a set A one writes x ∊ A, while x ∉ A indicates
that x is not a member of A. A set may be defined by a membership rule
(formula) or by listing its members within braces. For example, the set
given by the rule “prime numbers less than 10” can also be given by {2, 3,
5, 7}. In principle, any finite set can be defined by an explicit list of its
members, but specifying infinite sets requires a rule or pattern to indicate
membership; for example, the ellipsis in {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, …} indicates
that the list of natural numbers ℕ goes on forever. The empty (or void,
or null) set, symbolized by {} or Ø, contains no elements at all.
Nonetheless, it has the status of being a set. A set A is called a subset of a
set B (symbolized by A ⊆ B) if all the members of A are also members
of B.
• Operations on sets

The symbol ∪ is employed to denote the union of two sets. Thus,

the set A ∪ B—read “A union B” or “the union of A and B”—is
defined as the set that consists of all elements belonging to either
set A or set B (or both). For example, suppose that Committee A,
consisting of the 5 members Jones, Blanshard, Nelson, Smith,
and Hixon, meets with Committee B, consisting of the 5 members
Blanshard, Morton, Hixon, Young, and Peters. Clearly, the union
of Committees A and B must then consist of 8 members rather
than 10—namely, Jones, Blanshard, Nelson, Smith, Morton,
Hixon, Young, and Peters.
Relations in set theory
• In mathematics, a relation is an association between, or
property of, various objects. Relations can be represented by
sets of ordered pairs (a, b) where a bears a relation to b.
• A function f can be regarded as a relation between each
object x in its domain and the value f(x). A function f is a relation
with a special property, however: each x is related by f to one
and only one y. That is, two ordered pairs (x, y) and (x, z)
in f imply that y = z.
• A one-to-one correspondence between sets A and B is similarly
a pairing of each object in A with one and only one object in B,
with the dual property that each object in B has been thereby
paired with one and only one object in A.
 
Axiomatic Set Theory
• In contrast to naive set theory, the attitude adopted in
an axiomatic development of set theory is that it is not
necessary to know what the “things” are that are called “sets” or
what the relation of membership means. Of sole concern are
the properties assumed about sets and the membership
relation. Thus, in an axiomatic theory of sets, set and the
membership relation ∊ are undefined terms. The assumptions
adopted about these notions are called the axioms of the
theory. Axiomatic set theorems are the axioms together with
statements that can be deduced from the axioms using the
rules of inference provided by a system of logic/
The Zermelo-Fraenkel axioms
• The first axiomatization of set theory was given in 1908 by
German mathematician Ernst Zermelo. From his analysis of
the paradoxes described above in the section Cardinality and
transfinite numbers, he concluded that they are associated with
sets that are “too big,” such as the set of all sets in
Cantor’s paradox. Thus, the axioms that Zermelo formulated
are restrictive insofar as the asserting or implying of the
existence of sets is concerned. As a consequence, there is no
apparent way, in his system, to derive the known contradictions
from them. On the other hand, the results of classical set theory
short of the paradoxes can be derived.
The Neumann-Bernays-Gödel axioms

• The second axiomatization of set theory (see the table of

Neumann-Bernays-Gödel axioms) originated with John von
Neumann in the 1920s.
• His formulation differed considerably from ZFC because the
notion of function, rather than that of set, was taken as
undefined, or “primitive.” In a series of papers beginning in
1937, however, the Swiss logician Paul Bernays, a collaborator
with the German formalist David Hilbert, modified the von
Neumann approach in a way that put it in much closer contact
with ZFC.
• A comparison of the two theories that have been
formulated is in order. In contrast to the axiom
schema of replacement of ZFC, the NBG version
is not an axiom schema but an axiom. Thus, with
the comments above about the ZFC axiom
schema of separation in mind, it follows that NBG
has only a finite number of axioms.
Present status of axiomatic set theory

