Chapter 2

Mathematical Language and Symbols

Characteristics of Mathematical
Language

Language
 is a system of communication used by a

particular community that can either be spoken

or written.
 is a way of transforming information and

meaning.
 is a set of (finite or infinite) of sentences, each

finite in length and constructed out of a finite

set of elements.
Mathematical Language
 is the system used to communicate
mathematical ideas.
 was designed so we can write about things

such as numbers, sets, functions, etc. and

what we do with those things like perform
operations such as addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division.
Components of the Language of
Mathematics
 Some things associated with language are also
associated with the Language of Mathematics.
These are the following:

1. Discreteness conveys that language consists of minimal

units.
2. Grammar tells that language consists of rules and
patterns to units.
3. Productivity shows that language can create totally
novel statements that could be understood.
4. Displacement reveals that language can convey
imaginary, distant, past, present, and future statements.
Conventions in the Mathematical
Language
A Mathematical Convention is a fact, name,
notation, or usage which is generally agreed
upon by mathematicians.

Mathematical symbols are very important in

mathematical works. Instead of words, they
are used to describe the conventions used by
mathematicians, even engineers, and
scientists.
Here are some of the symbols commonly used in Mathematics:

Another form of a mathematical symbol used when quantities take different

values is variables.
Variable
A variable is a symbol commonly represented by any
letter that may assume
various values.
For instance, the phrase “a number” is sometimes
expressed as variable x, a, b, or any other letter in
the English alphabet.
There are many other conventions in
Mathematics but only those conventions about the
translation of expression, sentences, sets,
relations, and functions are the focus of the
discussions here.
The Grammar of Mathematics
 The mathematical notation used for formulas
has its own grammar, not dependent on a
specific natural language, but shared
intentionally by mathematicians regardless of
their mother tongues.
 Characteristics of the Mathematics
Language

1. Precise (able to make very fine distinctions or

definitions)
2. Concise (able to tell things briefly)
3. Powerful (able to convey or express complex
thoughts with relative ease)
Just like an English sentence,
in Mathematics a sentence says something:What is a
"Closed Sentence" or an "Open Sentence" in
Mathematics?
English: Mathematics:
The sun is shining. 3+3=6
Hawaii is in the Pacific Ocean. 10 is an even number

What is a "Closed Sentence" or an "Open Sentence" in

Mathematics?

A Closed Sentence is always true or always false

while an Open Sentence can be either true or false
depending on what values are used.
Examples:
8 is an even number   is closed (it is always true)

  is closed (it is always false)

9 is an even number

n is an even number   is open (could be true or false,

depending on the value of n)
In that last example:
if n was 4 the sentence would be true,
if n was 5 the sentence would be false,
etc ...
But we didn't say what value n has!
So "n is an even number" may be true or false. So it is open.
Sets
  A
 set is a collection of well-defined objects.

 Theindividual objects in a set are called the

members or elements and is denoted by .

A set is well-defined if it is possible to decide

whether an object belongs to a given set or
not.
  
Sets are denoted by any capital letter of the
English alphabet, while, the elements by
small
 letters. Say, for instance, the set of integers is

denoted by letter .
 A set that has no element is called the empty

set or null set and is denoted by Ø or { }.

 In Mathematics, there are certain sets of
numbers that are given special symbolic names.
 Some of which are as follows:
Two Ways of Describing a Set
 There are two ways of describing a set,
namely: the tabular or roster method and
the rule method.

 The tabular or roster method enumerates or lists the

distinct elements of a set

 The rule method makes use of description by giving

the common characteristics of the elements.
 In the roster method, the elements are
separated by commas and are enclosed in
braces { }, while the rule method is
customarily denoted by {x}
condition/characteristics of the elements}.
The vertical bar, , is a symbolic
representation for the phrase “such that”.
Tabular or Roster Method
  
 ,

 V = {a, e, i, o, u}
 W = {September, October, November,

December}
Rule Method or Set Builder Notation
 A = {x|x is an even number, 6 < x < 14}
 P = {x | x is a counting number and greater

than 12}
Representation of a Statement in Both
Forms
What are the differences between
finite sets and infinite sets?
 Finite set: A set is said to be a finite set if it is either void set or the
process of counting of elements surely comes to an end is called a
finite set.

 In a finite set the element can be listed if it has a limited i.e.

countable by natural number 1, 2, 3, ……… and the process of listing
terminates at a certain natural number N.

 The number of distinct elements counted in a finite set S is denoted

by n(S). The number of elements of a finite set A is called the order
or cardinal number of a set A and is symbolically denoted by n(A).

