Mathematical Language  Introduced the pre-existing plus sign (+) to

o Math has its own language, much of it we are English speakers in 1557.
already familiar with.  The first equation ever written in his
o The language of mathematics can be learned, treatise The Whetstone Of Witte, in 1557.
but requires the efforts needed to learn foreign  The equation is represented, in modern
language. terms, by 14x + 15 = 71, and its solution
Language is x=4.
o The method of human communication, either Symbol
spoken or written, consisting of the use of o a pattern or image used instead of words
words in a structured and conventional way. o Digits (1-10)
Mathematics o Symbols for operations
o Is the study of such topics as quantity, o Letters on symbols that “stand in” for values
structure, space, and change. o Variables
o Is a discipline that seeks understanding of the Symbol +
patterns and structures of constructs of the o Plus, Add, Increase and Positive
human mind. o Examples:
o It is formal system of thought for recognizing,  10+5 (used as an addition)
classifying, and exploiting of patients  +63 987 654 3211 (in addition to the usual
o Math is about numbers, symbols, notations phone number)
o Mathematics the art of giving the same name to  (1, 2, 3, 4, 5,-6,-7,-8,-9) (Defines a positive
different things. – Henri Poincare number in integers)
Language Of Mathematics Symbol –
o Is the system used by the mathematicians to o Subtract, Minus, Decrease and Negative
communicate mathematical ideas among o Examples:
themselves.  10-5 (used as an subtraction)
o Consists of some natural language (for example  (1, 2, 3, 4, 5,-6,-7,-8,-9) (Defines a negative
English) using technical terms and grammatical number in integers)
conventions. Mathematical Symbols
o Is made in order for us to write about things like Symbol Symbol Name Meaning/definition
numbers, sets functions, and etc. As well as = equal sign equality
things that we will do with them (add, subtract, ≠ not equal sign inequality
divide & etc. ≈ approximately approximation
o can often be confusing equal
o Example: > strict inequality greater than
 Addition = combine < strict inequality less than
 Divide = half ≥ inequality greater than or equal
English Versus Mathematics to
English Mathematics ≤ inequality less than or equal to
name given NOUN (person, EXPRESSION
to an place, thing) Examples: 5, 2 + () parentheses calculate expression
object of Examples: Carol, 3, ½ inside first
interest: Idaho, book [] brackets calculate expression
inside first
a complete SENTENCE SENTENCE + plus sign addition
thought: Examples: Examples:3+4=7
The capital of Idaho 4+4=8 − minus sign subtraction
is Boise. ± plus-minus both plus & minus
operation
± minus-plus both minus and plus
Mathematical Language and Symbols Syntax and Rules operations
o Robert Recorde (c.1512–1558) ×,⋅ times sign , multiplication
 Welsh physician and mathematician multiplication dot
 Invented the equal sign (=) ÷,/ division sign , slash division
  Ex: the expression 3x2−5x+7represents this
sequence of operations:take a number,
Example: square it, multiply it by 3, subtract five
1. Cat Mathematical Expression times the original number, then add 7
2. 2 Mathematical Expression o Powerful
3. X = 1 Mathematical Sentence  Having the ability to control or influence
4. 1 + 2 = 4 Mathematical Sentence people or things.
5. 5 – 3 Mathematical Expression  Having a strong effect on someone or
6. 5 – 3 = 2 Mathematical Sentence something.
7. 1 • x = x Mathematical Sentence  able to express complex thoughts with
relative ease
Syntax Expressions VS. Sentences
o Is the proper arrangements of words, terms, Expressions
and other units of language into statements. o is the combination of numbers, symbols and
o Refers to the rules of the composition of operators such as (+, - x, /) that are grouped
expressions. together that show the value of something.
o how one will input the mathematical logic on o Is the mathematical analogue of an English
paper/text. noun
Rules o it is a correct arrangement of mathematical
o pemdas symbols used to represent a mathematical
o bodmas object of interest.
o exponent rule o An english noun or a ‘mathematical expression’
o rules in algebraic expressions o Is just a name given to a mathematical object of
interest
o In English we talk about people, places and
things, in mathematics we talk about numbers,
function and sets.
o Does Not state a complete thought
Characteristics Of Mathematical Language o Most common expression types: numbers, sets
o Logical sequence structure and functions.
o Precision and accuracy o Numbers have lots of different names: The
o Abstractness expressions all look different, but are all just
o Mathematical language and symbolism different names for the same number.
o Applicability o Examples:
o Generalization and classification mathematical  5 or 2 + 3 or 10/2
system  (6 - 2) + 1 or 1+1+1+1+1
o Simplicity and complexity  0+0
 8x – 5 (linear polynomial)
