Review on Set Theory

Math 100
Prof. Ronald F. Judan
ME-ECE / MAEd-Math
University of the Cordilleras
 Why Study Set Theory?
Understanding set theory helps people to …

• see things in terms of systems

• organize things into groups

• begin to understand logic

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 Key Mathematicians
These mathematicians influenced the
development of set theory and logic:

• Georg Cantor
• John Venn
• George Boole
• Augustus DeMorgan
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 Georg Cantor 1845 -1918
• developed set theory
• set theory was not
initially accepted
because it was
radically different
• set theory today is
widely accepted and is
used in many areas of
mathematics

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 …Cantor
• the concept of infinity was expanded by
Cantor’s set theory
• Cantor proved there are “levels of infinity”
• an infinitude
0 of integers initially ending
with  or
• an infinitude of real numbers exist between
1 and 2;
• there are more real numbers than there are
integers…
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 John Venn 1834-1923

• studied and taught logic

and probability theory

• articulated Boole’s
algebra of logic

• devised a simple way to

diagram set operations
(Venn Diagrams)

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 George Boole 1815-1864
• self-taught mathematician
with an interest in logic

• developed an algebra of
logic (Boolean Algebra)

• featured the operators

– and
– or
– not
– nor (exclusive or)

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Augustus De Morgan 1806-1871
• developed two laws of
negation
• interested, like other
mathematicians, in using
mathematics to demonstrate
logic
• furthered Boole’s work of
incorporating logic and
mathematics
• formally stated the laws of
set theory

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Basic Set Theory Definitions
• A set is a collection of elements
• An element is an object contained in a set
• If every element of Set A is also
contained in Set B, then Set A is a subset
of Set B
– A is a proper subset of B if B has more
elements than A does
• The universal set contains all of the
elements relevant to a given discussion
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 • Ways of describing a set
1. Tabular or roster method- describing a set where the
elements are separated by commas and enclosed braces.
2. Rule form- makes use of description
Roster Rule

{ 1,2,3} {x| x is a natural number less than 4}

{ 2,4,6} {x | x is an even integer between 0 and 8}

{0,3,6,9} {k | K is a multiple of 3 between -1 and 12}

 Simple Set Example
• the universal set is
a deck of ordinary
playing cards
• each card is an element
in the universal set
• some subsets are:
– face cards
– numbered cards
– suits
– poker hands

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 Set Theory Notation
Symbol Symbol Name Meaning / definition Example
{} set a collection of elements A = {3,7,9,14},
B = {9,14,28}
| such that so that A = {x | x ∈ , x<0}
A∩B intersection objects that belong to set A A ∩ B = {9,14}
and set B
A∪B union objects that belong to set A A ∪ B = {3,7,9,14,28}
or set B
A⊆ B subset subset has fewer elements {9,14,28} ⊆ {9,14,28}
or equal to the set
A⊂ B proper subset / subset has fewer elements {9,14} ⊂ {9,14,28}
strict subset than the set
A⊄ B not subset left set not a subset of right {9,66} ⊄ {9,14,28}
set
A⊇ B superset set A has more elements or {9,14,28} ⊇ {9,14,28}
equal to the set B
A⊃ B proper superset / set A has more elements {9,14,28} ⊃ {9,14}
strict superset than set B
A⊅ B not superset set A is not a superset of {9,14,28} ⊅ {9,66}
set B
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 Set Theory Symbols
power set all subsets of A

A=B equality both sets have the same A={3,9,14},

members B={3,9,14},
A=B
Ac complement all the objects that do not
belong to set A
A- B relative objects that belong to A and A = {3,9,14},
complement not to B B = {1,2,3},
A - B = {9,14}
a∈A element of set membership A={3,9,14}, 3 ∈ A
x∉A not element of no set membership A={3,9,14}, 1 ∉ A
|A| cardinality the number of elements of A={3,9,14}, |A|=3
set A
Ø empty set Ø={} C = {Ø}

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 Set Theory Symbols
universal set set of all possible values

natural numbers / whole

0 numbers set (with zero) 0 = {0,1,2,3,4,...} 0∈ 0

natural numbers / whole

numbers set (without 1 = {1,2,3,4,5,...} 6∈ 1
1
zero)
integer numbers set = {...-3,-2,-1,0,1,2,3,...} -6 ∈
rational numbers set = {x | x=a/b, a,b∈ } 2/6 ∈
real numbers set = {x | -∞ < x <∞} 6.343434 ∈
complex numbers set = {z | z=a+bi, -
∞<a<∞, -∞<b<∞} 6+2i ∈

