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Set Operations

This document discusses basic set operations including union, intersection, difference, and complement of sets. It defines each operation, provides examples, and covers properties like commutativity, associativity, and De Morgan's laws.

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Tharindu ParakHrama
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53 views

Set Operations

This document discusses basic set operations including union, intersection, difference, and complement of sets. It defines each operation, provides examples, and covers properties like commutativity, associativity, and De Morgan's laws.

Uploaded by

Tharindu ParakHrama
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Set Operations

Basic Set Operations


Now that we know the concept of a sets and Venn diagram, let us discuss
each set operation one by one in detail. The various set operations are:

Union of Sets
For two given sets A and B, A∪B (read as A union B) is the set of distinct
elements that belong to set A and set B or both. The number of elements in A
∪ B is given by n(A∪B) = n(A) + n(B) − n(A∩B), where n(X) is the number of
elements in set X. To understand this set operation of the union of sets better,
let us consider an example: If A = {1, 2, 3, 4} and B = {4, 5, 6, 7}, then the
union of A and B is given by A ∪ B = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}.

Intersection of Sets
For two given sets A and B, A∩B (read as A intersection B) is the set of
common elements that belong to set A and B. The number of elements in
A∩B is given by n(A∩B) = n(A)+n(B)−n(A∪B), where n(X) is the number of
elements in set X. To understand this set operation of the intersection of
sets better, let us consider an example: If A = {1, 2, 3, 4} and B = {3, 4, 5, 7},
then the intersection of A and B is given by A ∩ B = {3, 4}.

Set Difference
The set operation difference between sets implies subtracting the elements
from a set which is similar to the concept of the difference between numbers.
The difference between sets A and set B denoted as A − B lists all the
elements that are in set A but not in set B. To understand this set operation of
set difference better, let us consider an example: If A = {1, 2, 3, 4} and B = {3,
4, 5, 7}, then the difference between sets A and B is given by A - B = {1, 2}.

Complement of Sets
The complement of a set A denoted as A′ or Ac (read as A complement) is
defined as the set of all the elements in the given universal set(U) that are not
present in set A. To understand this set operation of complement of sets
better, let us consider an example: If U = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9} and A = {1,
2, 3, 4}, then the complement of set A is given by A' = {5, 6, 7, 8, 9}.
The above image shows various set operations with the help of Venn
diagrams. When the elements of one set B completely lie in the other set A,
then B is said to be a proper subset of A. When two sets have no elements in
common, then they are said to be disjoint sets. Now, let us explore the
properties of the set operations.

Properties of Set Operations


The properties of set operations are similar to the properties of fundamental
operations on numbers. The important properties on set operations are stated
below:

• Commutative Law - For any two given sets A and B, the commutative property is
defined as,
A∪B=B∪A
This means that the set operation of union of two sets is commutative.
A∩B=B∩A
This means that the set operation of intersection of two sets is commutative.
• Associative Law - For any three given sets A, B and C the associative property is
defined as,
(A ∪ B) ∪ C = A ∪ (B ∪ C)
This means the set operation of union of sets is associative.
(A ∩ B) ∩ C = A ∩ (B ∩ C)
This means the set operation of intersection of sets is associative.
• De-Morgan's Law - The De Morgan's law states that for any two sets A and B, we
have (A ∪ B)' = A' ∩ B' and (A ∩ B)' = A' ∪ B'
• A∪A=A
• A∩A=A
• A∩∅=∅
• A∪∅=A
• A∩B⊆A
• A⊆A∪B

Important Notes on Set Operations

• Set operation formula for union of sets is n(A∪B) = n(A) + n(B) − n(A∩B) and set
operation formula for intersection of sets is n(A∩B) = n(A)+n(B)−n(A∪B).
• The union of any set with the universal set gives the universal set and the intersection
of any set A with the universal set gives the set A.
• Union, intersection, difference, and complement are the various operations on sets.
• The complement of a universal set is an empty set U′ = ϕ. The complement of an empty
set is a universal set ϕ′ = U.

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