Math For Dummies SETS AND

OPERATIONS ON
SETS
CHAPTER 1

𝜇
𝐴 𝐶
𝐵

0 4, 5, 6 7 9, 1
2

PAUL K. DARKU
GENERAL SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL MATHEMATICS FOR DUMMIES
 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

Chapter Summary

Brief History ................................................................................................................................................. 3

Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 3
Definition .................................................................................................................................................. 4
Set Notation .............................................................................................................................................. 4
A. Roster/Enumeration Notation ....................................................................................................... 4
B. Rule/Semantic Description Notation ............................................................................................ 4
C. Set Builder Notation ..................................................................................................................... 4
Exercise1A .................................................................................................................................................... 5
Exercise 1B ................................................................................................................................................... 5
Number Sets Frequently Used in Mathematics............................................................................................. 6
1. Set of Natural Numbersℕ.................................................................................................................. 6
2. The set of Whole Numbers(𝑊) ........................................................................................................ 6
3. The set of Integers(ℤ) ....................................................................................................................... 6
4. Set of Even Numbers ........................................................................................................................ 6
5. Set of Odd Numbers.......................................................................................................................... 6
6. Factors of a number (𝑛) .................................................................................................................... 6
7. Multiples of a number (𝑥) ................................................................................................................. 6
8. Prime Numbers ................................................................................................................................. 6
9. Composite Numbers.......................................................................................................................... 6
10. Triangular Numbers ...................................................................................................................... 6
11. Rational Numbers (ℚ) .................................................................................................................. 6
12. Irrational Numbers (ℍ)................................................................................................................. 6
13. Algebraic Numbers ....................................................................................................................... 6
14. Transcendental Numbers............................................................................................................... 7
15. Real Numbers (ℝ) ......................................................................................................................... 7
Commonly Used Set Concepts ..................................................................................................................... 7
A. Cardinality of a Set ........................................................................................................................... 7
B. Null/Empty Set.................................................................................................................................. 7
C. Singleton/Unit Set ............................................................................................................................. 7
D. Equal sets .......................................................................................................................................... 7
E. Equivalent Sets.................................................................................................................................. 7
F. Finite Sets.......................................................................................................................................... 7

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

G. Infinite Sets ....................................................................................................................................... 7

H. Subset ................................................................................................................................................ 8
i. Proper Subset ................................................................................................................................ 8
ii. Improper Subset ............................................................................................................................ 8
I. Power Set .......................................................................................................................................... 8
J. Universal Set ..................................................................................................................................... 8
Introduction to Venn Diagrams .................................................................................................................... 9
Operations on Sets ........................................................................................................................................ 9
Intersection of Sets.................................................................................................................................... 9
Special Properties of Intersection ....................................................................................................... 10
Disjoint/Mutually Exclusive Sets............................................................................................................ 10
Union of Sets........................................................................................................................................... 10
Special Properties of Union ................................................................................................................ 11
Complement of a Set ............................................................................................................................... 11
Special Properties of Complement ...................................................................................................... 11
Exercise 1C ................................................................................................................................................. 12
The Three General Properties of Intersection and Union of Sets ............................................................... 13
Commutative property ............................................................................................................................ 13
Associative property ............................................................................................................................... 13
Distributive property ............................................................................................................................... 14
Exercise 1D ................................................................................................................................................. 15
Describing Regions of a Two-Set Venn Diagram....................................................................................... 16
Exercise1E .................................................................................................................................................. 17
De Morgan’s Laws of Complement of Sets ................................................................................................ 18
Exercise 1F.................................................................................................................................................. 20
Two-Set Problems....................................................................................................................................... 20
Exercise 1G ................................................................................................................................................. 21
Description of the Regions of a Three-Set Venn Diagram ......................................................................... 22
Exercise 1H ................................................................................................................................................. 24
Three-Set Problems..................................................................................................................................... 25
Exercise 1I .................................................................................................................................................. 30
ANSWERS TO EXERCISES ..................................................................................................................... 31

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

CHAPTER ONE
SETS AND OPERATIONS ON SETS
Brief History
The modern study of set theory was sparked up by Georg Cantor and Richard Dedekind in the
1870s somewhere in the 19th century.