• The foundations of axiomatic set theory are in a state of

significant change as a result of new discoveries. The situation
with alternate (and conflicting) axiom systems for set theory
is analogous to the 19th-century revolution in geometry that was
set off by the discovery of non-Euclidean geometries. It is
difficult to predict the ultimate consequences of these late 20th-
century findings for set theory, but already they have had
profound effects on attitudes about certain axioms and have
forced the realization of a continuous search for additional
axioms.
 WHAT
IS MATHEMATICS?
 Life Algebra Shapes Learning Volume Subtraction
Quantity Area Logical Fractions Explore
Fractions
Increase Everywhere
Difficult Formula Tricky
Explore
Formula Challenging Patterns
Equations Logical
Problem-solving
LogicalTricky Division
Discount
Calculations
Equal Shapes Stressful
Everywhere Signs
Fun Value Life Difficult
Problem-solving Logical Numbers Symbols
Calculations Symbols
Derivative
Solutions Addition
Signs Multiplication Learning
Subtraction Increase
Tricky
Universal Formula
Fractions
Equations
Interesting
Multiplication Quantity
Algebra Value Problem-solving Annuity Area
• Mathematics, the science of structure, order, and
relation that has evolved from elemental practices of
counting, measuring, and describing the shapes of
objects. It deals with logical reasoning and
quantitative calculation, and its development has
involved an increasing degree of idealization and
abstraction of its subject matter. Since the 17th
century, mathematics has been an indispensable
adjunct to the physical sciences and technology, and
in more recent times it has assumed a similar role in
the quantitative aspects of the life sciences.
• The substantive branches of mathematics
are treated in several
articles.  algebra; analysis; arithmetic, combi
natorics; game theory; geometry; number
theory; numerical
analysis; optimization; probability theory; set
theory; statistics; trigonometry
DESCRIBE WHAT MATHEMATICS DO

• Math isn’t just some arbitrary thing we stumbled across,

it was created to be useful in explaining aspects of our
world.
• Math is all around us, in everything we do. It is the
building block for everything in our daily lives, including
mobile devices, architecture (ancient and modern), art,
money, engineering, and even sports
• When we had the foundation of basic mathematics, we
were able to ask more complicated questions. These
questions also required accurate mathematical models.
Just as addition and subtraction was invented to
describe the combining and taking away of groups of
objects, integers arise, followed by multiplication and
division, prime numbers, exponents, polynomials,
imaginary numbers, and more. As the foundation of
math grows, so does the complexity of our questions.
We are no longer limited to asking questions like, “what
is my total after combining group one with group two?”
we can now ask questions such as “how does the Earth
orbit the Sun?” or “What is mass?”
IS MATHEMATICS INVENTED OR CREATED?
• Mathematics is the language of science and has
enabled mankind to make extraordinary technological
advances. There is no question that the logic and order
that underpins mathematics, has served us in
describing the patterns and structure we find in nature.
• The successes that have been achieved, from the
mathematics of the cosmos down to electronic devices
at the microscale, are significant. Einstein remarked,
“How can it be that mathematics, being after all a
product of human thought which is independent of
experience, is so admirably appropriate to the objects of
reality?”
 Amongst mathematicians and scientists there is no consensus on this
fascinating question. The various types of responses to Einstein’s conundrum
include:
1) Math is innate-The reason mathematics is the natural language of science,
is that the universe is underpinned by the same order. The structures of
mathematics are intrinsic to nature.
2) ) Math is a human construct. The only reason mathematics is admirably
suited describing the physical world is that we invented it to do just that. It is
a product of the human mind and we make mathematics up as we go along
to suit our purposes.
3) ) Math is not so successful. Those that marvel at the ubiquity of
mathematical applications have perhaps been seduced by an
overstatement of their successes. Analytical mathematical equations only
approximately describe the real world, and even then only describe a
limited subset of all the phenomena around us.
4) Keep calm and carry on. What matters is that mathematics produces
results. Save the hot air for philosophers. This is called the “shut up and
calculate” position.