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 Set Notation: Defining Sets
• sets can be defined two ways:
– by listing each element
– by defining the rules for membership

• Examples:
– A = {2,4,6,8,10}
– A = {x|x is a positive even integer <12}

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 Set Notation Elements
• an element is a member of a set
• notation:  means “is an element of”
 means “is not an element of”
• Examples:

– A = {1, 2, 3, 4}
1A 6A
2A zA
– B = {x | x is an even number  10}
2B 9B
4B zB
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 Subsets
• a subset exists when a set’s members are
also contained in another set
• notation:

 means “is a subset of”

 means “is a proper subset of”

Strict subset fewer elements
 means “is not a subset of”
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 Subset Relationships
• A = {x | x is a positive integer  8}
set A contains: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
• B = {x | x is a positive even integer  10}
set B contains: 2, 4, 6, 8
• C = {2, 4, 6, 8, 10}
set C contains: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10
• Subset Relationships
AA AB AC
BA BB BC
CA CB CC

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 Set Equality
• Two sets are equal if and only if they contain precisely the
same elements.
• The order in which the elements are listed is unimportant.
• Elements may be repeated in set definitions without
increasing the size of the sets.
• Examples:
A = {1, 2, 3, 4} B = {1, 4, 2, 3}
A  B and B  A; therefore, A = B and B = A
A = {1, 2, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2} B = {1, 2, 3, 4}
A  B and B  A; therefore, A = B and B = A

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 Cardinality of Sets
• Cardinality refers to the number of
elements in a set
• A finite set has a countable number of
elements
• An infinite set has at least as many
elements as the set of natural numbers
• notation: |A| represents the cardinality of Set A

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 Finite Set Cardinality
Set Definition Cardinality

A = {x | x is a lower case letter} |A| = 26

B = {2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7} |B| = 6

C = {x | x is an even number  10} |C|= 4

D = {x | x is an even number  10} |D| = 5

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 Infinite Set Cardinality
Set Definition Cardinality

A = {1, 2, 3, …} |A| =  0

B = {x | x is a point on a line} |B| =  0

C = {x| x is a point in a plane} |C| = 1

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 Universal Sets
• The universal set is the set of all things
pertinent to to a given discussion
and is designated by the symbol U
Example:
U = {all students at UC}
Some Subsets:
A = {all information Technology students}
B = {freshmen students}
C = {sophomore students}
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 The Empty Set
• Any set that contains no elements is called
the empty set
• the empty set is a subset of every set
including itself
• notation: { } or 

Examples ~ both A and B are empty

A = {x | x is COVID 19}
B = {x | x is a positive number  0}
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 The Power Set ( P )
• The power set is the set of all subsets that
can be created from a given set
• The cardinality of the power set is 2 to the
power of the given set’s cardinality
• notation: P (set name)
Example:
A = {a, b, c} where |A| = 3
P (A) = {{a, b}, {a, c}, {b, c}, {a}, {b}, {c}, A, }
and |P (A)| = 8
In general, if |A| = n, then |P (A) | = 2n
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 Special Sets
• Z represents the set of integers
– Z+ is the set of positive integers and
– Z- is the set of negative integers

• N represents the set of natural numbers

• ℝ represents the set of real

numbers

• Q represents the set of rational

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 Venn Diagrams
• Venn diagrams show relationships between
sets and their elements
Sets A & B

Universal Set

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 Venn Diagram Example 1
Set Definition Elements
A = {x | x  Z+ and x  8} 12345678
B = {x | x  Z+; x is even and  10};2 4 6 8 10
AB
BA

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 Venn Diagram Example 2
Set Definition Elements
A = {x | x  Z+ and x  9} 12345678
9
B = {x | x  Z+ ; x is even and  8} 2468

AB
BA
AB

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 Venn Diagram Example 3
Set Definition Elements
A = {x | x  Z+ ; x is even and  10} 2 4 6 8
10
B = x  Z+ ; x is odd and x  10 } 13579

AB
BA

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 Venn Diagram Example 4
Set Definition
U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8}
A = {1, 2, 6, 7}
B = {2, 3, 4, 7}
C = {4, 5, 6, 7}

A = {1, 2, 6, 7}

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 Venn Diagram Example 5
Set Definition
U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8}

A = {1, 2, 6, 7}
B = {2, 3, 4, 7}
C = {4, 5, 6, 7}

B = {2, 3, 4, 7}

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 Venn Diagram Example 6
Set Definition
U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8}