Georg Cator In 1874, the German mathematician George Ferdinand Ludwig Philipp Cantor
released a paper: “On a Property of the Collection of All Real Algebraic
Numbers” This paper was influenced by an 1872 meeting between Cantor and
Dedekind. Cantor made use of the German word “Menge” which literally means
“Multitude, Crowd, Quantity” which is accepted in mathematics today as a Set.
This paper when released had given a new perspective to what used to be the
R. Dedekind problem of mathematicians in the early centuries (That’s, since the 5th century
BC), “The concept of Infinity”. Set theory had seen so many discoveries over
the years, a recent one being the proof of Fermat’s Last Theorem (Earlier
referred to as Fermat’s Conjecture) by Professor Andrew Wiles (Formally
published in 1995 in 2 papers totaling 129 pages which was said to have
consumed 7 years of his research life).
This proof had opened doors for new discoveries in Number Theory and Set
P. de Fermat
Theory in that regard. This problem conjectured by French mathematician and
lawyer Pierre de Fermat in 1637,which stated that no three positive integers
𝑎, 𝑏, 𝑐 satisfy the equation 𝑎𝑛 + 𝑏 𝑛 = 𝑐 𝑛 for any integer value of 𝑛 greater than
2, was considered the “most difficult mathematical problem” by the Guinness
Book of World Records in part because it recorded the largest number of
unsuccessful proofs. For 𝑛 = 1 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑛 = 2, there are infinitely many solutions
Adrew Wiles
and 𝑛 = 2 is the famous Pythagoras Theorem. Set theory over the years served
as the foundational system of mathematics.
Today, set theory is a branch of mathematics in its own right with an active
research community leading to new discoveries and broadening of its scope of
content.

Introduction
Set theory involves a lot, but at the senior high level, we limit ourselves to the basics. We will
therefore not bother ourselves with the axiomatic definition of sets and concepts that come with
it as they will be treated in detail for those willing to pursue mathematics at the tertiary level.
Our content here will be more on Intuitive or Naïve Set Theory (describes the aspect of sets
familiar in discrete mathematics such as Venn diagrams and symbolic reasoning about their
Boolean Algebra) and not Axiomatic set theory (approaches sets from a formal logic aspect).

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In our daily lives, we make use of the application of so many sets. We could list few as: set of
cooking utensils, mathematical set, set of cutleries, set of farming tools etc.
Just cast your mind to all possible objects contained in each of the above sets and ask if it is possible
to swap objects from two different sets without altering the sets. A good example is: can I add a
hoe to the set of cutleries or otherwise?
A good response to the earlier question will raise a key point in our definition of sets. Note that in
any of the sets mentioned above, objects belonging to the sets are unique (differ). Objects put
together to form a set are called Members or Elements of the set.
Definition
A set is a well-defined collection of unique or distinct objects. A set in itself is an object, and as
we move on, somewhere under power set and the real number system, you will see different sets
coming together to form a unified set. The “well-defined” justifies the thought that we cannot just
swap elements of sets unless they agree to the common characteristic of the sets.
Set Notation
Set notation is a way of describing a set by enumerating(itemizing) its elements or stating the
properties that its members must satisfy. Defining a set by properties is known as set
comprehension or set abstraction or better still defining a set’s intention.
The following key points must be taken into account when denoting sets:
1. Every set is represented by an alphabet in caps. This serves as the simpler name for the set.
2. The elements of a set if happened to be alphabets, are represented in lower case letters.
3. A pair of curly brackets “{}” is used in listing elements of a set.
4. Elements of a set enclosed in a curly bracket are separated by commas
5. For sets with uncountable number of elements, one could list few and bring a comma after
the very last one listed, followed by a minimum of three dots and the closing curly bracket.
6. Also, for a set with countable number of elements, one could list the first three elements,
followed by a comma, three dots or more, a comma again, then the last element and finally
the closing curly bracket.
7. Listing of elements of a set follows no specific order (Any element could come first and
any could be last}
There are basically three methods of set notation:
A. Roster/Enumeration Notation: This is the simplest method of set notation. It is done by
writing all elements of the set within the enclosed curly bracket, separating members by
commas. E.g.𝐴 = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5} , 𝐵 = {1, 3, 5, 7, … }, 𝐸 = {2, 4, 6, 8, 10, … ,100}
B. Rule/Semantic Description Notation: Another means of set notation is by describing
members of the set by a common property that binds them. E.g. Set A is a set of prime
numbers less than ten, Set M is a set of triangular numbers, Set G is a set of factors of
twenty-two.
C. Set Builder Notation: This approach describes a set by first stating its name which is
represented by an alphabet in caps. This is then followed by an equal sign and an open

