MATHEMATICAL

LANGUAGE AND SYMBOLS

“Like any language, mathematics has its own syntax, and rules.”
Learning the Language of Mathematics
(Jamison, 2000)
Unlike the language of ordinary speech, mathematical
language is
 nontemporal
 devoid of emotional content
 precise

Example: The word “any” in ordinary speech is

ambiguous.
Can anyone work this problem? (existential qualifier)
Anyone can do it! (universal qualifier)
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
Definitions
(Jamison, 2000)

A definition is a concise statement of the basic properties of an

object or concept which unambiguously identify that object or
concept.

Every concept is defined as a subclass of a more general concept

called genus. Each special subclass of the genus is characterized by
special features called the species.

Good Definition
A rectangle is a quadrilateral all four of whose angles are right
angles.
Definitions
(Jamison, 2000)
Poor Definition (not concise)
A rectangle is a parallelogram in which the diagonals have the same length and
all the angles are right angles. It can be inscribed in a circle and its area is given
by the product of two adjacent sides.

Poor Definition (not basic)

A rectangle is a parallelogram whose diagonals have equal lengths.

Bad Definition (ambiguous)

A rectangle is a quadrilateral with right angles.

Unacceptable Definition (no genus)

Rectangle: has right angles
Important Statements
1. A universalStatements says that a certain property is true for all
elements in a set.
Example: All positive numbers are greater than zero.
2. A conditional statements says that if one thing is true then some other
thing also has to be true.
Example: If 378 is divisible by 18, then 378 is divisible by 6.
3. Given a property that may or may not be true, an Existential Statement
says that there is at least one thing for which the property is true.
Example: There is a prime number that is even.
 Universal Conditional Statements
 Universal statements contain variation of the words “for all “ and conditional
statements contain versions of the words ”if – then”.
 A universal conditional statement is a statement that is both universal and conditional
 Example:
For all animals a, if a is a dog, then a is a mammal.
Rewriting this:
 If a is a dog, then a is a mammal.
 If an animal is a dog, then the animal is a mammal.

 For all dog a, a is a mammal.

 All dogs are mammal.
 Let’s try this…
Fill in the blanks to rewrite the following statement.
For all real numbers x, if x is nonzero then x2 is positive

a. If a real number is nonzero, then its square _____________.

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

a. If a real number is nonzero, then its square is positive.

b. For all nonzero real numbers x, x2 is positive.
c. If x is a nonzero real number, then x2 is positive.
d. The square of any nonzero real number is positive.
e. All nonzero real numbers have positive squares (or: squares that are
positive).
 Universal Existential Statements
 A universal existential statements 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.
All real numbers have additive inverses.
Or For all real numbers r, there is an additive inverse for r.
Or For all real numbers r, there is a real number s such that s is an additive inverse.
Let’s try this…

Fill in the blanks to rewrite the following 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 __________.
Answer

Every pot has a lid.

a. All pots have lids.

b. For all pots P, there is a lid for P.
c. For all pots P, there is a lid L, such that L is a lid for P.
Existential Universal Statements

 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.
 Example
There is a positive integer that is less than or equal to every positive
integer;
 Let’s try this…

 Fill in the blanks to rewrite the following 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 ______________.
 Answer:

There is a person in my class who is at least as old as every person

in my class.
a. Some person in my class is at least as old as every person in my
class.
b. There is a person p in my class such that p is at least as old as every
person in my class.
c. There is a person p in my class with the property that for every
person q in my class, p is at least as old as q.
References:

Gowers, T. (2008). The Language and grammar of mathematics. In T.

Gowers (Ed.), The Princeton companion to mathematics (pp 8-16).
Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press.

Jamison, R. E. (2000). Learning the language of mathematics. Language

and Learning Across the Disciplines, 4(1), 45-54.

Aufmann, R.N., Lockwood, J.S. Nation, R. D. & Clegg, D. K. (2013).

Mathematical excursions (3rd ed). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole,
Cengage Learning.