CHAPTER 1

SETS AND NUMBERS

Lesson 1.1 Concepts of Sets……………………………………….. 1

Lesson 1.2 Ways of Describing Sets………………………………. 2
Lesson 1.3 Kinds and Relations on Sets………………………….. 2
Lesson 1.4 Operations on Sets…………………………………….. 4
Lesson 1.5 Venn Diagram………………………………………….. 4
Application of Venn Diagram …………………….... 5
ACTIVITY…………………………………………. 6

CONTENT GOALS:
• Describe and Illustrate well-defined sets, and null set.
• Identify the elements of a set.
• Differentiate between finite and infinite sets.
• Illustrate equal and equivalent sets.
• Describe and illustrate universal set and subsets.
• Define and describe the union and intersection of sets and the
complement of a set.
• Use Venn Diagrams to represent sets, subsets and set operations.
• Solve problems involving sets using Venn Diagrams.

1.1 Concept of Sets

A set is a well- defined collection of distinct objects. A well-defined set

means that it is possible to determine whether an object belongs to a
given set. The objects are called members or elements of a set.
We use the symbol 𝜖 to denote the element of a set. Also, the
symbol a 𝜖 S is read as “a is not an element of set S.”
Examples:
Which of the following sets are well-defined?
1. The set of all large numbers
2. The set of all multiples of 3
3. The set of good writers
Solutions:
1. This set is not well-defined. Some people will have different
opinions on which numbers are large.
2. This set is well-defined. Numbers that are multiples of 3 can easily
be differentiated from the others.
3. This set is not well-defined. Some people may include different
writers in the set.

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1.2 Two Ways of Describing a Set

1. The tabular or roster form is a method where the elements

are separated by commas and enclosed by braces.
2. The rule form is a method that makes use of the
description {x/….}. This is read as “x such that”.
Examples:
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}
A set that contains no elements is called an empty or null set.
We denote the empty set by { } or ∅ . The set {∅} is not empty since it
contains one element.

1.3 Kinds and Relations on Sets

1. Equal sets
A and B are equal, denoted by A=B, if they have the same
elements.
The sets A= {4, 2, 3} and B= {2, 4, 3} are equal sets.

2. Equivalent sets
A and B are equivalent sets, denoted by A ~ B, if they have
the same number of elements.
The sets C= {a,b,c} and D= {1,5,6}are equivalent sets.

3. Finite Set
A is finite if it contains only a countable number of elements.
The sets A, B, C, D given above are finite sets.

4. Infinite Set
A set is infinite if the counting of elements has no end. The
following are examples of infinite sets.
set of integers Z,
positive integers N (or natural numbers)
negative integers Z
nonnegative integers W (or whole numbers)
Z= {…, -2,-1, 0, 1, 2,…}
N= {1, 2, 3,…}
W= {0, 1, 2,…}

5. Universal Set

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Universal set is the totality of elements under consideration.

If A= {1, 2, 3} and {3, 4, 5}, then the universal set U, considering

no other set present is U= {1, 2, 3, 4, 5}

6. Joint Sets
Sets that have common elements are joint sets.
The sets A= {1, 5, 6} and B= {6, 10, 13} are joint sets, since 6 is
common to both A and B.

7. Disjoint Sets
Two sets are disjoint if they have no common elements.
The sets E= {m, n, o} and F= {e, f, g} are disjoint sets.

8. Subsets
Set A is a subset of set B denoted by A ⊂ B, if every element of
A belongs to B.
In symbol:
A⊂ B if x 𝜖 A then x 𝜖 B.

• Proper Subsets
If there is a at least one element found in B but not in A,
then A is a proper subset of B denoted by A⊂ B.

• Improper Subsets
There are two improper subsets of any given set, the empty
set and the set itself.