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

curly bracket, then a lower-case variable (usually 𝑥) representing all elements of the set, a
colon or vertical bar (: or |) , then a description of the variable which could be in word form
or inequality form and finally, a closing curly bracket. E.g. 𝑄 = {𝑥| − 1 ≤ 𝑥 ≤ 9,
𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑥 ∈ Ƶ}. This will read as: Set Q equals x such that negative one is less or equal to x
and x is less or equal to nine where x belongs to the set of integers. The symbol 𝜖 means:
is a member of or belongs to. Other examples are: 𝑀 = {𝑥: 𝑥 < 25, 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛} , 𝐻 =
{𝑥: 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑎 𝑝𝑟𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑤 9}.

Exercise1A
For each of the sets described below, you are required to state the method of set notation used
and describe the set again using the other two alternatives available.
a. 𝐷 = {1, 2, 3, 4, … }
b. 𝐻 = {𝑥: = −5 ≤ 𝑥 ≤ 5, 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑥 ∈ Ƶ}
c. Set 𝑃 is a set of composite numbers less than twenty
d. 𝑇 = {1, 3, 6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 55}
e. Set 𝑌 is a set of natural numbers less than eight
f. 𝑆 = {𝑥|𝑥 ≥ 2, 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑎 𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟}
g. 𝐶 = {4, 6, 8, 9,10, 12, 14, … }
h. 𝑁 = {… , −4, −3, −2, −1, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, … }
i. 𝑊 = {𝑛: 0 ≤ 𝑛 ≤ 4, 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑛 ∈ Ƶ}
j. 𝑅 = {𝑒, 𝜋, √2, … }

Exercise 1B
1. Identify the flaws in the sets listed below if there is any:
a. 𝑚 = [1, 2, 3, 4]
b. 𝐾 = {𝑅, 𝑇, 𝐻, 𝑄}
c. 𝑝 = (2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, … )
d. 𝐷 = {1, 9, }
e. 𝑌 = {23456, 19276, 1290}
2. How many elements are contained in each of the sets listed below?
a. 𝐹 = {𝑎 𝑏 𝑐 𝑑 𝑒 𝑓}
1 1
b. 𝑋 = { , , 1, 2, 4, … }
4 2
c. 𝐺 = {𝑔, 𝑟, 𝑒, 𝑎, 𝑡𝑒, 𝑟}
d. 𝑍 = {1 9 9 3. 1}
e. 𝑊 = {1, 3, 5, … ,19}

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Number Sets Frequently Used in Mathematics