 Thus, if the set A be that of the English alphabets, then n(A) = 26:
For, it contains 26 elements in it. Again if the set A be the vowels of
the English alphabets i.e. A = {a, e, i, o, u} then n(A) = 5.
Examples of finite set:

1. Let P = {5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30}

Then, P is a finite set and n(P) = 6.
2. Let Q = {natural numbers less than 25}
Then, Q is a finite set and n(P) = 24.
3. Let R = {whole numbers between 5 and 45}
Then, R is a finite set and n(R) = 38.
4. Let S = {x : x ∈ Z and x^2 – 81 = 0}
Then, S = {-9, 9} is a finite set and n(S) = 2.
5. The set of all persons in America is a finite set.
6. The set of all birds in California is a finite set.
 Infinite set: A set is said to be an infinite set
whose elements cannot be listed if it has an
unlimited (i.e. uncountable) by the natural
number 1, 2, 3, 4, ………… n, for any natural
number n is called a infinite set.

 A set which is not finite is called an infinite

set.
Examples of infinite set:

1. Set of all points in a plane is an infinite set.

2. Set of all points in a line segment is an infinite
set.
3. Set of all positive integers which is multiple of 3
is an infinite set.
4. W = {0, 1, 2, 3, ……..} i.e. set of all whole
numbers is an infinite set.
5. N = {1, 2, 3, ……….} i.e. set of all natural
numbers is an infinite set.
6. Z = {……… -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, ……….} i.e. set of all
integers is an infinite set.
Subsets

 If A and B are sets such that every element of A is

also an element of B, then we say that A is a subset
of B, in symbol, A ⊆ B. Also, we can use the phrases
“A is contained in B” or “B contains A” as alternative
ways of saying that A is a subset of B.
 If there is at least one element of A that is not an

element of B, then we say that A is not a subset of B,

in symbol, A ⊄ B.
Example
Find all the subsets of set A = {1,2,34}
Solution: Given, A = {1,2,3,4}
Subsets =
{}
{1}, {2}, {3}, {4},
{1,2}, {1,3}, {1,4}, {2,3},{2,4}, {3,4},
{1,2,3}, {2,3,4}, {1,3,4}, {1,2,4}
{1,2,3,4}
  
 If A is a subset of B and B is also a subset of

A, then A and B are said to be equal, in

symbol, A=B. This concept may be written as,
A ⊆ B and B ⊆ A ; where stands for the phrase “
if and only if”.
Cartesian Product
 For two sets A and B, the Cartesian product
of A and B is denoted by A×B and defined as:
A×B = { (a,b) | aϵA and bϵB }
 Cartesian Product is the multiplication of two

sets to form the set of all ordered pairs. The first

element of the ordered pair belong to first set
and second  pair belong the second set. For an
example, 
 Suppose, A = {dog, cat} B = {meat, milk} then,

A×B = {(dog,meat), (cat,milk), (dog,milk),

(cat,meat)}
Example
 Suppose, A = {dog, cat} B = {meat, milk} then,
A×B = {(dog,meat), (cat,milk), (dog,milk),
(cat,meat)}
Relations
 From the mathematical standpoint, a relation
is any set of ordered pairs (x,y) of real
numbers and is usually considered a subset
of a cartesian product. The set of all values of
x is called the domain of the relation while
the set of all values of y is called the range of
the relation. We shall denote the domain of
the relation by D and the range of the relation
by R.
Functions
 Function is a special kind of relation in which
every element of the domain is the x-
coordinate of an ordered pair of the function
and no two ordered pairs have the same x-
coordinate. Hence, when all ordered pairs of
a relation are listed, one can decide whether
such a relation is a function or not by simply
examining its x-coordinates.
Function as a set of ordered pairs
  
{(2x,y),(6x,3y),(8x,4y)}
{(x,7),(x,9),(x,11)}

In these sets od ordered pairs, the first two are

functions, but the third one is not since there
are three outputs from just one input
Function as a graph
 If the relation is described in terms of graph, we
just apply the Vertical Line Test on the graphs to
determine whether it is a function or not.

Vertical Line Test

 Draw vertical lines anywhere on the plane to intersect
the graph. If any vertical line intersected the graph
more than once, then the relation is not a function.
Vertical Line Test
Function Not a Function Function

Function Not a Function Not a Function

Function as a graph
Binary Operations
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3exD7J5dzhg

Solving Binary Operations

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9i3s-wFkL5I

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOB23u3zBLE
 Thank You
See you next meeting