o Precise
 Marked by exactness and accuracy of
expression or detail.
 Mathematical language is precise and
understandable to others. Sentence
 able to make very fine distinctions o is the translation of the mathematical
o An english sentence or a ‘mathematical expression into words or phrases that says or
explains something.
sentence’
 Ex: compare 5x2 and (5x)2 o A correct arrangement of a mathematical
symbols that states a complete thought.
o Concise
 Giving a lot of information clearly and in a o Is the analogue of an English sentence
few words. It is brief but comprehensive. o The verb in the sentence is ‘=‘.
 Mathematical language is concise and o Can be (always) true, (always) false, or
accurate. sometimes true/sometimes false.
 able to say things briefly o Examples:
  1 + 2 = 3 is true.
 1 + 2 = 4 is false.
 x = 2 is sometimes true/sometimes false: it
is true when x is 2 and false otherwise.
 x + 3 = 3 + x is always true no matter what
number is chosen for x.
 5+y=x
 4–3=x
Two Types Of Sentences
1. Open Sentence
o Uses variables.
o It is not known whether or not the
mathematical sentence is true or false.
o A sentence is open when it is not known if it
is true or false.
o Open Sentence is an open sentence can
be either true or false depending on what
values are used.
o Examples:
 n is an even number is open (could
be true or false, depending on the value
of n)
o In that last example:
 if n was 4 the sentence would be true,
 if n was 5 the sentence would be false,
 But we didn't say what value n has!
 So "n is an even number" may be true
or false. So it is open.
2. Close Sentence
o A closed sentence is always true (or always
false).
o A mathematical sentence that is known to
be either true or false.
o Examples:
 8 is an even number is closed (it
is always true)
 9 is an even number is closed (it
is always false)
o Example of true closed sentences:
 9 is an odd number.
 10 – 1 = 9
o Example of false closed sentences:
 9 is an even number.
 10 – 1 = 8
Conventions In The Mathematical Language
o A mathematical convention is a fact, name,
notation or usage which is generally agreed
upon by mathematicians.
o Examples of the Mathematical Conventions:
 When introducing a new variable into a
discussion, the convention is to place the
variable to the left of the equal sign.
 Instead of writing “Let a + b = s” You should
write, “Let s = a + b”
 It is considered good mathematical writing
to avoid starting a sentence with a variable.
 By definition of even, m = 2a and n = 2b for
some integers a and b. m + n = 2a + 2b
 Write… By definition of even, m = 2a and n
= 2b for some integers a and b. Then, m + n
= 2a + 2b…
Mathematical Convention
o Is a notation or usage which is generally agreed
upon by mathematicians.
o Notation is a abbreviated expression
o For example: we could say: A number plus the
square of the number is equal to half the
number plus the number times the square root
of the number. This is much easier to express
using notation:.
How are the concept of Mean, Median & Mode are
used in daily life?
o Mode -most repeated
o Mean – average
o Median – middle
Pattern And Number In Nature And The Modern World
And Fibonacci Sequence
Fibonacci Numbers and the Golden Ratio
o The golden ratio (1.618034) is also called the
golden section or the golden mean or just the
golden number.
o Represented by a Greek letter Phi
o The numbers form what are called Fibonacci
rectangles or “golden rectangles”
o The rectangles are unique because each
rectangle has sides equal to the length of the
Fibonacci numbers
o Fibonacci numbers are the whole numbers,
which corresponds to the angle which
maximises number of items in the smallest
space.
o Within these rectangles we can create a spiral
with cross sections equal to exactly 1.618 (the
“golden mean”) with the corresponding angle of
137.5 degrees
o The Fibonacci sequence is derived from the
Fibonacci numbers. The Fibonacci numbers are
as follows:
 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144…etc
  These numbers are obtained by adding the 
Shape of shells of snails and sea shells
two previous numbers in the sequence to 
Mating habits of bees
obtain the next higher number. 
Number of petals in a flower - As each row
 Example: 1+1=2, 2+3=5, 5+8=13 of seeds in a sunflower or pine cone, or
o The formula is: Fn = Fn1 + Fn2 petals on a flower grows, it tries to put the
o Every 3rd number and the difference between maximum number in the smallest space.
each number is .618 with the reciprocal of 1.618  Hurricane
1 1 2 3 5  Milky Way Galaxy
8 31 21 34 55 Flower, Fruit, and Leaf
89 144 233 377 610 o The number of petals and the number of spirals
987 1597 2584 4181 6765 are Fibonacci.
o Examples:
 Buttercups
 Pineapples
 Daisies
Architecture
o Architecture also has Fibonacci.
o Example:
 Parthenon
Always Fibonacci?
o NOT ALL
o Examples:
 A fuchsia has 4 petals
 There are flowers with 6 petals (like crocus,
narcissus, amaryllis)
2

