MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD

NAME OF INSTRUCTOR: MAY VELUZ G. SALANSANG

CONSULTATION HOUR: 12:00 – 3:30 (TUESDAY)
 LANGUAGE OF MATHEMATICS
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
1. Discuss the language, symbols, and conventions of mathematicians.
2. Explain the nature of mathematician as a language.
3. Perform operations on mathematical expressions correctly.
4. Acknowledge that mathematics is a useful language.
 Language of Mathematics
• facilitates communication and clarifies meaning
• allows people to express themselves and maintain their identity

Any student learning mathematics in all parts of the globe should be able to
understand mathematics even if he or she does not understand English or
Filipino.
 Characteristics of the Language of Mathematics
The language of mathematics makes it easy to express the kinds of thoughts
that mathematicians like to express. It is:
• Precise
• Concise
• Powerful
 ENGLISH: nouns versus sentences
In English, nouns are used to name things we want to talk about (like people,
places, and things); whereas sentences are used to state complete thoughts.
• A typical English sentence has at least one noun, and at least one verb.
Ex. Anne hates mathematics.
Nouns: Anne, mathematics
Verb: hates
 MATHEMATICS: expressions versus sentences
• The mathematical analogue of a ‘noun’ will be called an expression
• Thus, an expression is a name given to a mathematical object of interest.
Whereas in English, we need to talk about people, places and things, we’ll
see that mathematics has much different ‘object of interest’.
• The mathematical analogue of a ‘sentence’ will also be called a sentence.
• A mathematical sentence, just as an English sentence, must state a
complete thought.
• 3 + 7 = 10 (‘=‘ is verb)
Example:
Write as English sentences and say whether they are true or false.
1. ∀𝑥 ∈ ℛ, 𝑥 2 ≥ 0
• For any real number 𝑥, its square is greater than or equal to 0.
2. ∀𝑥, 𝑦 ∈ ℜ, 𝑥 + 𝑦 2 = 𝑥 2 + 2𝑥𝑦 + 𝑦 2
• For any real numbers 𝑥 and 𝑦, the squares of their sum is equal to the sum
of their squares plus twice their product.
3. ∃𝑚, 𝑛 ∈ ℤ, 𝑚 − 𝑛 ≤ 𝑚 + 𝑛
• There exist integers 𝑚 and 𝑛 such that 𝑚 minus 𝑛 is less than or equal to
𝑚 plus 𝑛.
 OPERAND
• The operand is the object that is being worked on by an operation.
Operations can be mathematical ones such as multiplication or addition, or
they can be more sophisticated functions.
• In all computer languages, expressions consist of two types of
components: operands and operators. Operands are the objects that are
manipulated and operators are the symbols that represent specific actions.
For example, in the expression
5+x
x and 5 are operands and + is an operator. All expressions have at least one
operand.
 TYPES OF OPERATORS

UNARY BINARY
Unary means operation is Binary means operation is performed
performed on one operand. on two operands.
Example: a++, -a, ++a, etc. Example: a+b, a*b, a<b, a++b, etc.
 Unary Set Operations
• In mathematics, a unary operation is an operation with only one operand,
i.e. a single input. An example is the function f : A → A, where A is a set.
The function f is a unary operation on A.
• Common notations are prefix notation (e.g. +, −, ¬), postfix notation (e.g.
factorial n!), functional notation (e.g. sin x or sin(x)), and superscripts (e.g.
transpose AT). Other notations exist as well.
For example, in the case of the square root, a horizontal bar extending the
square root sign over the argument can indicate the extent of the argument.
 UNARY OPERATORS
• In common arithmetic, the unary operators are negation, the reciprocal, and
the absolute value.
• Negation involves reversing the sign of a number. For example, the
negation of 4 is -4, and the negation of -23 is 23.
• The reciprocal involves dividing 1 by the number. Thus, the reciprocal of 4
is 1/4, and the reciprocal of -23 is -1/23.
• The absolute value involves reversing the sign of a number if it is negative,
and leaving the number unchanged if it is 0 or positive. Thus, the absolute
value of 4 is 4, and the absolute value of -23 is 23.
 Unary negative and positive
As unary operations have only one operand they are evaluated before other
operations containing them. Here is an example using negation:
3 − −2
Here, the first '−' represents the binary subtraction operation, while the
second '−' represents the unary negation of the 2 (or '−2' could be taken to
mean the integer −2). Therefore, the expression is equal to:
3 − (−2) = 5
 Unary negative and positive
Technically there is also a unary positive but it is not needed since we
assume a value to be positive:
(+2) = 2
Unary positive does not change the sign of a negative operation:
(+(−2)) = (−2)
In this case a unary negative is needed to change the sign:
(−(−2)) = (+2)
 BINARY OPERATIONS

