Chapter

2
The Basic
Concepts of
Set Theory

Chapter 2: The Basic Concepts of
Set Theory
2.1 Symbols and Terminology
2.2 Venn Diagrams and Subsets
2.3 Set Operations and Cartesian
Products
2.4 Surveys and Cardinal Numbers
2.5 Infinite Sets and Their Cardinalities

Chapter 1
Section 2-1
Symbols and Terminology
Symbols and Terminology
Designating Sets
Sets of Numbers and Cardinality
Finite and Infinite Sets
Equality of Sets
Set Theory Notation
Symbol Meaning

Upper case designates set name
Lower case designates set elements
{ } enclose elements in set
e or is (or is not) an element of
_ is a subset of (includes equal sets)
c is a proper subset of
. is not a subset of
is a superset of
| or : such that (if a condition is true)
| | the cardinality of a set
Designating Sets
A set is a collection of objects. The objects
belonging to the set are called the
elements, or members of the set.
Sets are designated using:
1) word description,
2) the listing method, or roster method and
3) set-builder notation.

Designating Sets
Word description
The set of even counting numbers less than 10
The listing method
{2, 4, 6, 8}
Set-builder notation
{x|x is an even counting number less than 10}

Designating Sets
Sets are commonly given names (capital letters).
A = {1, 2, 3, 4}
The set containing no elements is called the
empty set (null set) and denoted by { } or
. C
To show 2 is an element of set A use the symbol
. e
2 {1, 2, 3, 4} e
{1, 2, 3, 4} ae
Give a complete listing of all of the elements
of the set {x|x is a natural number between
3 and 8}

Solution
{4, 5, 6, 7}
Example: Listing Elements of Sets
Sets of Numbers
Natural (counting) {1, 2, 3, 4, }
Whole numbers {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, }
Integers {,3, 2, 1, 0, 1, 2, 3, }
Rational numbers

May be written as a terminating decimal, like 0.25, or a
repeating decimal like 0.333
Irrational {x | x is not expressible as a quotient of
integers} Decimal representations never terminate and
never repeat.
Real numbers {x | x can be expressed as a decimal}
and are integers, with 0
p
p q q
q

=
`
)
Cardinality
The number of elements in a set is called
the cardinal number, or cardinality of
the set.

The symbol n(A), read n of A, represents
the cardinal number of set A.
Example: Cardinality
Find the cardinal number of each set.
a) K = {a, l, g, e, b, r}
b) M = {2}
c)
Solution
a) n(K) = 6
b) n(M) = 1
c)
C
( ) 0 n C =
Finite and Infinite Sets
If the cardinal number of a set is a
particular whole number, we call that set a
finite set.

Whenever a set is so large that its cardinal
number is not found among the whole
numbers, we call that set an infinite set.
Example: Infinite Set
The odd counting numbers are an infinite
set.
Word description
The set of all odd counting
numbers
Listing method
{1, 3, 5, 7, 9, }
Set-builder notation
{x|x is an odd counting number}

Equality of Sets
Set A is equal to set B provided the
following two conditions are met:

1. Every element of A is an element of
B, and 2. Every element of B is an
element of A.
Example: Equality of Sets
State whether the sets in each pair are equal.
a) {a, b, c, d} and {a, c, d, b}
b) {2, 4, 6} and {x|x is an even number}

Solution
a) Yes, order of elements does not matter
b) No, {2, 4, 6} does not represent all the
even numbers.
Subsets
a subset exists when a sets members
are also contained in another set
notation:

_ means is a subset of
c means is a proper subset of
. means is not a subset of
Properties and
Relationships of
Set Theory
Properties and Relationships
of Set Theory
How are Venn Diagrams used to show
relationships among sets?

How are sets, subsets, unions,
intersections, and complements
identified?

Sets and Venn Diagrams
A set is a collection of objects called
members or elements.
There are three ways to describe a
set:
1. We can use words.
2. We can make a list.
3. We can use set-builder notation.
Examples of Sets
1. Words:
N is the set of natural numbers or
counting numbers.
2. List:
N = {1, 2, 3, }
3. Set-builder notation:
N = {x | x e N}
Example
Write the set B of whole numbers greater than 5 using
(a) roster notation and (b) set-builder notation.
{ }
B 6, 7, 8, ... =
a) roster notation:
{ }
B x x is a whole number and x 5 = >
b) set-builder notation:
Kinds of Sets
A finite set has a limited number of members.
Example: The set of students in our Math class.
An infinite set has an unlimited number of
members.
Example: The set of integers.
A well-defined set has a universe of objects
which are allowed into consideration and any
object in the universe is either an element of
the set or it is not.
Venn Diagrams
One way to represent or visualize sets is
to use Venn diagrams:

Universe or Universal Set
Let U be the set of all students enrolled in classes this
semester.
U
Let M be the set of all students
enrolled in Math this semester.
Let E be the set of all students
enrolled in English this semester.
U
M
E
Complement of a set
Let C be the set of all students enrolled in
classes this semester, but who are not
enrolled in Math or English
U
M
E
C
Intersection ()
E M = the set of students in Math
AND English
U
E
M
Intersection of Sets
The intersection of two sets A and B, written , is
the set of all members that are common to both sets.
A B
is read A intersection B A B
A B
A B
Example
Let U = and V = .
{ }
1, 3, 5, 7
{ }
7, 6, 5, 4
Find .
U V
{ }
U V 5, 7 =
Union ()
E M = the set of students in Math OR
English
U
E
M
Union of Sets
The union of two sets A and B, written , is the
set of all members that are common to both sets.
A B
is read A union B A B
A B
A B
A B
A B
Example
Let C = {0,1,2,3} and D = {1,3,5}. Find C D.
C D {0,1,2,3, 5} =
Example
Let S be the set of positive divisors of 4 and let
T = {1,5,10}. Find
S T.
S T {1,2, 4, 5,10} =
S = {1,2,4}
Disjoint Sets
U
Male
Students
Two sets with no elements in common are called
disjoint sets.
Female
Students
Subset (_)
X is a subset of Y if and only if every
member of X is also a member of Y.
U
Students in a Math class
Algebra
Students
Example
A survey of 100 students revealed that 82
were in Math and 65 were in English. How
many students are taking both Math and
English? All 100 students are either in Math
or English.

U
Solution
82 + 65 = 147 82 47 = 35
147 100 = 47 65 47 = 18
U
47
Math English
35 18