1.75
History of the Fibonacci Sequence
o Leonardo of Pisa, c1175 – c1250 1.5

 The sequence was introduced to Western 1.25

European mathematics in 1202 by Leonardo
of Pisa, aka “Fibonacci” 1

 Liber Abaci, 1202, one of the first books to 0.75

be published by a European
0.5
 One of the first people to introduce the
decimal number system into Europe
 On his travels saw the advantage of the
Hindu-Arabic numbers compared to Roman Fibonacci’s Rabbits
numerals
 His study of the sequence began with the
breeding patterns of rabbits. In which he
found rabbit generations duplicated in
accordance with the Fibonacci numbers
o Egyptians invented Fibonacci thousands of years
ago, but Leonardo was the one who spoke
about it.
o It is believed that contributions to the theory
began in 200 BC by Indian mathematicians
whose studies were based on Sanskrit prosody
Fibonacci Rectangles and Shell Spirals
o The spiral made is found in nature.
o Examples:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
o The original problem that Fibonacci investigated
(in the year 1202) was about how fast rabbits
could breed.
o The question was: How many pairs will there be
in one year?
1. A single newly born pair of rabbits (1 male, 1
female) are put in a field.
2. They mate at the age of 1 month. At the end of
the 2nd month, a female can produce another
pair of rabbits.
3. Rabbits never die and a mating pair always
produces one new pair (1 male, 1 female) every
month from the second month on.
 Connective Negation
o In logic, a logical connective also called a logical
operation is a symbol or word used to connect
two or more sentences.
o If p and q are prepositions, then they are made
by the used of connectives.
o Connectives
 Are symbols representing a function which
corresponds to english conjunction such as
‘and’, ‘or’ and ‘note’.

Conjunction ^ And
Disjunction v Or
Conditional --> If/Then
Negation ~ Not
Biconditional < ---- > If and Only If

