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Topic06 Sets

The document defines sets, subsets, set operations like union and intersection, and provides examples. It introduces concepts like the empty set, power sets, Cartesian products, and the cardinality of finite and infinite sets. Venn diagrams are discussed as a way to visually represent relationships between sets. Theorems about sets and proofs of set identities are presented.

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114 views14 pages

Topic06 Sets

The document defines sets, subsets, set operations like union and intersection, and provides examples. It introduces concepts like the empty set, power sets, Cartesian products, and the cardinality of finite and infinite sets. Venn diagrams are discussed as a way to visually represent relationships between sets. Theorems about sets and proofs of set identities are presented.

Uploaded by

aakashbarot
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Some Definitions about Sets

Definition: Two sets are equal if they contain the


same elements. I.e., sets A and B are equal if
∀x[x ∈ A ↔ x ∈ B].
Notation: A = B.

Recall: Sets are unordered and we do not distinguish


between repeated elements. So:
{1, 1, 1} = {1}, and {a, b, c} = {b, a, c}.

Definition: A set A is a subset of set B, denoted


A ⊆ B, if every element x of A is also an element of B.
That is, A ⊆ B if ∀x(x ∈ A → x ∈ B).

Example: Z ⊆ R.
{1, 2} ⊆ {1, 2, 3, 4}

Notation: If set A is not a subset of B, we write A 6⊆ B.


Example: {1, 2} 6⊆ {1, 3}

1
More on Subsets

Definition: If A ⊆ B and A 6= B, we say that A is a


proper subset of B. Notation: A ⊂ B.

Example: {1, 2} ⊂ {3, 2, 1}

Note: One way of proving that A = B is by proving


that A ⊆ B and B ⊆ A.

Definition: The set that contains no elements is the


empty set, and is denoted by ∅ or less commonly, {}.

Theorem: Prove that for every set S, ∅ ⊆ S.

2
Creating New Sets - Set Operations

Binary Operations

The union of two sets A and B is denoted A ∪ B and


is defined as A ∪ B = {x|x ∈ A or x ∈ B}.

The intersection of two sets A and B is denoted A ∩ B


and is defined as A ∩ B = {x|x ∈ A and x ∈ B}.

Two sets are disjoint if they have no elements in com-


mon, that is, A and B are disjoint if A ∩ B = ∅.

3
Some Proofs about Sets

Theorem: For any sets A and B, A ∩ B ⊆ A.

4
Theorem: For any sets A and B, A ⊆ A ∪ B.

5
Venn Diagrams and More Set Operations
Sets and relationships between sets are represented visu-
ally using Venn Diagrams, which were introduced by
mathematician John Venn.

Venn Diagrams
• The universal set U, which contains all objects
under consideration, is represented by a rectangle.
• Circles and other shapes are used inside the rectangle
to represent sets (which are subsets of U).
• Elements of U (or other sets) are represented by dots.

Example: Venn diagrams that represent A ⊆ B, A∪B,


and A ∩ B.

Definition: For sets A and B, the difference or set


difference of A and B, denoted A − B, is given by
A − B = {x|x ∈ A and x 6∈ B}.

Example: Venn diagram for A − B.

Example: A = {a, b, d, f }, B = {b, f, h, i, j}. What


is A − B? What is B − A?

6
More Set Operations

Definition: Let U be the universal set. The comple-


ment of a set A, denoted A or Ac , is U − A, or equiva-
lently,
Ac = {x|x 6∈ A}.

Example: Venn diagram for Ac .

Example: Let the universe U = Z+, and let A =


{x|x ≥ 10}. What is Ac?

