Chapter 2:

Basic Structures: Sets,

Functions, Sequences and
Sums

Sets (Section 2.1)

Set Operations (Section 2.2)

Functions (Section 2.3)

Sequences and Summations (Section

2.4)
by Kenneth H. Rosen, Discrete Mathematics & its Applications, Sifth Edition, Mc Graw-Hill, 2007
 2

Sets (2.1)

A set is a collection or group of objects or

elements or members. (Cantor 1895)

A set is said to contain its elements.

There must be an underlying universal set U,

either specifically stated or understood.
 3

Sets (2.1) (cont.)

Notation:

list the elements between braces:

S = {a, b, c, d}={b, c, a, d, d}
(Note: listing an object more than once does not change
the set. Ordering means nothing.)

specification by predicates:
S= {x| P(x)},
S contains all the elements from U which make the
predicate P true.

brace notation with ellipses:

S = { . . . , -3, -2, -1},
the negative integers.
 4

Sets (2.1) (cont.)

Common Universal Sets

R = reals
N = natural numbers = {0,1, 2, 3, . . . }, the
counting numbers
Z = all integers = {. . , -3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, . .}
Z+ is the set of positive integers

Notation:
x is a member of S or x is an element of S:
x S.
x is not an element of S:
x S.
 5

Sets (2.1) (cont.)

Subsets

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

A B, if
x [x A x B]

Definition: The void set, the null set, the empty set,
denoted , is the set with no members.

Note: the assertion x is always false. Hence

x [x x B]
is always true(vacuously). Therefore, is a subset of
every set.

Note: A set B is always a subset of itself.

 6

Sets (2.1) (cont.)

Definition: If A B but A B the we say A is a

proper subset of B, denoted A B (in some texts).

Definition: The set of all subset of a set A, denoted

P(A), is called the power set of A.

Example: If A = {a, b} then

P(A) = {, {a}, {b}, {a,b}}
 7

Sets (2.1) (cont.)

Definition: The number of (distinct) elements in A,

denoted |A|, is called the cardinality of A.

If the cardinality is a natural number (in N), then

the set is called finite, else infinite.

Example: A = {a, b},

|{a, b}| = 2,
|P({a, b})| = 4.
A is finite and so is P(A).
Useful Fact: |A|=n implies |P(A)| = 2n
 8

Sets (2.1) (cont.)

N is infinite since |N| is not a natural number. It is called a
transfinite cardinal number.

Note: Sets can be both members and subsets of other sets.

Example:
A = {,{}}.
A has two elements and hence four subsets:
, {}, {{}}. {,{}}
Note that is both a member of A and a subset of A!

Russell's paradox: Let S be the set of all sets which are not
members of themselves. Is S a member of itself?

Another paradox: Henry is a barber who shaves all people

who do not shave themselves. Does Henry shave himself?
 9

Sets (2.1) (cont.)

Definition: The Cartesian product of A with B, denoted

A x B, is the set of ordered pairs {<a, b> | a A b B}
Notation: n
Ai a 1 , a 2 ,..., a n a i Ai
i 1
Note: The Cartesian product of anything with is . (why?)

Example:
A = {a,b}, B = {1, 2, 3}
AxB = {<a, 1>, <a, 2>, <a, 3>, <b, 1>, <b, 2>, <b, 3>}
What is BxA? AxBxA?

If |A| = m and |B| = n, what is |AxB|?

 10

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

Propositional calculus and set theory are both
instances of an algebraic system called a

Boolean Algebra.

The operators in set theory are defined in

terms of the corresponding operator in
propositional calculus

As always there must be a universe U. All

sets are assumed to be subsets of U
 11

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

Definition:

Two sets A and B are equal, denoted A = B, if

x [x A x B].

Note: By a previous logical equivalence we have

A = B if x [(x A x B) (x B x A)]
or
A = B if A B and B A
 12
Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)
Definitions:

The union of A and B, denoted A U B, is the set {x | x A x B}

The intersection of A and B, denoted A B, is the set
{x | x A x B}
Note: If the intersection is void, A and B are said to be disjoint.