Honeybees And Family Trees
o One special female = queen
o Worker bees = female but produce no egg
o Drone bees = male and do no work
= only have a mother
Family Tree Of The Male Drone Bee
A. 1 parent, a female.
B. 2 grand parents
C. 3 great-grand parents
D. How may great-great-grand parents did he
have?
Conjunction
o The conjunction of two statements P and Q is
the statement that P and Q are both true.
o Example:
 First statement = triangle ABC is equilateral
 Second Statement = Triangle ABC is
equiangualar
 Conjunction = Triangle ABC is equilateral
and equiangular
Disjunction
o The two statements P and Q at least one of P
and Q are true therefore disjunction offers two
possibilities
o Example
 First statement = Triangle ABC is Isosceles
 Second Statement = Triangle ABC is Scalene
 Disjunction = Triangular ABC is either
Isosceles or Scalene
Conditional
o Conditional statement symbolized by P and Q is
an if-then statement in which P is a hypothesis
and Q is the conclusion.
o Example
 If triangle ABC is Isosceles, then Triangle
ABC is not scalene.
Quantifiers
o Universal quantifier is a logical symbol which
makes an assertion about the set of values
which makes one or more formulas true. Using
"for" and “there exist"
Biconditional
o A biconditional statement is defined to be true
whenver both parts have the same true value.
The Biconditional statement operatior is
denoted by a double headed arrow
o Example
 First Statement = A polygon is a triangle
 Second Statement = A polygon has exactly
3 sides
 A polygon is a triangle If and only if it has
exactly 3 sides
Logical Negation
o Important to determine what is the opposite
given mathematical statement is.
Negating
o to cause something to have no effect
o This usually reffered to as “negating” a
statement.
o If a statement is true, then negation is false
Negation
o Changing a statement so that it has the
opposite meaning and truth values.
o aka “not”
o The symbol for negation is ‘ ~ ‘
o Ex:
 P: there is snow on the ground
 ~ P: there’s no snow on the ground
Problem Solving and Reasoning
o is a mathematical process.
o it is to be found in the strand of mathematical
process along with Logic and Reasoning and
Communication.
o It is the side of mathematics that enables us to
use the skills in a wide variety of situations.
o 4 stages of problem solving
1. Understand and explore the problem
2. Find a strategy
a. Guess - This includes guess check, guess and
improve
b. Act it out - Act it out and use equipment
c. Draw - This includes drawing pictures and
diagrams.
d. Make a List - This includes making a table
e. Think - This includes using skills you know
already
3. Use the strategy to solve the problem
4. Look back and reflect on the solution.
Reasoning
o It is the critical skill that enables a student to
make use of all other mathematical skills.
o It ithe process of finding the proof for a certain
mathematical statement by s using logic and
deductions.
o It is the use of logical thinking to make use of a
situation or idea.
Intuition
o The ability to undestand something
immediately without the need for conscious
reasoning.
o Ex: Intuition/Judgement - use of an abacus for
counting numbers
Proof
o It is an inferential argument for a mathematical
statement. In principle, a proof can be traced
back to self-evident or assumed statements.
Certainty
 o a fact that is definitely true or an event that is
definitely going to take place.
Complex Mathematical Truth
o If a mathematical truth is too complex to be
visualized and so understood to one glance, it
may be established conclusively by putting
together two glances.
o It may be proved by a chain of interferences,
each of which is clear individually, even if the
whole is not clear simultaneously.
Mathematical Proof
o A sequence of mathematical statements, each
which is either validly derived from those
preceding it or is an axiom or assumption, and
on the final member of which, the conclusion, is
the statement of which the truth is thereby
established
Maths and Certainty
o The British philosopher John Stuart Mill (1808 –
1873) claimed that our certainty in mathematics
arises from a vast number of empirical
observations (correspondence theory)
o We can feel certain that 2 + 2 = 4 because every
other time a human has carried out this
calculation, it appears to be true
o Although maths itself is deductive in nature,
notice that this is an inductive conclusion
o Maths is also based on proving theorems
without prior experience
o As well as being a postori, it also appears to be a
priori to some extent
o It therefore seems to go beyond the empirical
Formality
o “The fact that all mathematics is Symbolic Logic
is one of the greatest discoveries of our age.” -
Bertrand Russell, the Principles of Mathematics
 A small number of set theoretic concepts
and logical terms are enough to provide a
precise language that is versatile enough to
express all the statements of ordinary
mathematics.
 If you look at a well-written mathematics
paper, then much of it will be written not in
symbolic language peppered with symbols
such as ∀ and ∃, but in what appears to be
ordinary English.
o the language typically used is a careful
compromise between fully colloquial, which
would indeed run the risk of being unacceptably
imprecise, and fully formal and symbolic, which
would be a nightmare to read.
o The ideal is to write in as friendly and
approachable way as possible, while making
sure that the reader (who, one assumes, has
plenty of experience and training in how to read
mathematics) can see easily how what one
writes could be made more formal if it became
important to do so.
o When an argument is difficult to grasp it may be
that the only way to convince oneself that it is
correct is to rewrite it more formally.
o It is not important, or even desirable,
to always be formal in mathematics.
o It is important to sometimes be formal in
mathematics, in order to check that our
intuition has not led us astray.
o The hypothetical possibility of formalizing all
mathematics that has been done so far is what
keeps mathematics together and "on track" as a
discipline.
o In teaching mathematics, one should be
especially conscious of the downsides of
excessive formality, such as "scaring students
away."
o However, because the role of formality in
mathematics is ultimately an important one, it
would be a mistake to avoid formality entirely
when teaching mathematics.
o It's a precise set of instructions that, when
