MTL108: Practice Sheet 1
1. The set of integers Z is countable. You just think of a defining a map between N and Z in the most natural way.
(Hint: like 1 → 0, 2 → 1, 3 → −1, 4 → 2, 5 → −2, 6 → 3, 7 → −3, and so on)
2. DO you think that the set of positive rational numbers Q is countable?
(Hint: For every rational m/n ∈ Q define a map f (m, n) = 2m 3n . Will this work!)
3. Prove that the set of all infinite binary strings, {0, 1}∞ , is uncountable.
4. Discuss that the interval (0, 1) is uncountable. (Hint: use the similar idea as in Q3 and decimal representation
of each real number in (0, 1)).
5. Use Q4 to show that R is uncountable.
π x − 0.5
(Hint: Think of mapping (0, 1) → R, like the one tan(πx − ) or .)
2 x(1 − x)
6. Let Ω be an arbitrary set. Define G = {A ⊆ Ω : A is finite or Ac is finite} and
H = {A ⊆ Ω : A is countable or Ac is countable}. Are G and H σ-algebra on Ω? Justify.
7. An item is composed of 5 components, each of which is either working or failed. Consider an experiment that
consists of observing the status of each component, and let the outcome be 1 if the component is working and
0 if it is failed. Describe the sample space. Is it finite? Suppose that the system will work if components 1 and
2 are both working, or if components 3 and 4 are both working, or if components 1, 3, and 5 are all working.
Let W be the event that the system will work. Describe W . Let A be an event that components 4 and 5 both
failed. Describe the event W ∩ A.
8. Suppose a coin is tossed repeatedly and its position (H or T) is noted until two consecutive T occurs or the coin
is tossed four times, whichever happens first. Describe the sample space for this experiment.
9. A club has five members, A, B, C, D, and E. It is required to select a chairman and a secretary. Assuming that
one member cannot occupy both positions, write the sample space associated with these selections. What is the
event that member A is an office holder?
10. Write the set of all outcomes Ω for the following random experiments:
(a) We toss a coin until we see two consecutive tails. We record the total number of coin tosses.
(b) A customer arrives at a bank and waits in the line. We observe T, which is the total time (in hours) that
the customer waits in the line. The bank has a strict policy that no customer waits more than 20 minutes under
any circumstances.
(c) Five dots are placed at random on a 8 × 8 grid in such a way that no cell contains more than one dot. How
many elements are there in Ω?
(d) Someone is looking for a top-floor vacant apartment. There is a building with 7 floors, 8 apartments per
floor and two vacant apartments. How many elements be there in Ω?
11. Let Ω = {1, 2, 3, 4}. Find three different σ–algebras Fn , n = 1, 2, 3, such that F1 ⊂ F2 ⊂ F3 .
12. Prove that the Borel σ-field (or algebra) generated by open open intervals of R is equal to the σ field generated
by the collection of all the intervals (−∞, a], a ∈ Q, are the same.