OPERATION SYMBOL REPRESENTATION

Addition + a+b
Subtraction - a–b
Multiplication x or • a x b or a • b
Division ÷ a÷b
 BINARY OPERATIONS
• In mathematics, a binary operation on a set is a calculation that combines
two elements of the set (called operands) to produce another element of the
set. More formally, a binary operation is an operation of parity (the number
of arguments or operands that the function takes) of two whose two
domains and one codomain are the same set.
• Examples include the familiar elementary arithmetic operations of addition,
subtraction, multiplication and division.
PROPERTIES OF BINARY OPERATIONS
1. Closure of Binary Operations
The product and the sum of any two real numbers is also a real number. In
symbols, we write

∀ 𝑥, 𝑦 ∈ ℜ, 𝑥 + 𝑦 ∈ ℜ and 𝑥∙𝑦 ∈ ℜ
2. Commutativity of Binary Operations
A binary operation is said to be commutative if a change in the order of the
arguments results in equivalence.

∀ 𝒙, 𝒚 ∈ 𝕽, 𝒙 + 𝒚 = 𝒚 + 𝒙 (addition)
∀ 𝒙, 𝒚 ∈ 𝕽, 𝒙 ∙ 𝒚 = 𝒚 ∙ 𝒙 (multiplication)

Example:
1+2=2+1
2∙3=3∙2
3. Associativity of Binary Operations
A binary operation is said to be associative if parentheses can be reordered
and the result is equivalent.

∀ 𝒙, 𝒚, 𝒛 ∈ 𝓡, 𝒙 + 𝒚 + 𝒛 = 𝒙 + (𝒚 + 𝒛) (addition)
∀ 𝒙, 𝒚, 𝒛 ∈ 𝓡, (𝒙 ∙ 𝒚) ∙ 𝒛 = 𝒙 ∙ (𝒚 ∙ 𝒛) (multiplication)

Example:
𝟏+𝟐 +𝟑=𝟏+ 𝟐+𝟑
𝟐 ∙ 𝟑 ∙ 𝟒 = 𝟐 ∙ (𝟑 ∙ 𝟒)
4. Distributive Property of Binary Operations
Distributivity applies when multiplication performed on a group of two
numbers added or subtracted together.

∀ 𝒙, 𝒚, 𝒛 ∈ 𝓡, 𝒛 𝒙 ± 𝒚 = 𝒛𝒙 ± 𝒛𝒚

Example:
𝟐 𝟑 + 𝟒 = 𝟐 𝟑 + 𝟐(𝟒)
5. Identity Elements of Binary Operations
An element 𝑒 is said to be an identity element (or neutral element) of a
binary operation if under the operation any element combined with 𝑒 results
in the same element.

∀ 𝒙 ∈ 𝕽, 𝒙 + 𝒆 = 𝒙 (addition)
∀ 𝒙 ∈ 𝕽, 𝒙 ∙ 𝒆 = 𝒙 (multiplication)

Therefore, the identity element 𝑒 in addition is 0 and the identity element 𝑒

in multiplication is 1.
6. Inverses of Binary Operations
For an element 𝑥, the inverse denoted 𝑥 −1 when combined with 𝑥 under the
binary operation results in the identity element for that binary operation.

∀ 𝒙 ∈ 𝕽, 𝒙 + (−𝒙) = 𝟎 (addition)
𝟏
∀ 𝒙 ∈ 𝕽, 𝒙 ∙ =𝟏 (multiplication)
𝒙
Therefore, the inverse element of addition is the −𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 and the
element of multiplication is 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟.
 FUNDAMENTALS OF LOGIC.
Definition
Logic is an instrument for appraising the correctness of reasoning.
A proposition P is a declarative statement that is true or false but not both.

❖If P is true, P is assigned the truth value 1.

❖If P is false, P is assigned the truth value 0.
 Examples of Propositions
1. It is raining.
2. When you work hard, you are rewarded with success.
3. There are seven days in one week.
The following are not propositions
1. Get out!
2. Logic is sweet.
3. x + 3 = 5
4. How old are you?
 LOGICAL CONNECTIVES

A word or symbol that joins two sentences to produce a new one.

 TRUTH TABLE
A truth table is a table that shows the truth value of a compound statement
for all possible truth values of its simple statements.

NEGATION
A statement is a negation of another if the word is not introduced in the
negative statement. Let 𝑃 be a proposition. The negation of 𝑃 is “not 𝑃” or ¬𝑃.

𝑃 ¬𝑃
T F
F T
NEGATION
 Conjunction of 𝑷 and 𝑸
Let 𝑃 and 𝑄 be propositions. The conjunction of 𝑃 and 𝑄, denoted by 𝑃 ∧ 𝑄
(read as “𝑃 and 𝑄”) is the proposition whose truth value depends on 𝑃 and
𝑄. We call each 𝑃 and 𝑄 a conjunct.
𝑃 𝑄 𝑃∧𝑄
T T T
T F F
F T F
F F F
Conjunction of 𝑷 and 𝑸
 EXAMPLE
Let P: Life is beautiful.
Q: Life is challenging.

