Sets

1
 What is a set?
• A set is a group of “objects”
• People in a class: { Alice, Bob, Chris }
• Program offered by a AC: { CS 101, CS 202, … }
• Colors of a rainbow: { red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple }
• States of matter { solid, liquid, gas, plasma }
• Towns in Batangas: { Agoncillo, Alitagtag, Bauan, … }
• Sets can contain non-related elements: { 3, a, red, Alitagtag}

• Although a set can contain (almost) anything, we will most often

use sets of numbers
• All positive numbers less than or equal to 5: {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}
• A few selected real numbers: { 2.1, π, 0, -6.32, e }

2
Set properties 1

•Order does not matter

• We often write them in order because it is
easier for humans to understand it that
way
• {1, 2, 3, 4, 5} is equivalent to {3, 5, 2, 4, 1}

•Sets are notated with curly brackets

3
Set properties 2

• Sets do not have duplicate elements

• Consider the set of vowels in the alphabet.
• It makes no sense to list them as {a, a, a, e, i, o, o, o, o, o, u}
• What we really want is just {a, e, i, o, u}
• Consider the list of students in this class
• Again, it does not make sense to list somebody twice
• Note that a list is like a set, but order does
matter and duplicate elements are allowed
• We won’t be studying lists much in this class

4
Specifying a set 1

• Sets are usually represented by a capital letter (A, B,

S, etc.)

• Elements are usually represented by an italic lower-

case letter (a, x, y, etc.)

• Easiest way to specify a set is to list all the

elements: A = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}
• Not always feasible for large or infinite sets

5
 Specifying a set 2
• Can use an ellipsis (…): B = {0, 1, 2, 3, …}
• Can cause confusion. Consider the set C = {3, 5, 7, …}. What
comes next?
• If the set is all odd integers greater than 2, it is 9
• If the set is all prime numbers greater than 2, it is 11

• Can use set-builder notation

• D = {x | x is prime and x > 2}
• E = {x | x is odd and x > 2}
• The vertical bar means “such that”
• Thus, set D is read (in English) as: “all elements x such that x
is prime and x is greater than 2”

6
Specifying a set 3

• A set is said to “contain” the various

“members” or “elements” that make up the
set
• If an element a is a member of (or an element of)
a set S, we use then notation a  S
• 4  {1, 2, 3, 4}
• If an element is not a member of (or an element
of) a set S, we use the notation a  S
• 7  {1, 2, 3, 4}
• Virginia  {1, 2, 3, 4}

7
Often used sets

• N = {0, 1, 2, 3, …} is the set of natural numbers

• Z = {…, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, …} is the set of integers
• Z+ = {1, 2, 3, …} is the set of positive integers (a.k.a
whole numbers)
• Note that people disagree on the exact definitions of
whole numbers and natural numbers
• Q = {p/q | p  Z, q  Z, q ≠ 0} is the set of rational
numbers
• Any number that can be expressed as a fraction of two
integers (where the bottom one is not zero)
• R is the set of real numbers

8
The universal set 1

•U is the universal set – the set of all of

elements (or the “universe”) from which
given any set is drawn
• For the set {-2, 0.4, 2}, U would be the real
numbers
• For the set {0, 1, 2}, U could be the natural
numbers (zero and up), the integers, the
rational numbers, or the real numbers,
depending on the context
9
The universal set 2

• For the set of the students in this class, U would

be all the students in the University (or perhaps
all the people in the world)

• For the set of the vowels of the alphabet, U

would be all the letters of the alphabet

• To differentiate U from U (which is a set

operation), the universal set is written in a
different font (and in bold and italics)