The following generalizations are consequences of the

definition:
1. Every set is a subset of itself i.e. A⊂A.
2. An empty set is always a subset of every set i.e. Ѳ⊂A
Example 1. The empty set M={ } has only one subset
Example 2. If A= {a, b}, then the subsets are { }, {a}, {b} and A.
Example 3. The set B= {1, 2, 3} have subsets as follows:
improper subset with 3 elements: {1, 2, 3}, or B
proper subset with 2 elements: {1, 2}, {1, 3}, {2, 3}
proper subsets with 1 element: {1}, {2}, {3}
improper subset with no element: { }

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1.4 Operations on Sets

1. Union of sets A and B

A ∪ B = set of all elements found in A or in B or both
= {x/x 𝜖 A or x 𝜖 B}
Example: {a,b,c}∪{b,e,g} = {a,b,c,e,g}

2. Intersection of sets A and B

A∩ B = set of all elements common to A and B
= {x/x 𝜖 A and x 𝜖 B}
Example: {1,2,3,4} ∩ {0,2,3,4,9} = {2,3,4}

3.Complement of A
A’= set of elements in the universal set but not found in A
= {x/x 𝜖 U and x 𝜖 A}
Example: A = {1,2}, U = {1,2,3,4,5}
A’ = {3,4,5}

4. Difference of sets A and B

A ˗ B = set of elements found in A but not in B
= {x/x 𝜖 A and x 𝜖 B}
Example: A={4,5,6,7}, B={1,6,7,8,9}
A – B = {4,5}

1.5 The Venn Diagram

The Venn diagram of sets makes use of a rectangle

representing the universal set and circles as subsets that may be shaded
under consideration.

The union of A and B, denoted A ∪ B

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The intersection of A and B denoted A ∩ B.

The complement of A in U

Difference of A and B

Applications

1. A group of 48 students were asked on their preference on soft

drinks. 30 students prefer Pepsi Cola. 27 students prefer Coke. 34
students prefer Sprite. 18 students prefer Pepsi and Coke. 20
students prefer Pepsi and Sprite. 16 students prefer Coke and
Sprite. 10 students prefer the three kinds of soft drinks.

P C
8
2 3
10
10 6
8
S
1

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Questions:
1. How many students prefer pepsi only?
2. How many students prefer coke only?
3. How many students prefer sprite only?
4. How many students do not prefer any of the three soft drinks?
5. How many students prefer pepsi and coke?
6. Pepsi or Coke?
7. Exactly one soft drink?
8. At most two soft drinks?
9. At least two soft drinks?

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ACTIVITIES
I. State whether each of the following sets is well-defined.
1. The set of happy people
2. The set of good teachers
3. The set of even counting numbers
4. The set of small numbers
5. The set of all prime numbers

II. Write the following set in rule form.

1. {2,4,6,8}
2. (1,3,5,….}

III. Write the following in tabular form.

1. {x/x is a counting number less than 10}
2. {x/x is a whole number less than 4}

IV. Determine whether the sets in each of the following pairs are
equal or equivalent.

1. A= {a, t, o, m}
B= {t, o, m, a}
2. E= {Jose, Apolinario, Andres}
F= {Rizal, Mabini, Bonifacio}
3. G= {I, II, III}
H= {one, two, three}

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V. Given A={m,a,t,h}
1. List the proper subsets of A
2. 2. List the improper subsets of A

VI. Let U= {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6}, A={2, 4, 5, 6}, and B= {1, 6, 7} find:

1. A ∩ B
2. A’
3. A-B
4. A’ ∪ B
5. A ∩ (AUB)

VII. Solve the problem using Venn diagram and answer the
questions. In excursion at Pagsajan falls, 80 students brought
sandwiches, drinks and cans. 50 students brought sandwiches.
30 brought drinks. 30 brought can. 15 brought sandwich and
can. 8 brought sandwich and can. 18 brought can and drinks. 5
brought all three food.

Questions:
1. How many students brought sandwiches only?
2. Drinks only?
3. At most one snack?
4. Did not brought any of the three?
5. Exactly one?

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