MATH 1101: College Algebra and Trigonometry

Lecture 1: SET THEORY

John Mbotwa, PhD

July 30, 2024

Unit Overview

▶ Definition of a set
▶ Different ways of expressing a set
▶ Subsets
▶ Union and intersection of sets
▶ Properties of union and intersection
▶ Applications of sets in everyday life
Objectives of the Unit

By the end of this unit, you should be able to:

▶ Express a set in different notations
▶ Find subsets of a given set
▶ Find the union and intersection of sets
▶ Identify the universal set, empty set, and complement of a set
▶ State properties of union and intersection of sets
▶ Apply set theory to real-life problems
Key Terms

During this unit, ensure you understand and can use the following
key terms:
▶ Set
▶ Subset
▶ Union
▶ Intersection
▶ Complement
▶ Universal Set
▶ Empty Set
▶ De Morgan’s Laws
Notation and Terminology

▶ A set is a collection of objects or things which have at least

one common attribute.
▶ The objects in a set are called elements or members.
▶ A set is denoted by capital letters (e.g., A, B, C ), and its
elements by lower case letters (e.g., a, b, c).
▶ If A is a set and x is an element of A, we write this as x ∈ A.
If x is not an element of A, we write this as x ∈ / A.
▶ Sets are presented using braces or curly brackets {}. For
example, the set of vowels is written as V = {a, e, i, o, u}.
▶ The set of odd consecutive numbers can be written as
{1, 3, 5, 7, . . .}. The three dots indicate that the elements
continue indefinitely in the same pattern.
Set-builder notation

▶ Sets can also be presented using set-builder notation. For

example, the set of all prime numbers can be written as
{x | x is a prime number} or {x : x is a prime number}.
▶ Which is read as the set of all elements x such that x is a
prime number.
▶ We can also use a vertical bar | instead of the colon, : as
shown above.
Example 1.1
(a) Use set notation to write the set of counting numbers less than
9:
▶ {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8}
▶ Or, using set-builder notation:
{x | x is a counting number less than 9}
(b) Describe the following set by stating the common attribute:
▶ B = {Penny, Paul, Peter, Polly, Priscilla}
▶ Common attribute: All are names beginning with ’P’
(c) State whether the following are true or false:
▶ 12 ∈ {multiples of 3}
▶ Listing the elements of this set: {3, 6, 9, 12, 15}
▶ Therefore, 12 ∈ {multiples of 3} is true.
▶ lettuce ∈ {banana, apple, orange, passion fruit}
▶ The elements of this set are listed, and lettuce is not included.
▶ Therefore, lettuce ∈
/ {banana, apple, orange, passion fruit} is
false.
Activity 1a

1. Write down the following sets using set-builder notation:

1.1 A set A of all numbers greater than 3.
1.2 A set B of all numbers less than 4.
1.3 A set Y of all months of the year with more than 30 days.
1.4 A set W of all days of a week.
Activity 1a (continued)

2. List all terms in each set:

0.1 The set of all positive even numbers less than or equal to 10.
0.2 The set of all letters in the word ”AUSTRALIA”.
0.3 The set of all whole numbers greater than 3 and smaller than
16, and divisible by 3.
0.4 The set of all whole numbers greater than 5 and smaller than
35, and divisible by 5.
0.5 The set of all prime numbers divisible by 3.
Activity 1a (continued)

3. Find the attribute common to all elements in each set and

then describe the set:
0.1 {January, June, July}
0.2 {Saturday, Sunday}
Subsets

Let A and B be sets. The set A is a subset of set B (or A is

contained in B) written A ⊆ B or B ⊇ A if every element of A is
also an element of B.
Example of Subsets

Consider the following sets:

A = {a, d, x, p, q}

B = {a, d, x, p, q}
You notice that every element of A is also an element of B. Thus
A ⊆ B. Similarly, every element of B is also an element of A.
Thus B ⊆ A. Therefore, these sets are called equal sets.
Definition: Equal Sets

Let A and B be sets. Then A is equal to B if A ⊆ B and B ⊆ A.