10
 Venn diagrams
• Represents sets graphically
• The box represents the universal set
• Circles represent the set(s)
• Consider set S, which is
the set of all vowels in the b c d f
U
alphabet g h j S
• The individual elements k l m

are usually not written n p q a e i

in a Venn diagram r s t
o u
v w x
y z

11
Sets of sets

•Sets can contain other sets

• S = { {1}, {2}, {3} }
• T = { {1}, {{2}}, {{{3}}} }
• V = { {{1}, {{2}}}, {{{3}}}, { {1}, {{2}}, {{{3}}} } }
• V has only 3 elements!
•Note that 1 ≠ {1} ≠ {{1}} ≠ {{{1}}}
• They are all different

12
 The empty set 1
• If a set has zero elements, it is called the empty
(or null) set
• Written using the symbol 
• Thus,  = { }  VERY IMPORTANT
• If you get confused about the empty set in a
problem, try replacing  by { }
• As the empty set is a set, it can be a element of
other sets
• { , 1, 2, 3, x } is a valid set

13
 The empty set 1
•Note that  ≠ {  }
• The first is a set of zero elements
• The second is a set of 1 element (that one
element being the empty set)

•Replace  by { }, and you get: { } ≠ { { } }

• It’s easier to see that they are not equal that way

14
Set equality

•Two sets are equal if they have the same

elements
• {1, 2, 3, 4, 5} = {5, 4, 3, 2, 1}
• Remember that order does not matter!
• {1, 2, 3, 2, 4, 3, 2, 1} = {4, 3, 2, 1}
• Remember that duplicate elements do not matter!
•Two sets are not equal if they do not
have the same elements
• {1, 2, 3, 4, 5} ≠ {1, 2, 3, 4}
15
Subsets 1
• If all the elements of a set S are also elements
of a set T, then S is a subset of T
• For example, if S = {2, 4, 6} and T = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6,
7}, then S is a subset of T
• This is specified by S  T
• Or by {2, 4, 6}  {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}
• If S is not a subset of T, it is written as such:
ST
• For example, {1, 2, 8}  {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}

16
Subsets 2

•Note that any set is a subset of

itself!
•Given set S = {2, 4, 6}, since all the
elements of S are elements of S, S is
a subset of itself
•This is kind of like saying 5 is less
than or equal to 5
•Thus, for any set S, S  S
17
Subsets 3

• The empty set is a subset of all sets (including

itself!)
• Recall that all sets are subsets of themselves
• All sets are subsets of the universal set
• A horrible way to define a subset:
• x ( xA  xB )
• English translation: for all possible values of x, (meaning
for all possible elements of a set), if x is an element of A,
then x is an element of B
• This type of notation will be gone over later

18
Proper Subsets 1

• If S is a subset of T, and S is not equal to T, then S is

a proper subset of T
• Let T = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5}
• If S = {1, 2, 3}, S is not equal to T, and S is a subset of T
• A proper subset is written as S  T
• Let R = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5}. R is equal to T, and thus is a
subset (but not a proper subset) or T
• Can be written as: R  T and R  T (or just R = T)
• Let Q = {4, 5, 6}. Q is neither a subset or T nor a proper
subset of T

19
Proper Subsets 2

• The difference between “subset” and

“proper subset” is like the difference
between “less than or equal to” and “less
than” for numbers

• The empty set is a proper subset of all sets

other than the empty set (as it is equal to the
empty set)

20
Proper subsets: Venn diagram

SR
U
R

21
Set cardinality

• The cardinality of a set is the number of elements in

a set
• Written as |A|
• Examples
• Let R = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}. Then |R| = 5
• || = 0
• Let S = {, {a}, {b}, {a, b}}. Then |S| = 4
• This is the same notation used for vector length in
geometry
• A set with one element is sometimes called a
singleton set

22
Power sets 1

• Given the set S = {0, 1}. What are all the

possible subsets of S?
• They are:  (as it is a subset of all sets), {0}, {1},
and {0, 1}
• The power set of S (written as P(S)) is the set of
all the subsets of S
• P(S) = { , {0}, {1}, {0,1} }
• Note that |S| = 2 and |P(S)| = 4

23
Power sets 2

• Let T = {0, 1, 2}. The P(T) = { , {0}, {1}, {2},

{0,1}, {0,2}, {1,2}, {0,1,2} }
• Note that |T| = 3 and |P(T)| = 8

• P() = {  }
• Note that || = 0 and |P()| = 1

• If a set has n elements, then the power set

will have 2n elements

24
 Tuples
• In 2-dimensional space, it is a (x, y) pair of numbers to
specify a location
• In 3-dimensional (1,2,3) is not the same as (3,2,1) –
space, it is a (x, y, z) triple of numbers
• In n-dimensional space, it is a +y
n-tuple of numbers
(2,3)
• Two-dimensional space uses
pairs, or 2-tuples
• Three-dimensional space uses
triples, or 3-tuples +x

• Note that these tuples are

ordered, unlike sets
• the x value has to come first
25
 Cartesian products 1
• A Cartesian product is a set of all ordered 2-
tuples where each “part” is from a given set
• Denoted by A x B, and uses parenthesis (not curly
brackets)
• For example, 2-D Cartesian coordinates are the set
of all ordered pairs Z x Z
• Recall Z is the set of all integers
• This is all the possible coordinates in 2-D space
• Example: Given A = { a, b } and B = { 0, 1 }, what is
their Cartiesian product?
• C = A x B = { (a,0), (a,1), (b,0), (b,1) }
26
Cartesian products 2

•Note that Cartesian products have

only 2 parts in these examples (later
examples have more parts)
•Formal definition of a Cartesian
product:
•A x B = { (a,b) | a  A and b  B }

27
Cartesian products 3

• All the possible grades in this class will be a

Cartesian product of the set S of all the students in
this class and the set G of all possible grades
• Let S = { Alice, Bob, Chris } and G = { A, B, C }
• D = { (Alice, A), (Alice, B), (Alice, C), (Bob, A), (Bob, B),
(Bob, C), (Chris, A), (Chris, B), (Chris, C) }
• The final grades will be a subset of this: { (Alice, C), (Bob,
B), (Chris, A) }
• Such a subset of a Cartesian product is called a relation (more on
this later in the course)

28
Cartesian products 4

•There can be Cartesian products on

more than two sets
•A 3-D coordinate is an element from
the Cartesian product of Z x Z x Z

29
Set Operations

30
 Sets of Colors
Monitor gamut • Pick any 3 “primary” colors
(M) • Triangle shows mixable
color range (gamut) – the
Printer set of colors
gamut
(P)

31
 Set operations: Union 1
Monitor gamut • A union of the sets contains
(M) all the elements in EITHER
set
Printer
gamut
(P)
• Union symbol is
usually a U
• Example:
C=MUP

32
Set operations: Union 2
AUB
U

A B

33
Set operations: Union 3

•Formal definition for the union of two

sets:
A U B = { x | x  A or x  B }
•Further examples
• {1, 2, 3} U {3, 4, 5} = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}
• {New York, Washington} U {3, 4} = {New
York, Washington, 3, 4}
• {1, 2} U  = {1, 2}

34
Set operations: Union 4

•Properties of the union operation

•A U  = A Identity law
•A U U = U Domination law
•A U A = A Idempotent law
•A U B = B U A Commutative law
• A U (B U C) = (A U B) U C Associative law

35
 Set operations: Intersection 1
Monitor gamut • An intersection of the sets
(M) contains all the elements in
BOTH sets
Printer
gamut
(P)
• Intersection symbol
is a ∩
• Example:
C=M∩P

36
Set operations: Intersection 2
A∩B
U

A B

37
Set operations: Intersection 3

• Formal definition for the intersection of two

sets: A ∩ B = { x | x  A and x  B }
• Further examples
• {1, 2, 3} ∩ {3, 4, 5} = {3}
• {New York, Washington} ∩ {3, 4} = 
• No elements in common
• {1, 2} ∩  = 
• Any set intersection with the empty set yields the empty set

38
Set operations: Intersection 4

•Properties of the intersection operation

•A ∩ U = A Identity law
•A ∩  =  Domination law
•A ∩ A = A Idempotent law
•A ∩ B = B ∩ A Commutative law
• A ∩ (B ∩ C) = (A ∩ B) ∩ CAssociative law

39
Disjoint sets 1
• Two sets are disjoint if the
have NO elements in
common
• Formally, two sets are
disjoint if their intersection
is the empty set
• Another example:
the set of the even
numbers and the
set of the odd
numbers

40
Disjoint sets 2

A B

41
 Disjoint sets 3
• Formal definition for disjoint sets: two sets are
disjoint if their intersection is the empty set
• Further examples
• {1, 2, 3} and {3, 4, 5} are not disjoint
• {New York, Washington} and {3, 4} are disjoint
• {1, 2} and  are disjoint
• Their intersection is the empty set
•  and  are disjoint!
• Their intersection is the empty set

42
 Set operations: Difference 1
Monitor gamut • A difference of two sets is
(M) the elements in one set
that are NOT in the other
Printer
gamut
(P)
• Difference symbol is
a minus sign
• Example:
C=M-P
• Also visa-versa:

C=P-M 43
Set operations: Difference 2
A-A
B B
U

A B

44
 Set operations: Difference 3
• Formal definition for the difference of two sets:
A-B={x|x _ A and x  B }
A - B = A ∩ B  Important!
• Further examples
• {1, 2, 3} - {3, 4, 5} = {1, 2}
• {New York, Washington} - {3, 4} = {New York,
Washington}
• {1, 2} -  = {1, 2}
• The difference of any set S with the empty set will be the set S

45
 Set operations: Symmetric Difference
1 •
Monitor gamut A symmetric difference of
(M) the sets contains all the
elements in either set but
Printer NOT both
gamut
(P)

• Symetric diff.
symbol is a 
• Example:
C=MP

46
 Set operations: Symmetric Difference
2
• Formal definition for the symmetric difference of two
sets:
A  B = { x | (x  A or x  B) and x  A ∩ B}
A  B = (A U B) – (A ∩ B)  Important!
• Further examples
• {1, 2, 3}  {3, 4, 5} = {1, 2, 4, 5}
• {New York, Washington}  {3, 4} = {New York, Washington,
3, 4}
• {1, 2}   = {1, 2}
• The symmetric difference of any set S with the empty set will be the
set S

47
 Complement sets 1
Monitor gamut • A complement of a set is all
(M) the elements that are NOT
in the set
Printer
gamut
(P)
• Difference symbol is
_ _the set
a bar above
name: P or M

48
Complement sets 2
_
A
B
U

A B

49
Complement sets 3

•Formal definition for the complement

of a set: A = { x | x  A }
•Or U – A, where U is the universal set
•Further examples (assuming U = Z)
•{1, 2, 3} = { …, -2, -1, 0, 4, 5, 6, … }

50
Complement sets 4

•Properties of complement sets

•A = A Complementation
law
•A U A = U Complement law
•A ∩ A =  Complement law

51
A last bit of color…

52
Photo printers

• Photo printers use many ink colors for rich, vivid

color
• Also a scam to sell you more ink (the razor business
model)

53
Set identities

• Set identities are basic laws on how set

operations work
• Many have already been introduced on previous
slides
• Just like logical equivalences!
• Replace U with 
• Replace ∩ with 
• Replace  with F
• Replace U with T

54
Set identities: DeMorgan again

• These should look

very familiar…

A B  A B
A B  A B

55
How to prove a set identity

• For example: A∩B=B-(B-A)

• Four methods:
• Use the basic set identities
• Use membership tables
• Prove each set is a subset of each other
• This is like proving that two numbers are equal by showing that
each is less than or equal to the other
• Use set builder notation and logical equivalences

56
What we are going to prove…
A∩B=B-(B-A)

A B

B-(B-A)
A∩B B-A

57
 Proof by using basic set identities
• Prove that A∩B=B-(B-A)
A  B  B-(B  A ) Definition of difference
 B (B  A ) Definition of difference
 B (B  A ) DeMorgan’s law
 B (B  A) Complementation law
 (B  B ) (B  A) Distributive law
  (B  A) Complement law
 (B  A) Identity law
 A B
Commutative law 58
What is a membership table

• Membership tables show all the combinations of

sets an element can belong to
– 1 means the element belongs, 0 means it does not
• Consider the following membership table:
A B AUB A∩B A-B
1 1 1 1 0
1 0 1 0 1
0 1 1 0 0
0 0 0 0 0
• The
Thetop rowrow
bottom
third
second is all
rowiselements
row all
isisall that belong
elements
allelements
elements
that tobelong
that
that both
belong tosets
belong toA
to
set and
neither
set
B AB not
but but
set
• Thus,
not
set
A orA
setthese
set BB elements are in the union and intersection, but not the
difference
– Thus, these elements are in
neither
the union
union,
the union,
and
but difference,
not
thethe
intersection,
intersection
but not nor
the
or
intersection
difference
59
Proof by membership tables

• The following membership table shows that A∩B=B-

(B-A)

A B A∩B B-A B-(B-A)

1 1 1 0 1
1 0 0 0 0
0 1 0 1 0
0 0 0 0 0

• Because the two indicated columns have the

same values, the two expressions are identical
• This is similar to Boolean logic!
60
Proof by showing each set
is a subset of the other 1
• Assume that an element is a member of one of the identities
• Then show it is a member of the other
• Repeat for the other identity

• We are trying to show:

• (xA∩B→ xB-(B-A))  (xB-(B-A)→ xA∩B)
• This is the biconditional:
• xA∩B ↔ xB-(B-A)

• Not good for long proofs

• Basically, it’s an English run-through of the proof
61
Proof by showing each set
is a subset of the other 2
• Assume that xB-(B-A)
• By definition of difference, we know that xB and xB-A
• Consider xB-A
• If xB-A, then (by definition of difference) xB and xA
• Since xB-A, then only one of the inverses has to be true
(DeMorgan’s law): xB or xA
• So we have that xB and (xB or xA)
• It cannot be the case where xB and xB
• Thus, xB and xA
• This is the definition of intersection
• Thus, if xB-(B-A) then xA∩B

62
Proof by showing each set
is a subset of the other 3
• Assume that xA∩B
• By definition of intersection, xA and xB
• Thus, we know that xB-A
• B-A includes all the elements in B that are also not in A not include
any of the elements of A (by definition of difference)
• Consider B-(B-A)
• We know that xB-A
• We also know that if xA∩B then xB (by definition of intersection)
• Thus, if xB and xB-A, we can restate that (using the definition of
difference) as xB-(B-A)
• Thus, if xA∩B then xB-(B-A)

63
Proof by set builder notation
and logical equivalences 1

• First, translate both sides of the set identity

into set builder notation

• Then massage one side (or both) to make it

identical to the other
• Do this using logical equivalences

64
 Proof by set builder notation
and logical equivalences 2
B  ( B  A) Original statement
 {x | x  B  x  ( B  A)} Definition of difference
 {x | x  B  ( x  ( B  A))} Negating “element of”
 {x | x  B  ( x  B  x  A)} Definition of difference
 {x | x  B  ( x  B  x  A)} DeMorgan’s Law
 {x | x  B  x  B   x  B  x  A} Distributive Law
 {x | x  B  ( x  B)   x  B  x  A} Negating “element of”
 {x | F  x  B  x  A} Negation Law
 {x | x  B  x  A} Identity Law
 A B Definition of intersection

65
Proof by set builder notation
and logical equivalences 3

•Why can’t you prove it the “other” way?

• I.e. massage A∩B to make it look like B-(B-A)

•You can, but it’s a bit annoying

• In this case, it’s not simplifying the statement

66