Course Bachelor of Science in Accounting Information System
Course Subject Mathematics in the Modern World
Module No. Module 2. Section 2
Module Title Mathematics Language and Symbols: Basic Concepts of Mathematical
Language: Sets, Functions, and Binary Operations
A set in mathematics is a collection of well-defined and distinct objects, considered as an object
in its own right.
• It is usually represented by capital letters.
• The objects of a set are separated by commas.
• The objects that belong in a set are the elements, or members of the set.
• It can be represented by listing its element between braces.
Examples:
A= {1,2,3,4,}
B= {2,4,6,8}
Cardinality- Tells how many elements are in a set. Commonly used in finite sets.
Example:
A={2,4,6,8} |A|= 4
B={5} |B|= 1
C={2,3,5,5,3,4} |C|= 4
Two ways to represents the elements:
1. Roaster Method -lists down all the elements.
Examples:
Set A is the set of counting numbers less than 6.
A= {1,2,3,4,5}
Set B is the set of positive integers greater than 8.
B= {10,12,14,…}
2. Set Builder Notation -presents the elements by stating their common properties. It is useful
when describing infinite sets.
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Example:
The set of all even natural numbers can be written in set-builder notation as:
{x | x is an even natural number} or
{x | x = 2n, where n is a natural number}
Types of Sets
Empty Set - A set which does not contain any element is called an empty set or void set or null
set. It is denoted by { } or Ø.
A set of apples in the basket of grapes is an example of an empty set because in a grapes basket
there are no apples present.
Singleton Set - A set which contains a single element is called a singleton set.
Example: There is only one apple in a basket of grapes.
Finite Set - A set which consists of a definite number of elements is called a finite set.
Example: A set of natural numbers up to 10.
A = {1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10}
Infinite set- A set which is not finite is called an infinite set.
Example: A set of all natural numbers.
A = {1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9……}
Equivalent set- If the number of elements is the same for two different sets, then they are called
equivalent sets. The order of sets does not matter here. It is represented as:
n(A) = n(B)
where A and B are two different sets with the same number of elements.
Example: If A = {1,2,3,4} and B = {Red, Blue, Green, Black}
In set A, there are four elements and in set B also there are four elements. Therefore, set A and
set B are equivalent.
Equal sets- The two sets A and B are said to be equal if they have exactly the same elements, the
order of elements do not matter.
Example: A = {1,2,3,4} and B = {4,3,2,1}
A=B
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Disjoint Sets- The two sets A and B are said to be disjoint if the set does not contain any
common element.
Example: Set A = {1,2,3,4} and set B = {5,6,7,8} are disjoint sets, because there is no common
element between them.
Subsets- A set ‘A’ is said to be a subset of B if every element of A is also an element of B,
denoted as A ⊆ B. Even the null set is considered to be the subset of another set. In general, a
subset is a part of another set.
Example: A = {1,2,3}
Then {1,2} ⊆ A.
Similarly, other subsets of set A are: {1},{2},{3},{1,2},{2,3},{1,3},{1,2,3},{}.
Note: The set is also a subset of itself.
If A is not a subset of B, then it is denoted as A⊄B.
Proper Subset- If A ⊆ B and A ≠ B, then A is called the proper subset of B and it can be written
as A⊂B.
Example: If A = {2,5,7} is a subset of B = {2,5,7} then it is not a proper subset of B = {2,5,7}
But, A = {2,5} is a subset of B = {2,5,7} and is a proper subset also.
Superset- Set A is said to be the superset of B if all the elements of set B are the elements of set
A. It is represented as A ⊃ B.
For example, if set A = {1, 2, 3, 4} and set B = {1, 3, 4}, then set A is the superset of B.
Universal Set- A set which contains all the sets relevant to a certain condition is called the
universal set. It is the set of all possible values.
Example: If A = {1,2,3} and B {2,3,4,5}, then universal set here will be:
U = {1,2,3,4,5}
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Functions- It is a relation in which each element of the domain is paired with exactly one
element of the range. Another way of saying it is that there is one and only output (y) with each
input (x).
Function notation: y= f(x)
Where: y is the output
f is name of function
x is the input
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Illustrations of Functions:
1. Set of ordered pairs.
2. Mapping or arrow Diagram
3. Graphing
Set of ordered pairs
{(2,3), (3,0), (5,2), (4,3)} – function
{(1,2), (2,3), (1,4), (2,5)} – not function
{(1,2), (2,3), (3,2), (4,3)} – function
Mapping or arrow Diagram
Graphing
-it is a function if it passes the vertical line test.
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Finding the Range
Function Notation- y = f(x)
Also denotes as f(x) = y
Where;
x is the domain
y is the range
Example:
Domain: (5,6,7,8,9)
Range: (_,_,_,_,_)
Given: y= 3x-2
So, f(x) = 3x-2
Find the range.
Solutions:
Domain: 5 Domain: 6 Domain: 7 Domain: 8 Domain: 9
f(x) = 3(x-2) f(x) = 3(x-2) f(x) = 3(x-2) f(x) = 3(x-2) f(x) = 3(x-2)
f(5) = 3(5-2) f(6) = 3(6-2) f(7) = 3(7-2) f(8) = 3(8-2) f(9) = 3(9-2)
f(5) = 3(3) f(6) = 3(4) f(7) = 3(5) f(8) = 3(6) f(9) = 3(7)
f(5) = 9 f(6) = 12 f(7) = 15 f(8) = 18 f(9) = 21
Answer: Domain: (5,6,7,8,9)
Range: (9,12,15,18,21)
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Binary Operations. The word binary (means two) operation is an operation that takes two
input elements (operands) from a set and gives a unique result that also belongs to the same set.
Real numbers are a set of numbers that includes natural numbers, as well as rational and
irrational numbers. (R)
Example: 1, -2, 0, 1.5, 3/2, √9, and π
Natural numbers are a subset of real numbers that are positives integers, or counting
numbers, that start at 1 and continue to infinity. (N)
Example: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10…
Integer numbers are whole number that can be positive, negative, or zero. (Z)
Example: -5,-4,-3,-2,-1,0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,…
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Four Common Operations in Mathematics
1. Addition- combining two or more numbers to get a total or a sum. (+)
2. Subtraction- Finding the difference between two numbers. (-)
3. Multiplication- repeating a number a certain number of times to get a product. (x)
4. Division- Sharing a number into equal parts or groups to get quotient. (÷)
Example of Binary Operations
Addition: If we add two operands which are natural numbers 1 and 2 the result will also be a
natural number.
N:{1,2,3,4…}
1+2=3
Multiplication: If we multiply two operands which are natural numbers 1 and 2 the result will
also be a natural number.
N:{1,2,3,4…}
1x2=2
Example of Non-Binary Operations
Subtraction: If we subtract two operands which are natural numbers 1 and 2 the result will not
be a natural number.
N:{1,2,3,4…}
1 - 2 = -1
Division: If we divide two operands which are natural numbers 1 and 2 the result will not be a
natural number.
N:{1,2,3,4…}
1 ÷ 2 = 0.5 or 1/2
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