Note

▶ Consider the following three sets:

X = {1, 2, 3}

Y = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}
Z = {1, 2, 3, 4, 2, 5}
▶ You notice that X is entirely contained in Y . X is then said
to be a proper subset of Y , written as X ⊂ Y .
▶ On the other hand, Y is a subset of Z and also equal to Z . Y
is therefore not a proper subset of Z . In this case, we write
Y ⊆ Z.
▶ A ⊆ A for every set A. Every set is a subset of itself.
Venn Diagrams

Sets are also represented by diagrams called Venn diagrams. Venn

diagrams are a method for displaying set relations in a way that is
more visual than the more algebraic form. For example, X ⊂ Y
can be represented as in the figure below:

X
Repetition of Elements
Repetition of elements in a set is irrelevant. For example:

{1, 1, 2, 3, 2, 3, 2, 2, 1, 2} = {1, 2, 3}

It does not matter how often the same element is listed.

Order of Elements
Order of elements is meaningless. For example:

{1, 2, 3} = {3, 1, 2}
Cardinal Number

Let A be a set. Then the number of distinct (different) elements in

A is called the cardinal number of A and is denoted by n(A) or |A|.
For instance, if:

A = {1, 1, 2, 3, 2, 3, 2, 2, 1, 2}

then:
n(A) = 3
Activity 1b

1. Write down all the subsets of each of the following sets:

1.1 A = {a, b, c}
1.2 X = {11, 14}
1.3 A = {set theory, number systems, functions, probability}
2. Let Q be any set with cardinality n. Using your answers to
question 1(a), state the total number of subsets of Q:
Union and Intersection of Sets

Union of Sets
▶ Let A and B be sets. The union of A and B, denoted by
A ∪ B, is a set whose elements are in A or B or both.
▶ In set-builder notation, this is written as
A ∪ B = {x | x ∈ A or x ∈ B}.
Example 1.2

▶ Let A = {a, b, c, d, e} and B = {f , g , b, c, h}.

▶ Find (a) A ∪ B
▶ (b) n(A ∪ B)
Solution:
▶ (a) A ∪ B = {a, b, c, d, e, f , g , h}
▶ (b) n(A ∪ B) = 8
Intersection of Sets

▶ Let A and B be sets. The intersection of A and B, denoted by

A ∩ B, is defined as the set of all elements that are common
to both A and B.
▶ In set-builder notation, this is written as
A ∩ B = {x | x ∈ A and x ∈ B}.
▶ The intersection of two sets is a subset of each of the original
sets. For example, if A = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5} and B = {2, 4, 6},
then A ∩ B = {2, 4}. But A ∩ B = {2, 4} ⊂ A and
A ∩ B = {2, 4} ⊂ B.
▶ Using a Venn diagram, A ∩ B is illustrated as in the figure
below:
Intersection A ∩ B

A B

A∩B
Example 1.3

▶ Let A = {a, b, c, d, e}, B = {f , g , b, c, h}, and

C = {c, g , e, k}.
▶ (a) Find (A ∪ B) ∩ (B ∩ C )
▶ (b) Show that A ∩ B ⊂ B
Solution:
▶ (a) A ∪ B = {a, b, c, d, e, f , g , h} and B ∩ C = {c, g }
▶ So (A ∪ B) ∩ (B ∩ C ) = {c, g }
▶ (b) A ∩ B = {b, c} ⊂ B
Activity 1c: Intersection of Sets

Find the intersection of the following sets:

▶ X = {a, b, c, d, e, f , g }
▶ Y = {e, f , g , h, i, j, k}
Activity 1c: Union and Cardinality of Sets

Given the following sets:

▶ M = {4, 8, 12, 16, 20}
▶ N = {3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18}
i. Find M ∪ N.
ii. Find |M ∪ N|.
Universal Set, Empty Set, and Complement of a Set

Universal Set
The universal set, denoted by Ω, contains all possible elements
that may be referred to in a problem involving sets. In a Venn
diagram, the universal set is represented by a rectangle.

Empty Set
An empty set, denoted by ∅ or {}, has no elements. It is a subset
of any set.

Complement of a Set
Let Ω be the universal set and A ⊆ Ω. The complement of A in Ω,
denoted by Ac or A′ , is the set of all elements in Ω that do not
belong to A.
Example

a. Draw a Venn diagram of the following sets:

▶ A = {2, 4, 6, 8, 10}
▶ U = {counting numbers less than 15} =
{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14}
Venn Diagram
U

12 1
11

A
14

10 9
2 4 3
6 8 7 13 5

Figure: Venn Diagram of sets A and U

Example

b. Shade the region called the complement of A:

▶ A = {2, 4, 6, 8, 10}
▶ U = {counting numbers less than 15} =
{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14}
Complement of A
U

