Welcome to Nature of Math!

In this module, we will discuss the famous Fibonacci numbers and how this sequence of numbers appeared in some
patterns in nature. Also, we will explore the application of this sequence and a closely related number called the Golden
Ratio. Taken together, the Fibonacci sequence and the Golden Ratio offers a wonderful opportunity for you to learn
mathematics and the same time appreciate nature.

Learning Outcomes:
At the end of this module, students should be able to:
[1] identify patterns in nature and regularities in the world.
[2] explain the importance of mathematics in one’s life.
[3] argue about the nature of Mathematics, what it is, how it is used, expressed, and represented.
[4] express appreciation for mathematics as a human endeavor

Deadline of Activities:
TBA

Consultation Hours:
TBA

References:
[1] E. C. Baltazar, C. Ragasa, and J. Evangelista. “Mathematics in the Modern World”. C & E Publishing, Inc., 2018.
[2] D. Sobecki et al. “Math in Our World, 4th Edition”. McGraw-Hill Education, 2019.
[3] Lecture notes in Fibonacci Sequence. Retrieved from
https://www.mathsisfun.com/numbers/fibonacci-sequence.html
[4] J. Chasnov. "Fibonacci Numbers and The Golden Ratio". Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Hong Kong License,
2016.
Patterns in Nature
Patterns
 Patterns exist when a number, shape, or color occur repeatedly. They are found everywhere in plants, animals,
human beings, and in the universe.

 Example would be the experience of sunrise every morning and sunsets every afternoon and why the spring
season begins at different months for the Northern and Southern hemispheres?

 These regularities are clear patterns in nature. Patterns help us organize ideas or information that can help us
understand our self, our life and the world. Most of the time, number patterns are more likely associated to
mathematics.

Leonardo of Pisa
 Now, speaking of number patterns, let’s talk about the Fibonacci sequence. But first, who is Fibonacci? Fibonacci
is an Italian mathematician whose real name is Leonardo Pisano. Literally, Leonardo of Pisa. This is because he
was born in Pisa Italy with almost the same time when Italians started building the famous leaning tower of
Pisa.

 He existed around 1170 to 1250 and is said to be the greatest European mathematician of the middle ages. He
traveled in Africa and some parts of Asia where he met different mathematicians. His famous book Liber Abaci,
or the Book of Calculation, introduced the concept of Hindu-Arabic numerals to Europe in 1202. In mathematics
history, it is believed that the concept of zero originated in India and the sequence named after him had been
described earlier in the Indian Mathematics.

The Rabbit Puzzle Problem

Let’s now have Fibonacci’s famous rabbit puzzle which was published in 1202.
The problem goes like this.

At the beginning of a month, you are given a male-female pair of newborn rabbits. Rabbits take a month to mature before mating. This
means that after a month the rabbits have produced no offspring. However, every month thereafter, the pair of rabbits produces another
pair of rabbits which are male and female.

The offspring reproduce in exactly the same manner. If none of the rabbits dies, how many pairs of rabbits will there be after one full
calendar year?

To illustrate the solution, let us consider young rabbit pairs and adult rabbit pairs. At the start of the first month, one pair
of young rabbits are introduced into the population. Since it takes one month for rabbits to get mature before mating, then
at the start of the second month no new pair of rabbits are introduced. However, this marks the reproduction of the next
generation since the young pair in the first month are now the mature pair of rabbits. Now, at the start of the third month,
there are two rabbit pairs. The adult pairs, which are the parents, and the young pairs, which are the baby pairs.
Following this pattern, the adult pair begets a baby pair but the previous baby pair simply matures. So a family of 3 rabbit
pairs are present at the start of the fourth month and so on.
Take a look at the table below to see a total pair of rabbits after one year, assuming, none of the rabbits dies. The number
of total rabbit pairs at each generation constitutes a Fibonacci sequence. And the number of rabbit pairs at the start of the
13th month, can be taken as the solution to Fibonacci’s puzzle. That is, 233.

Fibonacci Numbers/Sequence
From the previous table, let’s look at the total number of rabbit pairs with respect to months. Those are the sequence in
the last row. The sequence goes like this, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55… This is a number sequence called the Fibonacci
Sequence. The Fibonacci Sequence has a unique pattern.

If we look at this number 2 here, we see that this number 2 is 1 plus 1. It's the sum of the preceding two numbers. Also,
the number 3 is 1 plus 2. The number 5 is 2 plus 3, the number 8 is 3 plus 5, 13 is 5 plus 8 and so on.
So every number then is the sum of the preceding two numbers.

We define Fibonacci sequence as follows.