A = {1, 2, 6, 7}
B = {2, 3, 4, 7}
C = {4, 5, 6, 7}

C = {4, 5, 6, 7}

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 SETS
Sets are denoted by
Capital letters Sets use “curly” brackets

A = {1, 3, 2, 5}
n(A) = | A | = 4

The number of elements

in Set A is 4
3 A
7A 7 is not an element of A
3 is an element of A2020University of the Cordilleras
 A set is a distinct collection of objects. The objects are
called elements.
Order does not matter. If a set
A= {1, 2, 3, 4} = {2, 3, 1, 4} contains the same elements as
another set, the sets are equal.
{1,2,3,2,3,2,3,5,5}
{1, {1,
3, 4}
2} In ascending
We order
never repeat elements in a set.

This symbol means "is a subset of"

AB This is read "A is a subset of B".

A = {1, 2, 3} B = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}

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 If a set doesn't contain any elements it is called the
empty set or the null set. It is denoted by  or { }.
NOT {} 
It is agreed that the empty set is a subset of all other sets
so:
 A where A is any set.


List all of the subsets of {1, 2, 3}.

 {1} {2} {3} {1, 2} {1, 3} {2, 3} {1, 2, 3}

Notice the empty

set is NOT in set
brackets.

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Number of Possible Subsets Total Number of
Elements in Set Possible Subsets

1. {A} {A}   2

2. {A , B} {A , B} {A} {B}   4

3. {A , B , C} {A , B , C} {A , B} {A , C} 8
{B , C} {A} {B} {C} 

4. {A , B , C, D} {A , B , C , D} {A , B , C} {A
, B , D} {A , C , D} ?
16
{B , C , D} {A , B} {A , C}
{A , D} {A , B} …… {D} 

The number of possible subsets of a set of size n is ? n

2
 A = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5} B = {1, 3, 5, 7, 9}
Remember we do
AB = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9} not list elements
more than once.
This is the union symbol. It means the set that consists of all
elements of set A and all elements of set B.

AB = {1, 3, 5}

This is the intersect symbol. It means the set

containing all elements that are in both A and B.

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These sets can be visualized with circles in what is called a
Venn Diagram.

A
A B
B A B

AB AB
Everything that is in Everything that is in
A or B. A AND B.

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Often will have a set that contains all elements that we
wish to consider. This is called the universal set. All other
sets are subsets of this set.
AB=
Universal Set There are no
elements in
AA BA both A and B.
When this is
the case they
are called
disjoint sets.

This means the complement of A, and

A means the set of all elements in the
universal set that are not in A.

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100 people were surveyed. 52 people in a survey owned a
cat. 36 people owned a dog. 24 did not own a dog or cat.
Draw a Venn diagram.

universal set is 100 people surveyed Since 24

52 + 36 = 88 so
did not own
there must be
a dog or
88 - 76 = 12 24
C D cat, there
people that own 12
40 24 must be 76
both a dog and
that do.
a cat.

n(C  D) = 76
Set C is the cat owners and Set D is the dog
owners. The sets are NOT disjoint. Some
people could own both a dog and a cat. This n means the
Counting Formula: number of elements
in the set
n(A  B) = n(A) + n(B) - n(A  B)
 Drill problems: Venn Diagrams

1. In a class of 40 students, 27 like Physics and 25 like

Statistics. How many like both Physics and Statistics?

2. A high school graduating class of 100 students: 54

studied mathematics, 69 studied history, and 35 both
studied mathematics and history. If one graduating class
is selected at random, find the probability that the
student did not take either of the two subjects.

3. In a college of graduating class of 100 students, 58

studied math, 70 studied history, and 30 studied both
math and history, if one student is selected at random
find the probability that:
a.the student takes math or history
b.the student does not take either of this subjects
c.he student takes history but not math
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4. A survey of 120 people was conducted to
determine the numbers who watched three
different television networks. The results are shown
below.
a) How many of the 120 people did not watch any
of the three networks?
b) How many people watched both NBC and ABC
but not CBS?
NETWORKS NO. OF PEOPLE
ABC 55
NBC 30
CBS 40
ABC and CBS 10
ABC and NBC 12
NBC and CBS 8
NBC and CBS and ABC 5
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 Venn Diagrams

A Venn diagram is a drawing in which sets are

represented by geometric figures such as circles and
rectangles.

Venn diagrams can be used to illustrate the

relationships between sets, and the effects of set
operations.

Venn diagrams are also used in other areas of

mathematics, such as counting, probability and logic.
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 Venn Diagrams - Intersection

Let S, T represent any sets in a universe U. The Venn diagram

below illustrates the effect of
intersection. The shaded region corresponds to S  T.