1. 𝑃 ∧ 𝑄
2. ¬𝑃 ∧ 𝑄
3. 𝑃 ∧ ¬𝑄
4. ¬𝑃 ∧ ¬𝑄
 Disjunction of 𝑷 and 𝑸
Let 𝑃 and 𝑄 be propositions. The disjunction of 𝑃 and 𝑄, denoted by 𝑃 ∨ 𝑄
(read as “𝑃 or 𝑄”) is the proposition whose truth value depends on 𝑃 and 𝑄.
We call each 𝑃 and 𝑄 a disjunct.

𝑃 𝑄 𝑃∨𝑄
T T T
T F T
F T T
F F F
 Disjunction of 𝑷 and 𝑸

SYMBOL TRANSLATION
.
P or Q;
𝑃∨𝑄 P unless Q
 EXAMPLE
Let P: 2 is prime.
Q: 2 is even.

1. 𝑃 ∨ 𝑄
2. ¬𝑃 ∨ 𝑄
3. 𝑃 ∨ ¬𝑄
4. ¬𝑃 ∨ ¬𝑄
 Conditional Statement or Implication
Let 𝑃 and 𝑄 be propositions. The conditional statement or implication “if 𝑃
then 𝑄", denoted by 𝑃 ⟹ 𝑄, is the proposition whose truth value depends
on 𝑃 and 𝑄. We call each 𝑃 the hypothesis or premise and 𝑄 the
conclusion.
 Conditional Statement or Implication
.
 Example
“Buy one notebook, take one free pencil.”
P: I buy a notebook.
Q: I get a free pencil.

a. If I buy a notebook then I get a free pencil.

b. If I buy a notebook then I don’t get a free pencil.
c. If I don’t buy a notebook then I get a free pencil.
d. If I don’t buy a notebook then I don’t get a free pencil.
 Example
“If I get my salary today, then I treat you to dinner.”

a. I get my salary today and then, I treat you to dinner.

b. I get my salary today and then, I don’t treat you to dinner.
c. I don’t get my salary today and then, I treat you to dinner just the same.
d. I don’t get my salary today and then I don’t treat you to dinner.

Under what situation is the promise broken?

 Biconditional Statement or an Equivalence
Let 𝑃 and 𝑄 be propositions. The conditional statement or an equivalence “𝑃
if and only if 𝑄", denoted by 𝑃 ⇔ 𝑄, is the proposition whose truth value
depends on 𝑃 and 𝑄.
 Biconditional Statement or an Equivalence

.
Express the following propositions in symbols, where P, Q, R and S
are defined as follows.
P: I understand logic.
Q: I am doing well in my class in Logic.
R: Logic is easy.
S: I will pass all my exams in Logic.
1. Logic is easy or it is difficult.
2. I understand Logic if and only if it is easy.
3. Although I am doing well in my class in Logic, I won’t pass all my exams.
4. Logic is easy and I understand it.
 More Conditional Statements
Implication: If P Then Q.
P: antecedent or hypothesis
Q: consequent or conclusion

Converse: If Q then P.
Inverse: If not P then not Q.
Contrapositive: If not Q then not P.
Give the converse, inverse and contrapositive of the following
implications.

1. If you are more than 60 years old, then you are entitled to a senior citizen
card.

2. If P is prime then it is odd.

Exercise
1. Let 𝑃 and 𝑄 be the proposition.
P: I bought a lottery ticket this week.
Q: I won the million dollar jackpot on Friday.
Express each of the following propositions as an English sentence.
A. ¬𝑃
B. 𝑃 ∨ 𝑄
C. 𝑃 ⟹ 𝑄
D. ¬𝑃 ∧ ¬𝑄
E. ¬𝑃 ∨ (𝑃 ∧ 𝑄)
Exercise
2. Let 𝑃 and 𝑄 be the proposition.
P: It is below freezing.
Q: It is snowing.
Write the following propositions using 𝑃 and 𝑄 and logical connectives.
A. It is below freezing and snowing.
B. It is below freezing but not snowing.
C. It is not below freezing and it is not snowing.
D. It is either snowing or below freezing (or both).
E. It is either below freezing or it is snowing, but it is not snowing if it is below
freezing.
Exercise
3. Construct a truth table for each of the following propositions.
A. 𝑃 ⟹ ( ¬𝑄 ∨ 𝑅)
B. (𝑃 ∨ ¬𝑄) ⟹ 𝑄
C. (𝑃 ∨ 𝑄) ⟹ (𝑃 ∧ 𝑄)
D. 𝑃 ⟹ 𝑄 ⇔ ( ¬𝑄 ⟹ ¬𝑃 )
E. 𝑃 ⟹ 𝑄 ⇔ (𝑄 ⟹ 𝑃)
Credits to CHED seminar facilitators for most of the contents on the slides.

Reference: Mathematics in the Modern World

by: Baltazar, et.al