combined in different ways, can be used to
describe diverse real-life phenomena.
o It is exactly the precision that allows them to be
combined reliably, a property which informal
languages lack.
o ∃x ∈ A ∀y ∈ A y > x ∨ y = x
 It means that there exists an element x of
 A such that every element y of A is either
greater
 than x or equal to x itself.
o the rigid observance of rules of convention or
etiquette
o a thing that is done simply to comply with
requirements of
o an established form or procedure that is
required or conventional
o Ex: When mathematicians are at their most
formal, they simply outlaw the noun-linking use
of “and” - a sentence such as :
 “3 and 5 are prime numbers”
 “3 is a prime number and 5 is a prime
number”.
Clarity and simplicity that is needed in mathematical
discourse
o “Two plus two equals four”
 o “Mary and Peter love Paris”.
 is to link two nouns whereas the other
is
 Is to join two whole sentences together
 “Mary likes Paris and Peter likes New
York”.
 “Mary likes Paris and Peter likes New
York”.
Formal Language
o Is a set of strings of symbols together with a set
of rules that are specific to it.
o In mathematics, computer science,
and linguistics
o The alphabet of a formal language
 is the set of symbols, letters, or tokens from
which the strings of the language may be
formed.
o Words
 The strings formed from this alphabet
o Well-formed words/Well-formed formulas
 the words that belong to a particular formal
language are sometimes called
Formal Theories
o emphasizing that no step of reasoning can be
done without a reference to an exactly
formulated list of axioms and rules of inference.
o Even in the most "self-evident" logical principles
o Ex: "if A implies B, and B implies C, then A
implies C“
 must be either formulated in the list of
axioms and rules explicitly, or derived from
it.
o Ex: the date of birth of some person X is January
1, 2000, and yesterday, September 14, 2010
some person Y killed some person Z.
 Then, most likely, X did not kill Z.
 Axioms and rules of inference statement as
an axiom: “Most likely, a person of age 10
can´t kill anybody”.
Math isn’t just intuition. Math is a formal system.
o We can’t rely on intuition, because our intuition
is frequently not correct. That’s why we use
logic.
o We can’t rely on informal statements, because
informal statements lack precision: they can
mean many different things, some of which are
true, and some of which are not.
o Beyond just definitions, we insist on using
formal symbolic logic for a similar reason. If we
can reduce the argument to symbolic reasoning,
then we’ve abstracted away anything that could
bias or deceive us. The symbolic logic makes
every statement absolutely precise, and every
reasoning step pure, precise, and unbiased
Origin Of Symbols
o Robert Recorde (c.1512–1558)
o was a Welsh physician and mathematician.
o invented the equals sign (=)
o introduced the pre-existing plus sign (+) to
English speakers in 1557
o Basic symbols:
 Symbols widely used in mathematics,
roughly through first-year calculus.
 More advanced meanings are included
with some symbols listed here.
o Symbols based on equality "=":
 Symbols derived from or similar to the
equal sign, including double-headed
arrows.
 These symbols are often associated
with an equivalence relation.
o Symbols that point left or right:
 Symbols, such as < and >, that appear to
point to one side or another.
o Brackets:
 Symbols that are placed on either side
of a variable or expression, such as |x|.
o Other non-letter symbols:
 Symbols that do not fall in any of the
other categories.
o Letter-based symbols:
 Many mathematical symbols are based
on, or closely resemble, a letter in some
alphabet.
 Includes such symbols, including
symbols that resemble upside-down
letters.
 Many letters have conventional
meanings in various branches of
mathematics and physics
a. Letter modifiers:
 Symbols that can be placed on or
next to any letter to modify the
letter's meaning.
b. Symbols based on Latin letters
 including those symbols that
resemble or contain an X
c. Symbols based
on Hebrew or Greek letters
 e.g. ,‫א‬, ‫ב‬δ, Δ, π, Π, σ, Σ, Φ.
 symbols resembling Λ are grouped
with "V" under Latin letters.
o Variations:
 Usage in languages written right-to-left
Inductive & Deductive Reasoning  In mathematics, If A = B, and B = C,
Inductive Reasoning therefore?
o is a type of reasoning which goes from  A = C.
specifics to general. It takes specific information
and makes a broader generalization that is
considered probable, allowing for the fact that general general specific
the conclusion may not be accurate. information information conclusion
o Example #1:
 All observed houses on the South Street Example: You visit your local grocery store daily to pick
are falling apart. Sherry lives on South up necessary items.
Street. Therefore? Inductive Reasoning Deductive Reasoning
 Her house is falling apart.
You notice that on Friday,
o Example #2: two weeks ago, all the clerks
 The chair in the living room is red. The chair in the store were wearing Grocery store
in the dining room is red. The chair in the football jerseys. employees wear
bedroom is red. Therefore? football jerseys
 All chairs in the house are red. on Fridays.
o Example #3: Again, last Friday, the clerks
 Jennifer leaves for school at 7:00 A.M. wore their football jerseys.
Jennifer is always on time. Therefore?
 Jennifer assumes that she will always be on Today is Friday.
time if she leaves at 7:00 A.M. Today, also a Friday, they’re
o Example #4: wearing them again.
 Bob is showing a big diamond ring to his
friend Larry. Bob has told Larry that he is Grocery store
going to marry Joan. Therefore? On all Fridays, these employees will
 Bob has bought the diamond ring to give to supermarket employees will be wearing
wear football jerseys to football jerseys
Joan.
support their local team. today.

specific specific general

information information conclusion

Deductive Reasoning
o is a type of reasoning which goes from
general to specific. It is based on premises and if
the premises are true, then the reasoning will
be valid.
o Example #1:
 Snakes are reptiles, and reptiles are cold-
blooded. Therefore?
 Snakes are cold-blooded.
o Example #2:
 All dolphins are mammals, all mammals
have kidneys; therefore?
 All dolphins have kidneys.
o Example #3:
 Since all humans are mortal, and I am a
human, therefore?
 I am mortal.
o Example #4: