Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
4
The Integers and Division
Recall that the integers are not closed under division. That is,
when we divide one integer by another we are not guaranteed to
get another integer.
Sometimes we do get another integer, ex. 39 divided by 3 is 13.
Other times we end up with a rational number that is not an
integer, ex. 25 divided by 8 is 3.125.
Other times we dont even get a real number, ex. 5 divided by 0.
Def: Let a and b be integers with a 0. We say that a divides b
if there is an integer c such that b = ac. When a divides b we say
that a is a factor of b and that b is a multiple of a. To denote that
a divides b we use a | b. We slash through the | symbol to
denote that a does not divide b. [Dont get confused, a|b and a/b]
Ex: 4 divides 12 since 12 = 4*3. So 4 is a factor of 12 and 12 is
a multiple of 4.
5 does not divide 12 since there is no integer c such that 12 = 5c.
[Division of Sum]
[Division of Multiples]
3. If a | b and b | c, then a | c.
[Transitivity]
Ex: Is 57 prime?
No. 57 = 3*19 so 3 | 57. So 57 is not prime. [Also 19 | 57]
Ex: Is 59 prime?
Yes. We have to determine that no positive integer n, 1 < n < 59,
divides 59. [If you try this you will start to find shortcuts.]
Ex: The number 1 is neither prime nor composite. Only
positive integers greater than 1 are prime or composite.
Ex: The set of primes less than 100 is {2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19,
23, 29, 31, 37, 41, 43, 47, 53, 59, 61, 67, 71, 73, 79, 83, 89,
97}.
If you take any of these numbers you will find that the only two
positive divisors of the number are 1 and itself.
Observation: If a | b then |a| |b|. When we are looking for
possible divisors of a number, we only need to check integers of
lesser magnitude.
Preliminaries
Reminder: HW5 is due Wednesday
Pass back HW4
average: 90%, median: 91%