Definition:
Fibonacci numbers Fn are numbers in a sequence called Fibonacci Sequence. The Fibonacci Sequence is the series of
numbers that follow a pattern as shown:
1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55,…
The nth term is obtained by adding two previous terms

The recursion relation gives the next Fibonacci number as the sum of the preceding

two numbers. To start the recursion, we need to specify and to be both 1. In the Book of Calculation, zero is

not the first Fibonacci number. But if zero is included in the sequence, we can let . And amazingly it doesn’t
violate the recursion formula. It can even extend to negative indices with negative values.

Fibonacci discovered that the number of pairs of rabbits for any month after the first two months can be determined by
adding the numbers of pairs of rabbits in each of the two previous months. For instance, the number of pairs of rabbits at
the start of the seventh month is 5 + 8 = 13.
Example:

n 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 …..
Fn 1 1 2 3 5 8 13 21 34 55 …..

(1) Find F7.

Solution: Refer to the table above. The answer is F7 = 13 or

(2) Find F8.

Solution: Refer to the table above. The answer is F8 = 21 or

(3) Find F14.

Solution: Follow the pattern until you reach 14th term.

n 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 …..
Fn 1 1 2 3 5 8 13 21 34 55 89 144 233 377 …..
Thus, F14 = 377.
Alternative Solution: Suppose we are only given values in the table below.

n 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 …..
Fn 1 1 2 3 5 8 13 21 34 55 …..
Different Patterns

 The Fibonacci numbers are so amazing that we can see them almost everywhere around us. Have you tried
counting petals of flowers? In most flowers, we can see these numbers.

 A calla lily has only 1 petal. A trillium has 3. Buttercup, wild rose and hibiscus have 5. Cosmos has 8. Corn
marigold, cineraria and ragwort have 13. Some asters have 21 and a daisy can have 13, 21, 34, 55 or 89 petals.

 And what is special about these numbers? Exactly! These are the first few numbers in the Fibonacci sequence.
But remember, not all flower petals follow the Fibonacci sequence.

 Now, take a closer look into this photo of a sunflower. Notice the apparent spirals in the florets radiating out
from the center to the edge. These spirals appear to rotate both clockwise and counterclockwise. By counting
them, one finds 21 counterclockwise spirals and 34 clockwise spirals. Surprisingly, the numbers 21 and 34 are
consecutive Fibonacci numbers. Other sunflowers have 34 number of counterclockwise spirals and 55 clockwise
spirals. Do you think this is just coincidence? In fact, all the sunflowers in the world show a number of spirals
that are within the Fibonacci sequence.

 Let’s take a look at this pineapples. Pineapples have spirals formed by their hexagonal nubs. The nubs on many
pineapples form 8 spirals that rotate diagonally upward to the left and 13 spirals that rotate diagonally upward
to the right. We can also observe 21 parallel rows of nubs spiraling steeply. And again, the numbers 8, 13 and 21
are consecutive Fibonacci numbers.

 The sequence is also observed in the growth of plant and vegetable branches, or even in some vines spinning
around the stalk. Inside the fruit of many plants we can also observe the presence of Fibonacci order. Cut an
apple crosswise and you will see 5 sections. A common citrus could have 8 and most bananas have 3 sections.

 We also have pattern arrangement of seeds in fruits. For example, pine nuts. Pine nuts grow always from the
base of the pine cone as spirals towards right and towards left. Counting these spirals towards both sides gives
us Fibonacci numbers. 8 spirals spinning counterclockwise and 13 spirals spinning clockwise.

 The same pattern is also observed in the spirals of some succulents and cacti. It seems like it is happening by
coincidence, but these patterns are also present in broccoli, snails shell, human bone, dolphins, hurricane shapes
or even the complex structures of a galaxy. Actually there are still a lot more examples of Fibonacci numbers
appearing in nature.

The Golden Ratio

 Another name for golden ratio is the Divine Proportion .The golden ratio (symbol ∅ is the Greek letter "phi") is a
special number approximately equal to 1.618. The golden ratio is obtained by dividing a line segment say AB at
 point C such that the ratio of the longer piece and the shorter piece is equal to the ratio of the original line
segment to the longer piece.

 Many buildings and artworks have the Golden Ratio in them, such as the Parthenon in Greece, but it is not really
known if it was designed that way. Some artists believe that a rectangle constructed following a golden ratio is
the most pleasing shape. Hence, golden ratio is the math beauty.

Two positive numbers a and b, with a > b is said to be in the golden ratio if the ratio between the larger number and the
smaller number is the same as the ratio between their sum and the larger number, that is,

The number 1.618… is obtained from a straightforward application of the quadratic formula solving this equation

where is the golden ratio.

The Golden Spiral

The golden spiral is a logarithmic spiral whose radius either increases or decreases by a factor of the golden

ratio
It has the special property such that for every 1/4 turn (90° or π/2 in radians), the distance from the center (central point
of spiral) increases by the golden ratio. If you notice the picture of the Parthenon in the previous page, you can see that it
fits the golden spiral. That means the rectangular facade of the structure satisfies the golden ratio. Below is a beautiful
picture of a golden spiral. The central point is where the spiraling squares accumulate.
Remark: Spiral Center
The intersection of the red and blue diagonal lines marks the accumulation point of all the golden rectangles, and locates
the center of the golden spiral. See the figure below.

The Fibonacci numbers and the Golden Ratio

There is mathematical relationship between the Fibonacci numbers and the golden ratio. The ratio of two consecutive
Fibonacci numbers as n becomes large, approaches the golden ratio. Recall the first few Fibonacci numbers,

n 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 …..
Fn 1 1 2 3 5 8 13 21 34 55 89 144 233 377 …..

the limit of as n approaches infinity is the golden ratio, that is, approximately 1.618.
For example. Let us take F6. But the ratio of F6 and F5 is exactly 1.6, that is,

However, picking a larger Fibonacci number, say F12, and gets it ratio to the Fibonacci number before it we have

Again, as we increase the value of n indefinitely, this ratio will give us the true value of the golden ratio.
Below is a table that shows a relationship between consecutive Fibonacci numbers which approaches the golden ratio.
Golden Ratio in Human Beings

We call golden ratio as the divine proportion because human beauty is based on the divine proportion. Take a look at the
following golden ratio proportions in the human face.
[a] center of pupil : bottom of teeth : bottom of chin
[b] outer and inner edge of eye : center of nose
[c] outer edges of lips : upper ridges of lips
[d] width of center tooth : width of second tooth
[e] width of eye : width of iris

The ratio between the forearm and the hand also yields a value close to the golden ratio. In fact, our body has a lot of
proportions that is close to the golden ratio.

As mentioned in the previous discussion, the golden spiral can also be seen in snail shells, in the human body, hurricane
shapes or even the complex structures of a galaxy.
 The Real Number System
Presented by Mr. Bin

Q
Z W
N IR
 Goal/Objective
 1: Know that there are numbers that are not
rational and approximate them by rational
numbers.

 2: Understand informally that every number has a

decimal expansion; the rational numbers are those
with decimal expansions that terminate in zeros or
eventually repeat. Know that other numbers are
called irrational numbers.
 Essential Question

 How do I understand and perform

operations with the Real Number System?

Q
Z W
N IR
 The Real Number System
 The Real Number System is made up of
a set of rational and irrational numbers.
 It has at five subsets:
1. Rational Numbers (Q)
2. Integers (Z)
3. Whole Numbers (W)
4. Natural Numbers (N)
5. Irrational Numbers (IR)
 Real Numbers Definitions

 Real Numbers – consists of all rational

and irrational numbers.
 It includes any number that can be written as
a fraction, mixed numbers, terminating and
repeating decimals, whole numbers, integers.
1 5
3 1.5 O
4

2 2.3333
2
 Rational Numbers

 Rational Numbers – consists of integers,

terminating, and repeating decimals.
 It can also be expressed as a fraction.
1
.5  .9 16  4
2
5 7.5
8  8.83333
6 {…-3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3, …}
 Rational Numbers

 Integers – consist of natural numbers,

their opposites (negative #’s), and zero.
 It does not include fractions or decimals.
 All whole numbers are integers.
 For example:
{…-3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3, …}
 Integers
 Whole numbers – consist of natural
numbers and zero. {0, 1, 2, 3, 4,…}

 Natural numbers – are all the counting

numbers. {1, 2, 3, 4…}

 Negative numbers ={…-4, -3, -2, -1}

 Rational Numbers
 Terminating Decimals are rational
numbers that stops before or after the
decimal point.
 For example: 5.0, 2.75, .40, .0001…etc.

 Repeating Decimals are rational numbers

that repeats after the decimal point.
 For example: .3333…, .75 , 10.635
 Irrational Numbers
 Irrational numbers consist of numbers that
are non-terminating and non-repeating
decimals.
 They cannot be express as a fraction!
 Pi is an great example of an irrational number
 http://www.joyofpi.com/pi.html

  pi 47 4.25837547984...

.001, .0011, .00111, .001111…etc

2
 Real Number System Tree Diagram
Real Numbers

Rational Irrational
Numbers Numbers

Terminating Repeating
Integers Decimals Decimals

Non-Terminating
And
Whole Non-Repeating
Numbers Negative #’s
Decimals

Natural #’s Zero

 Your Turn
1. How are the natural and whole numbers different?