The complement of A, denoted , is the set {x | (x A)}

A {x|x A}.
Note: Alternative notation is A c, and

The difference of A and B, or the complement of B relative to A, denoted A -

B, is the set A
Note: The (absolute) complement of A is U - A.
B
The symmetric difference of A and B, denoted A B, is the set
(A - B) U (B - A)
 13

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

Examples:
U = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10}
A= {1, 2, 3, 4, 5},
B = {4, 5, 6, 7, 8}. Then

AB = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8}
A B = {4, 5}
A = {0, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10}
B = {0, 1, 2, 3, 9, 10}
A - B = {1, 2, 3}
B - A = {6, 7, 8}
AB = {1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8}
 14

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

Venn Diagrams

A useful geometric visualization tool (for 3 or less sets)

The Universe U is the rectangular box
Each set is represented by a circle and its interior
All possible combinations of the sets must be represented

U U
A B
A B
C

For 2 sets For 3 sets

Shade the appropriate region to represent the given set

operation.
 15

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

Set Identities

Set identities correspond to the logical equivalences.

Example:
The complement of the union is the intersection of the
complements:
A B = A B
Proof: To show:
x [x x ]
B we show
To show two sets areAequal A forBall x that x is
a member of one set if and only if it is a member of
the other.
 16

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

We now apply an important rule of inference
(defined later) called

Universal Instantiation
In a proof we can eliminate the universal
quantifier which binds a variable if we do not
assume anything about the variable other than it
is an arbitrary member of the Universe. We can
then treat the resulting predicate as a proposition.
 We say 17
'Let x be arbitrary.'
Then we can treat the predicates as propositions:
 18

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

Hence
x A B x A B

is a tautology.

Since

x was arbitrary
we have used only logically equivalent assertions
and definitions
 19

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

we can apply another rule of inference called

Universal Generalization
We can apply a universal quantifier to bind a
variable if we have shown the predicate to be true
for all values of the variable in the Universe.

and claim the assertion is true for all x, i.e.,

x [x A B x A B ]

Q. E. D. (Latin phrase Quod Erat Demonstrandum)

 20

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

Note: As an alternative which might be easier in some cases,
use the identity
A = B [A B and B A]

Example:
Show A (B - A) =

The void set is a subset of every set. Hence,

A (B - A)
Therefore, it suffices to show

A (B - A) or x [xA (B - A) x ]

So as before we say 'let x be arbitrary.

 21

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

Example (cont.)
Show xA (B - A) x is a tautology.
But the consequent is always false.
Therefore, the antecedent better always be false
also.
Apply the definitions:
 22

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

Example (cont.)

Hence, because P P is always false, the

implication is a tautology.

The result follows by Universal Generalization.

Q. E. D.
 23

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

Union and Intersection of Indexed Collections

Let A1,A2 ,..., An be an indexed collection of sets.

Union and intersection are associative (because
'and' and 'or' are) we have:
n
Ai A1 A2 ... An
i 1
and
n
Ai A1 A2 ... An
i 1
 24

Set Operations (2.2) (cont.)

Examples

Let Ai [ iA, ), 1 i
[ i , ),1 i

i
n n
Ai [ 1 , )
Ai i n1 [ 1 , )
i 1 Ai [ n , )
i 1
n
Ai [ n , )
i 1
 25

Functions (2.3)
Definition:

Let A and B be sets. A function (mapping,

map) f from A to B, denoted f :AB, is a
subset of A*B such that

x [x A y [y B < x, y > f ]]
and
[< x, y1 > f < x, y2 > f ] y1 = y2
 26

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

Note: f associates with each x in A one and only one y in
B.
A is called the domain and
B is called the codomain.
If f(x) = y
y is called the image of x under f
x is called a preimage of y

(note there may be more than one preimage of y but there

is only one image of x).

The range of f is the set of all images of points in A under

f. We denote it by f(A).
 27

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

If S is a subset of A then
f(S) = {f(s) | s in S}.
Example:
A B
f(a) = Z a
the image of d is Z X
the domain of f is A = {a, b, c, d} b
Y
the codomain is B = {X, Y, Z} c
f(A) = {Y, Z} Z
the preimage of Y is b
d
the preimages of Z are a, c and d
f({c,d}) = {Z}
 28

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

Injections, Surjections and Bijections

Let f be a function from A to B.

Definition: f is one-to-one (denoted 1-1) or injective if

preimages are unique.
Note: this means that if a b then f(a) f(b).

Definition: f is onto or surjective if every y in B has a preimage.

Note: this means that for every y in B there must be an x in A
such that f(x) = y.

Definition: f is bijective if it is surjective and injective (one-to-

one and onto).
 29

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

Examples:

The previous Example function is neither an

injection nor a surjection. Hence it is not a
bijection. A B
a
X
b
Y
c
Z
d
Surjection but not an injection
 30

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

A B A B
a a
V V
b b
W W
c c
X X
d d
Y Y
Injection & a surjection,
Z hence a bijection
Injection but not a surjection
 31

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

Note: Whenever there is a bijection from A to B,
the two sets must have the same number of
elements
or the same cardinality.

That will become our definition, especially for

infinite sets.
 32

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

Examples:

Let A = B = R, the reals. Determine which are

injections, surjections, bijections:

f(x) = x,
f(x) = x2,
f(x) = x3,
f(x) = x + sin(x),
f(x) = | x |
 33

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

Let E be the set of even integers {0, 2, 4, 6, . . . .}.
Then there is a bijection f from N to E , the even
nonnegative integers, defined by
f(x) = 2x.

Hence, the set of even integers has the same

cardinality as the set of natural numbers.

OH, NO! IT CANT BE....E IS ONLY HALF AS BIG!!!

Sorry! It gets worse before it gets better.

 34

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

Inverse Functions

Definition:

Let f be a bijection from A to B. Then the inverse

of f, denoted f-1, is the function from B to A
defined as

f-1(y) = x if f(x) = y
 35

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

Example: Let f be defined by the diagram:

A f B A f-1 B
a a
V V
b b
W W
c c
X X
d d
Y Y

Note: No inverse exists

unless f is a bijection
 36

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

Definition: Let S be a subset of B. Then
f-1(S) = {x | f(x) S}
Note: f need not be a bijection for this definition to
hold.

Example: Let f be the following function:

A B
a
X
b f-1({Z}) = {c, d}
Y f-1({X, Y}) = {a, b}
c
Z
d
 37

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

Composition

Definition:

Let f: B C, g: A B. The composition of f with g,

denoted fg, is the function from A to C defined by

f g(x) = f(g(x))
 38

A g B f C
a V h
Examples: b W i
c X j
d
Y

A fg C
a
h
b
i
c
j
d
 39

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

If f(x) = x2 and g(x) = 2x + 1, then f(g(x)) =

(2x+1)2 and g(f(x)) = 2x2 + 1

Definition:

The floor function, denoted f ( x) = x or

f(x) = floor(x), is the largest integer less than or equal to
x.

The ceiling function, denoted f ( x) = x or f(x) =

ceiling(x), is the smallest integer greater than or equal to
x.
 40

Functions (2.3) (cont.)

Examples: 3.5 = 3, 3.5 = 4.
Note: the floor function is equivalent to truncation for positive
numbers.

Example:
Suppose f: B C, g: A B and f g is injective.
What can we say about f and g?

We know that if a b then f(g(a)) f(g(b)) since the composition

is injective.
Since f is a function, it cannot be the case that g(a) = g(b) since
then f would have two diferent images for the same point.
Hence, g(a) g(b)

It follows that g must be an injection.