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 Venn Diagrams - Union

Let S, T represent any sets in a universe U. The Venn diagram

below illustrates the effect of
union. The shaded region corresponds to
S  T.

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 Venn diagrams - Complement

Let S, T represent any sets in a universe U. The Venn diagram

below illustrates the effect of
complement. The shaded region corresponds to S.

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 Exercise #1

U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11}

S = {3, 5, 8, 11}
T = {3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11}
V = {2, 5, 6, 7, 8}
W = {1, 3, 5, 6}

Find ( V  S )  ( W  T )

A. { }
B. {4, 10, 11}
C. {1, 4, 10}
D. None of these
 Solution #1

U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11}

S = {3, 5, 8, 11} T = {3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11}
V = {2, 5, 6, 7, 8} W = {1, 3, 5, 6}

Find ( V  S )  ( W  T )
First, find V and S
V = {1, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11} S = {1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 9, 10}
So V  S = {1, 4, 9, 10}
Next, T = {3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11} and W = {1, 3, 5, 6}
W  T = {1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11}

Finally, ( V  S )  ( W  T ) = {1, 4, 10}

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 Exercise #2

U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11}

T = {3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11}
V = {2, 5, 6, 7, 8}

Find (V  T)

A. {1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11}

B. {3, 4, 10, 11}
C. {1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11}
D. None of these

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 Solution #2

U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11}

T = {3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11}
V = {2, 5, 6, 7, 8}

Find (V  T)

T = {1, 2, 5, 9} and V = {2, 5, 6, 7, 8}

so V  T = {2, 5}

Since V  T = {2, 5} and U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11}

(V  T) = {1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11}

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 Exercise #3

Select the Venn diagram whose shaded region corresponds to

A  B.
 Solution #3

For A  B ,we need to draw the shaded figure for A, the shaded
figure for B, and then perform the union of the shading from those
two figures.
 Exercise #4

Select the Venn diagram whose shaded region corresponds to

(A  B).
 Exercise #4
Select the Venn diagram whose shaded region corresponds to
(A  B).
 Solution #4
To make the shaded figure (A  B), we need to first make the
shaded figure for A  B, and then apply the idea of complement.

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 DeMorgan’s Laws
In the previous two exercises we saw that the shaded figure for
(A  B) is identical to the shaded figure for A  B. This
means that A  B and (A  B) are equivalent operations.
This confirms one of the following general facts, which are
known as DeMorgan’s Laws for Set Mathematics.

For any sets S, T

( S  T) = S  T
( S  T) = S  T
“The complement of a union is the intersection of
the complements; the complement of an
intersection is the union of the complements”
 Exercise #5, DeMorgan’s Laws
Let U = {a, b, c, d, e, f, g}
T = {c, e}
V = {a, d, e}

Find ( T  V )
A. {e}
B. {a, c, d, e}
C. {b, f, g}
D. None of these

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 Solution #5
U = {a, b, c, d, e, f, g}
T = {c, e}
V = {a, d, e}.
Find ( T  V )

We will first simplify ( T  V ) by applying one of DeMorgan’s Laws,

which states that we can distribute the outer complement onto both terms
inside the parentheses, if we also change the union to intersection:

( T  V ) = T  V

Now, finish the calculation by evaluating T  V:

T = {c, e} and V = {a, d, e}, so T  V = {e}

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 Alternative Solution #5
U = {a, b, c, d, e, f, g} T = {c, e} V = {a, d, e}
Find ( T  V )

Instead of using one of DeMorgan’s Laws to simplify first, we can find the elements
of T, the elements of V, perform the union of those two sets, and then the
complement.

T = {a, b, d, f, g}
V = {b, c, f, g}
So, T  V = {a, b, c, d, f, g}
and finally
( T  V ) = {e}

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 Exercise #6
LIKE EXAMPLE 1.2.
On the Venn diagram below, shade the region
corresponding to B  (A  C)

A B

C
U

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 Solution #6
To shade the region corresponding to B  (A  C), we must
find the shaded figure for B, the shaded figure for A  C,
and the find the intersection of those shaded figures.

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 Solution #6
The shaded figure for A  C requires that we draw the shaded figure for A,
and shaded figure for C, and apply union to those two figures.

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 Solution #6
Now that we have produced the shaded figure for B and the shaded figure for A  C,
we intersect those figures to get the shading for B  (A  C).

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 Exercise #7
Select the shaded figure for ( C  B )  A

Ans C
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THANK YOU