2. How are the integers and rational numbers different?

3. How are the integers and rational numbers the same?

4. How are integers and whole numbers the same?

5. Can a number be both rational and irrational? Use the

diagram to explain your answer.
 Your Turn
Answer True or False to the statements below. If the statement is
False, explain why.

6. −5 is a rational number. _______

7. 8 is rational. _______

8. 16 is a natural number __________

9. 3.25 is an integer. _______

10. 2.434434443… is a rational number.____________

 Welcome to Geometries of Design!
Patterns are classified as numerical, logical, or geometric. This module will talk about geometric patterns and in
particular, isometry. Also, we will discuss basic types of transformations which includes translation, rotation, dilation,
and reflection. Further, we will also discuss the nature of symmetrical patterns, tessellations and fractal formations.

Learning Outcomes:
At the end of this module, students should be able to:
[1] draw the image of a polygon after the specified transformation
[2] use geometric concepts in describing and creating designs.
[3] apply concepts in geometry in making an artwork .

Deadline of Activities:
TBA

Consultation Hours:
TBA

Reference:
[1] E. C. Baltazar, C. Ragasa, and J. Evangelista. “Mathematics in the Modern World”. C & E Publishing, Inc., 2018.
Transformation

 In the previous lesson, you have learned the Fibonacci sequence is a sequence of numbers following a pattern,
that is, every number in the sequence is the sum of the preceding two numbers. Again we call that a numerical
pattern. However, when a pattern involves geometrical figures, it is called a geometric pattern.

 This module will focus on geometric patterns and in particular isometries. This is the best way to review what
you have learned in your high school geometry. We begin with explaining the different types of transformations.

 A transformation is a general term for four specific ways to manipulate the shape of a point, a line, or shape. The
original shape of the object is called the pre-image and the final shape and position of the object is the image
under the transformation.

 The four types of transformations are rotation, translation, reflection, and dilation. Transformation is when we
slide a figure in any direction. Rotation is when we rotate a figure a certain degree around a point. Reflection is
when we flip a figure over a line. Dilation is when we enlarge or reduce a figure. Take a look at the figure above
that shows the basic transformations.

Example 1:
The images below are examples of transformations.

xample 2:
Question:
A teacher assessed the work of four students she asked to use two figures each to demonstrate a certain geometric
concept. Each of the following sets of figures represents the work of the student whose name corresponds to the set.
Three of the students correctly demonstrated the geometric concept, and one student did not. The student with the
incorrect answer demonstrated which of the following?

A. reflection instead of
dilation
B. translation instead of
reflection
C. dilation instead of
reflection
D. translation instead of
rotation
Answer and Explanation:
The correct answer is Choice (A). Reflection involves a figure’s transformation to a position in which it forms the reverse
image of its original position in relation to a line. The line does not have to be illustrated. Dilation involves a figure’s
transformation to a similar figure of a different size. Alex demonstrated reflection, while the other three students
demonstrated dilation.

Isometry

 Primarily, a concept starts with a motif. We define a motif to be a non-empty

plane set (Grunbaum and Shephard, 1987). A drawing of a leaf is an example
of a motif. When you repeat this drawing on a plane (paper/board) several
times, you will generate a pattern. An isometry is the rotation of a motif in a
fixed angle about a fixed point. Each rotation of the figure is an isometry.

 There are four transformations but only three of them are isometries. These
isometric transformations are reflection, rotation, and translation. The
characteristic of an isometry is that the original figure and the resulting figure
after a transformation must be congruent. Dilation is a result of stretching
and shrinking of an object making resulting figure not congruent to the
original one. This makes dilation not an isometry.

Remarks:
[1] Isometries are formed from transformations consisting of any combinations of the three operations.

[2] A combined translation and reflection is called a glide reflection. (see left
figure)

[3] The shapes are CONGRUENT when one shape can become another using only
turns, flips and/or slides. We then say that these shapes are isometric.

[4] Two shapes are SIMILAR when we need to resize for one shape to become
another. We then say that figures are being dilated.

Symmetry
Many objects around us are symmetrical in nature. For instance, some variety of leaves is symmetrical with respect to
their midrib (the lining that divides the leaf into two halves). The façade of a church, the left and right wings of a butterfly
and most fruits cut into half show symmetrical patterns. Even the human body is symmetrical too. A symmetry is a
composition of isometries in the plane generated from translation, rotation or reflection. Generally, this is a mapping of
figures on the plane back onto itself. This means that the image on the right is same on the left with respect to a line of
symmetry. A line of symmetry can be vertical, horizontal or diagonal. The following are three types of symmetries:
1. Rosette Pattern – has only reflections and rotations; no translations
2. Frieze Pattern – has reflections and rotations; translations are only along one line.
3. Wallpaper Pattern – has rotations, reflections, and glide reflections; also has translations in two linearly independent
directions.
The following pictures shows an example of a symmetry or symmetrical patterns.