However, f need not be an injection (you show).
 41
Sequences and Summations
(2.4)
Definition: A sequence is a function from a subset
of the natural numbers (usually of the form {0, 1,
2, . . . } to a set S.
Note: the sets
{0, 1, 2, 3, . . . , k} and {1, 2, 3, 4, . . . , k}

are called initial segments of N.

Notation: if f is a function from {0, 1, 2, . . .} to S we

usually denote f(i) by ai and we write
a0 , a1 , a 2 ,... a i ki 0 a i 0k
where k is the upper limit (usually ).
 42
Sequences and Summations (2.4)
(cont.)
Examples:

Using zero-origin indexing, if f(i) = 1/(i + 1). then

the
Sequence

f = {1, 1/'2,1/3,1/4, . . . } = {a 0, a1, a2, a3, . . }

Using one-origin indexing the sequence f becomes

{1/2, 1/3, . . .} = {a1, a2, a3, . . .}

 43
Sequences and Summations (2.4)
(cont.)
Summation Notation

k
Given a sequencea i 0 we can add together a
subset of the sequence by using the summation
and function notation
n
a g ( m ) a g ( m 1 ) ... a g ( n ) a g( j )
j m
or more generally

aj
jS
 44
Sequences and Summations (2.4)
(cont.)
n
Examples: r 0 r 1 r 2 ... r n r j
0

1 1 1 1
1 ...
2 3 4 1 i
n
a 2 m a 2 ( m 1 ) ... a 2 ( n ) a2 j
j m

if S {2,5,7,10} then a j a 2 a5 a7 a10

jS
n
a j a m a m 1 ...a n
Similarity for the product notation:
j m
 45
Sequences and Summations (2.4)
(cont.)
Definition:

A geometric progression is a sequence of the form

a, ar, ar2, ar3, ar4, . . . .
Your book has a proof that n n 1
r 1
r i

r 1
if r 1
i 0
(you can figure out what it is if r = 1).

You should also be able to determine the sum

if the index starts at k vs. 0
if the index ends at something other than n
(e.g., n-1, n+1, etc.).
 46
Sequences and Summations (2.4)
(cont.)

Cardinality

Definition:

The cardinality of a set A is equal to the

cardinality of a set B, denoted
| A | = | B |,

if there exists a bijection from A to B.

 47

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

Definition:

If a set has the same cardinality as a subset of the

natural numbers N, then the set is called
countable.

If |A| = |N|, the set A is countably infinite.

The (transfinite) cardinal number of the set N is

aleph null = 0.

If a set is not countable we say it is uncountable.

 48

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

Examples:

The following sets are uncountable (we show later)

The real numbers in [0, 1]

P(N), the power set of N

Note: With infinite sets proper subsets can have the

same cardinality. This cannot happen with finite
sets.

Countability carries with it the implication that there

is a listing of the elements of the set.
 49

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

Definition: | A | | B | if there is an injection from A to B.
Note: as you would hope,

Theorem:
If | A | | B | and | B | | A | then | A | = | B |.
This implies
if there is an injection from A to B

if there is an injection from B to A

then
there must be a bijection from A to B

This is difficult to prove but is an example of demonstrating

existence without construction.
It is often easier to build the injections and then conclude the
bijection exists.
 50

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

Example:

Theorem: If A is a subset of B then | A | | B |.

Proof: the function f(x) = x is an injection from A to B.

Example: {0, 2, 5}| 0

The injection f: {0, 2, 5} N defined by f(x) = x is
shown below:
0 1 2 3 4 5 6

0 2 5
 51

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

Some Countably Infinite Sets

The set of even integers E ( 0 is considered even) is

countably infinite. Note that E is a proper subset of N,

Proof: Let f(x) = 2x. Then f is a bijection from N to E

0 1 2 3 4 5 6

0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Z+, the set0of positive
2 4 integers
6 8 10
is countably12
infinite.
 52

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

The set of positive rational numbers Q+ is
countably infinite.

Proof: Z+ is a subset of Q+ so |Z+| = 0 |Q+|.

Now we have to show that |Q+| 0.

To do this we show that the positive rational

numbers with repetitions, QR, is countably infinite.

Then, since Q+ is a subset of QR, it follows that

|Q+| 0 and hence |Q+| = 0.
 53

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

 54

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

The position on the path (listing) indicates the
image of the bijective function f from N to QR:

f(0) = 1/1, f(1) = 1/2, f(2) = 2/1, f(3) = 3/1, and so

forth.

Every rational number appears on the list at least

once, some many times (repetitions).

Hence, |N| = |QR| = 0. Q. E. D

The set of all rational numbers Q, positive and

negative, is countably infinite.
 55

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

The set of (finite length) strings S over a finite alphabet A is
countably infinite.

To show this we assume that

A is nonvoid
There is an alphabetical ordering of the symbols in A

Proof: List the strings in lexicographic order:

all the strings of zero length,
then all the strings of length 1 in alphabetical order,

then all the strings of length 2 in alphabetical order,

etc.

This implies a bijection from N to the list of strings and

hence it is a countably infinite set.
 56

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

For example:
Let A = {a, b, c}.

Then the lexicographic ordering of A is

{ , a, b, c, aa, ab, ac, ba, bb, bc, ca, cb, cc, aaa,
aab,
aac, aba, ....} = {f(0), f(1), f(2), f(3), f(4), . . . .}
 57

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

The set of all C programs is countable.

Proof: Let S be the set of legitimate characters which can appear

in a C program.

A C compiler will determine if an input program is a syntactically

correct C program (the program doesn't have to do anything useful).
Use the lexicographic ordering of S and feed the strings into the
compiler.

If the compiler says YES, this is a syntactically correct C program, we add

the program to the list.
Else we move on to the next string.

In this way we construct a list or an implied bijection from N to

the set of C programs.

Hence, the set of C programs is countable. Q. E. D.

 58

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

Cantor Diagonalization

An important technique used to construct an object which is not a

member of a countable set of objects with (possibly) infinite
descriptions

Theorem: The set of real numbers between 0 and 1 is uncountable.

Proof: We assume that it is countable and derive a contradiction.

If it is countable we can list them (i.e., there is a bijection from a

subset of N to the set).

We show that no matter what list you produce we can construct a

real number between 0 and 1 which is not in the list.

Hence, there cannot exist a list and therefore the set is not
countable
 59

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

It's actually much bigger than countable. It is said
to have the cardinality of the continuum, c.

Represent each real number in the list using its

decimal expansion.

e.g., 1/3 = .3333333........

1/2 = .5000000........
= .4999999........

If there is more than one expansion for a number, it

doesn't matter as long as our construction takes
this into account.
 60

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

THE LIST....
r1 = .d11d12d13d14d15d16. . . . .
r2 = .d21d22d23d24d25d26 . . . .
r3 = .d31d32d33d34d35d36 . . . .
...

Now construct the number x = .x1x2x3x4x5x6x7. . . .

xi = 3 if dii 3
xi = 4 if dii = 3

(Note: choosing 0 and 9 is not a good idea because of the non

uniqueness of decimal expansions.)

Then x is not equal to any number in the list.

Hence, no such list can exist and hence the interval (0,1) is
uncountable. Q. E. D.
 61

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

An extra goody:

Definition: a number x between 0 and 1 is

computable if there is a C program which when
given the input i, will produce the ith digit in the
decimal expansion of x.

Example:

The number 1/3 is computable.

The C program which always outputs the digit 3,

regardless if the input, computes the number.
 62

Sequences and Summations (2.4)

Theorem: There is exists a number x between 0 and
1 which is not computable.

There does not exist a C program (or a program in

any other language) which will compute it!

Why? Because there are more numbers between 0

and 1 than there are C programs to compute them.

(in fact there are c such numbers!)

Our second example of the nonexistence of

programs to compute things!