12 1
11

A
14

10 9
2 4 3
6 8 7 13 5

Figure: Venn Diagram of sets A and U

Example

c. List the elements of the set A′

▶ A = {2, 4, 6, 8, 10}
▶ U = {counting numbers less than 15} =
{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14}
Elements of A′

Complement of A
▶ The complement of A, denoted as A′ , includes all elements in
the universal set U that are not in A.
▶ Therefore, A′ = {1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14}
Activity 1d

Given
▶ Universal Set: U = {counting numbers up to 20} =
{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20}

1. Find the complement of the following sets:

1.1 B ′ , when B = {3, 5, 6, 8, 12, 15, 19}
1.2 M ′ , when
M = {even numbers} = {2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20}
2. Given A = {2, 4, 6, 8, 10} and B = {1, 3, 5, 7, 9}, find A ∩ B.
Properties of Union of Sets

Let U denote a universal set with subsets A, B, and C . Denote by

∅ the empty set. Then:
1. A ∪ A = A
2. A ∪ B = B ∪ A (Commutative property)
3. A ∪ (B ∪ C ) = (A ∪ B) ∪ C (Associative property)
4. A ⊆ A ∪ B
5. A ∪ U = U
6. A ∪ ∅ = A
7. A ∪ A′ = U
Properties of Intersection of Sets

Let U denote a universal set with subsets A, B, and C . Denote by

∅ the empty set. Then:
1. A ∩ A = A
2. A ∩ B = B ∩ A (Commutative property)
3. A ∩ (B ∩ C ) = (A ∩ B) ∩ C (Associative property)
4. A ∩ B ⊆ A
5. A ∩ U = A
6. A ∩ ∅ = ∅
7. A ∩ A′ = ∅
Distributive Laws

Let A, B, and C be sets. Then:

1. A ∩ (B ∪ C ) = (A ∩ B) ∪ (A ∩ C )
2. A ∪ (B ∩ C ) = (A ∪ B) ∩ (A ∪ C )
De Morgan’s Laws

Given sets A and B:

′ ′ ′
▶ (a) (A ∩ B) = A ∪ B
′ ′ ′
▶ (b) (A ∪ B) = A ∩ B
Proof of (b) by table:
′ ′ ′ ′ ′
A B A B A ∩B A∪B (A ∪ B)
1 1 0 0 0 1 0
1 0 0 1 0 1 0
0 1 1 0 0 1 0
0 0 1 1 1 0 1
Activity 1e

Using properties (identities) of sets that you know, simplify the

following:
1. X ∪ (X ∪ ∅)
2. X ∪ (X ∩ ∅)
′
3. X ∪ (X ∩ ∅)
′ ′
4. (X ∪ X ) ∩ (X ∩ X )
′
5. A ∩ (B ∪ A )
Application of set Theory
Example

In a survey, 30 respondents are asked about their preference on two

soccer stars, Dan Kumwenda and Adam Mhango.
▶ 15 respondents support Dan
▶ 13 support Adam
▶ 23 support Dan or Adam
How many support:
1. Both Dan and Adam
2. Adam only
3. Neither Dan nor Adam
Venn Diagram

Dan Adam

15 − x x 13 − x
Solution: Both Dan and Adam

Let x denote the number of respondents that support both Dan

and Adam.
▶ 15 support Dan
▶ 13 support Adam
▶ 23 support Dan or Adam
So,
15 − x + x + 13 − x = 23
28 − x = 23
x =5
Therefore, 5 respondents support both Dan and Adam.
Solution: Adam only

▶ Total supporting Adam = 13

▶ Supporting both Dan and Adam = 5
Adam only = 13 − 5 = 8
Therefore, 8 respondents support Adam only.
Solution: Neither Dan nor Adam

▶ Total respondents = 30
▶ Supporting Dan or Adam = 23
Neither Dan nor Adam = 30 − 23 = 7
Therefore, 7 respondents support neither Dan nor Adam.
Activity 1f: Class and Sports Problems
1. In a class of 40 students:
▶ 24 take Mathematics
▶ 15 take English
▶ 7 take English but not Mathematics
How many take:
1.1 Neither
1.2 Mathematics but not English
2. MUST has 100 students in year one with three sports options:
softball (S), tennis (T), and athletics (A).
▶ 5 students do all three sports
▶ 13 do softball and tennis
▶ 17 do tennis and athletics
▶ 21 do athletics and softball
▶ 46 do softball
▶ 35 do tennis
▶ 55 do athletics
Find the number of students who:
2.1 Do not do a sport
2.2 Play softball only
2.3 Do softball or tennis