Example 1
(Line of symmetry in the letters of the English alphabet)
Not all letters in the alphabet have symmetry.

Example 2
(Rosette Patterns)

Example 3
(Frieze Patterns)

Example 4
(Wallpaper patterns)
Mathematically, we have 17 possible plane symmetry groups. They are commonly represented using Hermann-Mauguin-
like symbols or in orbifold notation (Zwillinger 1995, p. 260).

Tessellation
A tessellation is a pattern covering a plane by fitting together replicas of the same
basic shape. The word tessellation comes from the Latin word tessera, which
means a square tablet or a die used in gambling. Tessellations have been created by
nature and man either by accident or design. Examples in nature are the
honeycomb hexagonal pattern and snake skin.
In geometrical terminology, a tessellation is a pattern resulting from the
arrangement of regular polygons to cover a plane without any gap or overlap. The
patterns are continuously repeated (Scott, 2008).

Here are some tessellations from the work of Maurits Escher, who is known as the Father of Tessellations.

A. Horsemen
B. Lizard

C. Snakes

3 types of Tessellations
1) Regular Tessellation
Tessellation made up of congruent polygons. This must tile a floor with no overlaps or gaps.
The tiles must be the same regular polygons.

2) Semi – Regular Tessellation

This is also known as the Archimedean tessellation.
These are tessellations of two or more different polygons around a vertex and each vertex has the same
arrangement of polygons.
3) Demi – Regular Tessellation
This is an edge-to-edge tessellation, but the order or arrangement of polygons at each vertex is not the same.

Fractals
We define fractals to be mathematical constructs characterized by self-similarity. This means as one examines finer and
finer details of the object, the magnified area is seen to be similar to the original but is not identical to it. In other words,
figures are getting bigger or smaller using a scaling factor.

Remember that two objects are self-similar if they can be turned into the same shape by either stretching or shrinking
and sometimes rotating. In simple terms, we can define a fractal to be a geometric pattern that is repeated in smaller
scales or in bigger scales.

Fractal geometry is a discipline named and popularized by the mathematician Benoit Mandelbrot (1924-2010). Some
popular math artworks by Mandelbrot are Sierpinski triangle and Pascal’s triangle. The figures below are examples of
fractals.
Koch Snowflake
A popular classic fractal is the Koch snowflake. The Koch snowflake is a fractal curve, also known as the Koch island,
which was first described by Helge von Koch in 1904. It is built by starting with an equilateral triangle, removing the
inner third of each side, building another equilateral triangle at the location where the side was removed, and then
repeating the process indefinitely. Here is a picture of what a Koch snowflake looks like.

If we try to magnify a region along the snowflake, we can similar figures and it goes indefinitely.
Here is a simple way to create the Koch snowflake pattern. See images below.

Another work by Mandelbrot is the Barnsley ferns. Take a look at the beauty of self-similarity.
 Welcome to Set Theory!
What is a set? Well, simply put, it's a collection.
First we specify a common property among "things" and then we gather up all the "things" that have this common
property.
To learn sets we often talk about the collection of objects, such as a set of vowels, set of negative numbers, a group of
friends, a list of fruits, a bunch of keys, etc.
In mathematics, sets are an organized collection of objects and can be represented in set-builder form or roster form.
Usually, sets are represented in curly braces { }, for example, A = {1,2,3,4} is a set.
In set theory, you will learn about sets and it’s properties. It was developed to describe the collection of objects. You will
also learn about the classification of sets here. The set theory defines the different types of sets, symbols and operations
performed.

Learning Outcomes:
At the end of this module, students should be able to:
[1] Define sets and represent set notations
[2] Identify the different types of sets
[3] Classify sets as finite or infinite.
[4] Decide if two sets are equal or equivalent.
[5] Perform set operations using Venn Diagram

Deadline of Activities:
TBA

Consultation Hours:
TBA

References:
[1] E. C. Baltazar, C. Ragasa, and J. Evangelista. “Mathematics in the Modern World”. C & E Publishing, Inc., 2018.
[2] D. Sobecki et al. “Math in Our World, 4th Edition”. McGraw-Hill Education, 2019.
[3] R. Aufmann et al. "Mathematical Excursions, 3rd Edition". Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning, 2008/2013.
Defining a Set

Karen was in math class with her friend Karl. She whispered to Karl that she had just bought a set of school supplies she
needs. Her school supply collection includes a padpaper, notebooks, color pens, pencil , ballpen, colored papers. Their
math teacher, overheard the conversation and asked them: What is a set?

We define a SET as follows.

Definition:
A set is a collection of well-defined distinct objects (elements) which have
common property.

For example, cat, elephant, tiger, and rabbit are animals. When, these animals are considered collectively, it is called set.
For convenience, sets are denoted by a capital letter. For example,
A = {cat, elephant, tiger, rabbit}
Here, A is a set containing 4 elements.

Remarks:
[1] Each object in a set is called an element or a member of the set.
[2] A set is well defined if it is possible to determine whether any given item is an element of the set. For instance, the set
of letters of the English alphabet is well defined. The set of great songs is not a well-defined set. It is not possible to
determine whether any given song is an element of the set or is not an element of the set because there is no standard
method for making such a judgment.

Methods of Describing Sets

Descriptive Method
Descriptive method use words or texts to describe the set.
Example 1: Set A is the set of vowels of the English alphabet
Example 2: Use the descriptive method to describe the set B containing 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11 in two different ways.
Solution: All of the elements in the set are odd natural numbers, and all are less than 12, so B is the set of odd natural
numbers less than 12. Another is the set of natural numbers from 1 to 11 that are NOT divisible by 2.

Roster Method
This is a fairly simple notation for sets. We simply list each element (or "member") separated by a comma, and then put
some curly brackets around the whole thing. The elements of the set are listed between braces, with commas between the
elements. The order in which we list elements isn’t important.

Example 1: Write in roster method “Set A is the set of vowels of the English alphabet”
A = { a, e, i, o, u }

Example 2: Write in roster method “Set C is a set of integers greater than or equal to -3 ”
C = { -3, -2, -1, 0,1, 2, 3 . . . }

(1) The three dots are called ellipsis, and mean "continue on".
(2) Duplicate elements are listed only ones.
(3) Arrangement or form of the elements does not affect the set.

Set Builder Notation or The Rule Method

Another method of representing a set is set-builder notation. This is a way of specifying sets wherein those properties
which characterized the elements in the set are stated, or a rule describing a property common to all elements are
given. Set-builder notation is especially useful when describing sets with several or immeasurable elements.
Note:
(a) This method makes use of variables.A variable is a symbol (usually a letter) that can represent the elements of a
particular set.

(b) Useful when roster method is impossible (to enumerate all elements).

Example 1: In set-builder notation, the set of natural numbers greater than 7 is written as follows:

Example 2: In set-builder notation, “set C is the set of integers greater than -3” is written as follows:
C = {x | x is an integer, x > – 3 }
This is read as: “C is the set of elements x such that x is an integer greater than –3.”.

Example 3: In set-builder notation, “set W is the set vowels in the English alphabet” is written as follows:
W = {x │ x is a vowel in English alphabet}
This is read as: “W is the set of all x such that x is a vowel in English alphabet”.

The statement “4 is an element of the set of natural numbers or counting numbers” can be written using mathematical
notation as 4 ∈ N.
The symbol ∈ reads as “is an element of”. To state that “-3 is not an element of the set of natural numbers,” we use the
“is not an element of” symbol, ∉, and write -3 ∉N.

Practice question:
(1) Using the methods below, designate the set P with elements 17, 19, 23, 29, and 31

(a) Roster Method

(b) Descriptive Method
(c) Set-builder Notation

(2) Rewrite the following in terms of the other methods.

(a) B={x | x is an integer, x>0}
(b) G={z | z is a point on a line}
Types of Sets
1. Empty Set
A set which do not have any element is known as empty set. It is also called Null Set. Empty set is denoted by ϕ or { }.
Example: Set B is a set of months of the year that begins with letter “K”.

2. Singleton Set
If a set has only one element, it's known as singleton set. For instance, C = { moon }.

3. Finite Set
If a set contains no element or a definite number of elements, it is called a finite set. In this set, the number of elements is
countable.
All the empty sets also fall into the category of finite sets.
If the set is non-empty, it is called a non-empty finite set. Some examples of finite sets are:

A = {x | x is a month in a year}; A will have 12 elements

B = Set of rivers in Iloilo City; B has countable number of elements

C = {d | d is a degree offered by the CLASE, University of San Agustin}

A set is finite if the number of elements in the set is a whole number. The cardinal number (cardinality) of a finite set is
the number of elements in the set. The cardinal number of a finite set A is denoted by the notation n(A). For instance, if
A={1, 4, 6, 9} , then n(A)= 4. In this case, A has a cardinal number of 4, which is sometimes stated as “A has a cardinality
of 4.”

4. Infinite Set
Just contrary to the finite set, it will have infinite elements. If a given set is not finite, then it will be an infinite set.
For example
D = {x | x is a natural number}; There are infinite natural numbers. Hence, A is an infinite set.
F = {1,1,2,3,5,8,13,...}; The set of Fibonacci numbers has an infinite number of elements.

5. Equal Sets
Set A is equal to set B, denoted by A = B, if and only if A and B have exactly the
same elements. Otherwise, we write A ≠ B.
For instance, P = {d, e, f } and Q = {e, f, d}. Then we say P = Q.
However, if R = {d, e, f } and S = {e, f, g}. Then R ≠ S.

Definition: One-to-one Correspondence

A one-to-one correspondence exists between two sets A and B if it is possible to associate the elements of A with the
elements of B in such a way that each element of each set is associated with exactly one element of the other

6. Equivalent Sets
Set A is equivalent to set B, denoted by A ~ B, if and only if A and B have the same number of elements or if there is a one-
to-one correspondence between their elements. Note that if two sets are equivalent , then n(A)= n(B).
For instance {1, b, 6, c } = {29, e, f, d}.
 Subsets and Power Sets
Subset
Set A is said to be a subset of set B if every element of set A is also the member of
set B. Simply, if set A is contained in set B, A is called subset of B. It is denoted by A ⊆ B.
A = {1, 2, 3}

B = {2, 1, 4, 3, 5}
Here, all three elements 1, 2, and 3 of set A is also member of set B. Hence, A is subset
of B.
Remarks:
A ⊆ B reads as “A is a subset of B”.
A ⊇ B reads as “A is a superset of B”.

Proper Subsets of a Set

Set B is a proper subset of set A, denoted by B ⊂ A, if every element of B is an element of A, and B ≠ A.
The proper subsets of A={1, 2, 3} are
{ }, {1}, {2}, {3}, {1,2}, {1,3}, {2,3}

If B=A then B is an improper subset of A

Set B={1,2,3} is an improper subset of A={1,2,3}

 Any set is considered to be a subset of itself.

Example: A={1,2,3} is a subset of A={1,2,3}
 No set is a proper subset of itself.
Example: A={1,2,3} is not a proper subset of A={1,2,3}

 The empty set is a subset of every set.

Example { } is a subset of A={1,2,3}

 The empty set is a proper subset of every set except for the empty set.

Power Set
The power set of a set A is the set which consists of all the subsets of the set A. It is denoted by P(A).
For a set A which consists of n elements, the total number of subsets that can be formed is 2n. From this, we can say that
P(A) will have 2n elements. For e.g. A={1, 2, 3} ; 23 = 8 subsets
P(A) = { }, {1}, {2}, {3}, {1,2}, {1,3}, {2,3}, {1,2,3}.

Universal Set
This is the set which is the base for every other set formed. Depending upon the context, the universal set is decided. It
may be a finite or infinite set. All the other sets are the subsets of the Universal set. It is represented by U and is
sometimes referred to as the universe of discourse.
For instance:
The set of real numbers is a universal set of integers. Similarly, the set of a complex number is the universal set for real
numbers.
Joint Set (Overlapping Sets)
Two sets are said to be overlapping sets if they have at least one element in common.
A = {10, 12, 14, 15} and B = {13, 14, 15, 16, 17} are said to be joint sets or overlapping sets.
Notice that 14 and 15 are common in both sets.

Disjoint Set
Two sets are said to be disjoint sets if they don't have common element/s.
Consider A = {1, 2, 3, 4} and B = {5, 6}.
Here A and B are disjoint sets because these two sets don't have common element.

Venn Diagrams

A good way to visualize sets and their relationships is to make use of a diagram.
In the 1800's, John Venn developed a diagram to represent sets which he later call the
Venn Diagram.

Definition:
Venn Diagram is a pictorial representation of sets using shapes. The universal set is represented by an interior of a
rectangle and the other sets, by any closed plane figures like circle (mostly), triangle, square, etc.

The figure on the right shows an example of a Venn Diagram.

(http://www.solving-math-problems.com/)
In the figure, we can see two overlapping sets A and B which are both contained in the universal set U. The element {4}
happens to be the common element between the given sets.
Base on the given figure, can you state the elements of U ? What about its cardinality?

Below is a general Venn diagram for 2 sets sharing some elements.