Most often in mathematics, we make reference to some sets of numbers more frequently due to
their popularity. We will not talk much about some of these sets here as they will we treated in
details under the real number system. The sets include:
1. Set of Natural Numbers(ℕ): ℕ = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, … }
2. The set of Whole Numbers(𝑊): 𝑊 = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, … }
3. The set of Integers(ℤ): ℤ = {… , −3, −2, −1, 0, 1, 2, 3, … }
4. Set of Even Numbers: {… , −6, −4, −2, 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, … }
5. Set of Odd Numbers: {… , −7, −5, −3, −1, 1, 3, 5, 7, … }
NB: An even number is an integer that is exactly divisible by 2 and an odd number is an
integer which is not exactly divisible by 2. Most at times when we say even and odd
numbers, we tend to list the positive values other than the entire set which is acceptable at
this stage but note that even and odd numbers go beyond positives.
𝑛
6. Factors of a number (𝑛): {𝑥: 𝑥 𝜖ℤ} Note that if 𝑘 is a factor of 𝑛 then −𝑘 is also a factor. A
factor of a number is another number that leaves an integer result when it divides the
number. At this stage, it is acceptable to list just positive numbers as factors of a number.
7. Multiples of a number (𝑥): {𝑘: 𝑘 = 𝑥𝑛, 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑛𝜖ℤ} A multiple of a number is any number
that results from multiplying the number by an integer. Multiples could be positives,
negatives and zero but at this stage, it is acceptable to list just positive numbers as multiples
of a number.
8. Prime Numbers:{2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, … } A prime number is a natural number greater than 1
that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers.
9. Composite Numbers: {4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12, 14, 15, … } A composite number is a positive
integer that has at least 1 divisor other than 1 and itself.
10. Triangular Numbers: {1,3, 6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 55, 66, 78, … } Triangular numbers are
series of numbers obtained by continuous summation of the natural numbers.
𝑥
11. Rational Numbers (ℚ): ℚ = {𝑛: 𝑛 = , 𝑦 ≠ 0 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑥, 𝑦 ∈ ℤ}
𝑦
12. Irrational Numbers (ℍ): {𝜋, 𝑒, √2, √5, … } They are numbers that cannot be expressed as
rational numbers. Their decimal expansions neither terminate nor recurs. Note one mistake
22
students make is arguing that 𝜋 = . The two numbers belong to different sets and are not
7
22
equal. We most at times use
7
as an approximation for 𝜋 because the approximation of
both numbers to the first three decimal places are same. Another good approximation of 𝜋
3
is √31
13. Algebraic Numbers: If a number is algebraic, then you can perform multiples of these
operations: (adding a whole number, subtracting a whole number, multiplying by a whole
number, raising the number to a positive integer exponent) to reduce the number to zero.
2
E.g. √−1 is algebraic because (√−3) + 3 = 0. Also, √5 + √2 is algebraic because
2 2
[(√5 + √2) − 7] − 40 = 0

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If we replace the numbers we used by 𝑥 then we have the equations 𝑥 2 + 3 =

0 𝑎𝑛𝑑 (𝑥 2 − 7)2 − 40 = 0 𝑜𝑟 𝑥 4 − 14𝑥 2 + 9 = 0 for both cases and these are
polynomials. We therefore say algebraic numbers are roots of nonzero polynomials with
integers or equivalently rational coefficients.
14. Transcendental Numbers: {𝑒, 𝜋, 𝑒 𝜋 , 2√2 , … } Transcendental numbers are not algebraic.
A transcendental number is a number that is not the root (solution) of a nonzero polynomial
with integer or equivalently rational coefficients.
15. Real Numbers (ℝ): The set of real numbers is a combination of the set of rational and
Irrational numbers.