7
Set Identities
Identity Name
A∪∅=A identity laws
A∩U =A
A∪U =U domination laws
A∩∅=∅
A∪A=A idempotence
A∩A=A
(Ac)c = A double complement law
A∪B =B∪A commutative laws
A∩B =B∩A
A ∪ (B ∪ C) = (A ∪ B) ∪ C associative laws
A ∩ (B ∩ C) = (A ∩ B) ∩ C
A ∩ (B ∪ C) = (A ∩ B) ∪ (A ∩ C) distributive laws
A ∪ (B ∩ C) = (A ∪ B) ∩ (A ∪ C)
A∪B =A∩B DeMorgan’s laws
A∩B =A∪B
A ∪ (A ∩ B) = A absorption laws
A ∩ (A ∪ B) = A
A ∪ Ac = U complement laws
A ∩ Ac = ∅

8
Proving Set Equality

Set equality proofs are usually a special type of linear equivalence proof
that uses definitions about set operations and logical identities.

Example: Prove A ∩ B = A ∪ B

Let x ∈ A ∩ B
≡x∈ / A ∩ B {Definition of set complement}
≡ ¬(x ∈ A ∩ B) {Meaning of ∈ / abbreviation}
≡ ¬(x ∈ A ∧ x ∈ B) {Definition of set intersection}
≡x∈ / A∨x∈ / B {De Morgan, ∈ / abbreviation}
≡ x ∈ A ∨ x ∈ B {Definition of set complement (twice)}
≡ x ∈ A ∪ B {Definition of set union}
Therefore ∀x(x ∈ A ∩ B ↔ x ∈ A ∪ B) {Universal Generalization}
In other words: A ∩ B = A ∪ B {Definition of set equality}

Note: Some set equality proofs are more challenging, and require two sepa-
rate subset proofs instead. However, your general approach to a set equality
proof should be to do a linear equivalence proof. If, along the way, you find
that some necessary step can only be accomplished with an inference (not an
equivalence), then your set equality proof becomes a subset proof, and you
will also need to do another subset proof in the opposite direction.

1
More Proofs of Identities

Theorem: For any sets A, B and C, A ∪ (B ∩ C) =


(B ∪ C) ∩ A.

Proof:

Exercise: Prove the complement law.

11
More on the Cardinality of a Set

Definition: Let A be a set. If A contains exactly n


distinct elements and n ∈ Z≥0, then A is a finite set
and n is the cardinality of A. Notation: |A| = n.

Example: A = {a, b, c, ..., z}. What is |A|?

Example: What is |∅|?

What is the cardinality of the following sets:


1. {∅}
2. {∅, {∅}}
3. {∅, {∅}, {∅, {∅}}}
4. {{a}}
5. {a, {a}}

Definition: If a set is not finite, then it is infinite.

12
The Power Set

Definition: For any set S, the power set of S, denoted


P (S ) or 2S , is the set of all subsets of S.

Example: A = {a, b, c}. What is 2A?

Example: What is 2∅?

13
Cartesian Products

Definition: The ordered n-tuple (a1, a2, ..., an) is


the ordered collection that has ai as its ith element for
all integers i such that 1 ≤ i ≤ n.

Two ordered n-tuples are equal if each pair of corre-


sponding entries are equal. That is, (a1, a2, ..., an) =
(b1, b2, ..., bn) if and only if ai = bi for all i ∈ {1, 2, ..., n}.

We call ordered 2-tuples ordered pairs.

Definition: For sets A and B, the Cartesian prod-


uct of A and B, denoted AxB, is the set of all ordered
pairs (a, b) such that a ∈ A and b ∈ B. That is,
AxB = {(a, b)|a ∈ A ∧ b ∈ B}.

Example: A = {0, 1}, B = {a, b, c}. What is AxB?

Example: A = {1, 2}. What is Ax∅?

14
More on Cartesian Products

Example: Disprove: For all sets A and B, AxB =


BxA.

Definition: The Cartesian product of sets A1 , A2, ..., An,


denoted A1xA2x...xAn, is the set of ordered n-tuples (x1, x2, ..., xn)
where xi ∈ Ai for all i ∈ {1, 2, ..., n}. That is, A1xA2x...xAn =
{(x1, x2, ..., xn)|xi ∈ Ai for i = 1, 2, ..., n}.

Example: A = {0, 1}, B = {a, b, c}, C = {cat, dog}.


What is AxBxC?

15

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