Operations on Sets
1. Complement of a Set
The complement of a set A, denoted by A’, is the set of all elements of the universal set U that are not elements of A.
Using set-builder notation, the complement of A is

A' = {x|x ∈ U and x ∉ A}

NOTE: The symbol A' can be read as "A prime" or "A complement".

To illustrate, let U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10} and S= { 2, 4, 6, 7}. Let us find S'.

The elements of the universal set are 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10.
From these elements we wish to exclude the elements of S, which are 2, 4, 6, and 7. Therefore S’ = {1, 3, 5, 8, 9, 10}.

Venn Diagram for Set Complement

Using the Venn diagram, the complement of a set A is all the things inside the rectangle that are not seen inside the circle
(Set A).
See image below.

Share your thoughts:

What is the complement of the universal set for a given situation?

2. Union of a Set
The UNION of two sets A and B is defined to be the set that contains all the elements that belong to either A or B or to
both A and B.
It is denoted as A ∪ B.
NOTE: The keyword for set union is "or".

Example: Let set A = {5, 10, 15, 20} and B = {5, 20, 30, 45}. Then, A union B is: A ∪ B = {5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 45} .
See the figure below to represent these sets using the Venn diagram.
3. Intersection of a Set
The intersection of two sets A and B is the set that contains only the common elements between set A and set B.
It is denoted as A ∩ B.

NOTE: The keyword for set intersection is "and".

Example: Let A={10, 12, 14, 15}, B= { 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 }, and C = {3, 6, 9 }.
Find a. A Ո B
Note that the elements common to A and B are 14 and 15. Thus, A ∩ B = {14, 15}.

b. A ∩ C
Because A and C do not have any elements in common, so their intersection will give null set.
Thus, A ∩ C = { } or Ø.

4. Set Subtraction
(i) The difference of set A and set B is the set of elements in set A that are not in set B.
In set-builder notation,
A - B = {x | x ∈ A and x ∉ B }

https://www.math-only-math.com/
(ii) The difference of set B and set A is the set of elements in set B that are not in set A.
In set-builder notation,
B - A = {x | x ∈ B and x ∉ A }

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Illustrating Set Expressions

Set statements or expressions can be illustrated with Venn diagrams.
To illustrate these statements using diagrams, we follow certain steps.

Venn Diagrams involving two Sets

Suppose we have two sets A and B under the universal set U. We label the regions
in the Venn diagram by regions I, II, III, and IV.
Region I represents the elements of A alone. (A not in B)
Region II represents the elements in both A and B (intersection)
Region III represents the elements in B alone. (B not in A)
Region IV represents the elements in the universal set which are not in the union
of A and B.

Suggested Steps in Illustrating Set Expressions

Step 1 Draw a diagram for the sets, with Roman numerals in each region.

Step 2 Using those Roman numerals, list the regions described by each set.

Step 3 Find the set of numerals that correspond to the set given in the set statement.

Step 4 Shade the area corresponding to the set of numerals found in step 3.

Example: Illustrate the set (A ∪ B)' .

Step 1

Step 2

U = {I, II, II, IV} A = {I, II} B = {II, III}

Step 3

The goal is to find (A ∪ B)'. But, A ∪ B= {I, II, II}. Clearly, region IV is the only region not in A ∪ B.
Thus, the complement of (A ∪ B)'={IV}.

Step 4

Remark:
You can also extend the process of illustrating set statements into 3 sets which will give you regions I,II,III,...,VII,VIII.

Try This:

Illustrate the following expressions using Venn Diagrams.

1) A ∩ ( B ∩ C)'

2) A' ∪ B'

3) A - (B ∩ C)

Problems involving Venn Diagrams

[1] A survey was of 275 people was done to find out the preferred fruit to be made into a fruit shake.
The results of the survey are shown below.
84 people like avocado.
72 people like mango.
26 people like both avocado and mango.

The figure below shows the Venn diagram that represents the given problem.

Of the people surveyed, how many people

(a) like avocados but not mangoes? This refers to people who like avocado only (I) ; 84 – 26 =58
(b) like mangoes but not avocados? This refers to people who like mangoes only (III); 72 – 26 = 46
(c) do not like either of these two fruits? This refers to people who do not like avocado or mango; 275 – 58 – 46- 26 =
145

[2] A fruitshake stand has surveyed 60 students. The results of the survey are listed below.
26 students like apple.
33 students like mango.
32 students like buko.
11 students like both apple and mango.
13 students like both apple and buko.
15 students like both mango and buko.
5 students like all three.

How many students:

(a) like mango and apple only?
(b) like exactly two of the three flavors of shake
(c) like mango only
(d) like only one of the three flavors of shake
Also, draw a Venn diagram that could represent this problem.