Commonly Used Set Concepts

A. Cardinality of a Set: The cardinality of a set is the number of elements contained in the set.
The cardinality of a set 𝐴 is usually denoted in any of these forms:
|𝐴| 𝑜𝑟 𝑛(𝐴)𝑜𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑑(𝐴)𝑜𝑟 #𝐴 𝑜𝑟 𝐴̿. The cardinality of countably and uncountably infinite
sets reveals the various levels of infinity, a concept reserved for tertiary mathematics as
you will learn that a set is countable only if it is finite and countably infinite. A set that is
countably infinite has same cardinality (ℵ0 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑑 "𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑝ℎ 𝑛𝑢𝑙𝑙") as the set ℕ of counting
or natural numbers. This ℵ0 represents the cardinality of the smallest infinite set (ℕ) as
infinity has numerous levels. It is wrong to say the cardinality of an infinite set is infinity
(∞) because infinity is not a number but rather an idea of a never-ending process.
B. Null/Empty Set: A null or an empty is a valid set with no elements. Think of it as a barren
set. A null set is usually denoted by an empty pair of curly brackets {} or the Greek symbol
∅ (pronounced Phi). E.g. Set G is a set of prime numbers that are between seven and eleven.
Clearly, between 7 and 11, there are only 3 integers {8,9,10} none of which is prime so
this is a clear example of an empty set.
C. Singleton/Unit Set: A unit set is a set that has only one element. E.g. 𝐴 = {0}, Set B is a
set of even prime numbers, 𝐷 = {𝑥|1 > 𝑥, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑥 ∈ 𝑊}
D. Equal sets: Two sets are said to be equal if they contain exactly the same elements. E.g. If
set 𝐴 = {𝑎, 𝑏, 𝑐, 𝑑, 𝑒} and set 𝐵 = {𝑒, 𝑐, 𝑏, 𝑎, 𝑑} then we can conclude 𝐴 = 𝐵.
E. Equivalent Sets: Two sets are said to be equivalent if they have the same number of element
or if their cardinality is the same. E.g. Given that set 𝑃 = {1,2, 3, 4, 5, 6} and 𝑄 =
{𝑒, 𝑓, 𝑔, ℎ, 𝑖, 𝑗} we could say Set 𝑃 is equivalent to set 𝑄 since they both have 6 elements.
Note that two equal sets are always equivalent but two equivalent sets are not always equal.
F. Finite Sets: A set whose cardinality is less than the cardinality of the set of natural numbers
is said to be finite. Better still, a set whose elements could all be listed down is said to be
finite. E.g. 𝐴 = {1, 2, 3, 4, … , 1000000000000000000}
NB: A set whose cardinality is greater than that of the set of natural numbers is said to be
uncountable.
G. Infinite Sets: A set is said to be infinite if all of its members could not be listed. The listing
of the members of an infinite set is a never-ending process. As discussed earlier, infinity
has numerous levels and some infinities are actually greater than others. E.g. set L is a set
of prime numbers. NB: A recent research found the largest prime number in human

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history(274,207,281 − 1) which stands at twenty-two million, three hundred and thirty-eight

thousand, six hundred and nineteen (22,338,619) digits but this is definitely not the largest,
more are yet to be discovered.
H. Subset: Set 𝐴 is said to be a subset of set 𝐵 if all element that belong to set A are elements
that could be found in set 𝐵. We use the symbol ⊆ to imply “is a subset of” or “has some
or all elements of”. Hence, 𝐴 ⊆ 𝐵 means A is a subset of 𝐵 which is same as 𝐵 ⊇ 𝐴 which
means 𝐵 is a superset of 𝐴. There are two types of subsets:
i. Proper Subset: Set 𝐴 is said to be a proper subset of set 𝐵 if all elements in A are
found in 𝐵 but 𝐴 is not equal to 𝐵. That is, 𝐵 contains other elements not found in
𝐴. The symbol ⊂ 𝑜𝑟 ⊊ is used to denote “a proper subset of”. So 𝐴 ⊂ 𝐵 which
means 𝐴 is a proper subset of 𝐵 could also be written as 𝐵 ⊃ 𝐴 𝑜𝑟 𝐵 ⊋ 𝐴 which
implies 𝐵 is a proper superset of 𝐴.
ii. Improper Subset: Set A is said to be an improper subset of set B if and only if 𝐴 =
𝐵
The symbols: ⊈, ⊉, ⊄, ⊅ could be used to mean the opposites of ⊆, ⊇, ⊂, ⊃
respectively.
I. Power Set: The power set of a set A is another set that contains all possible subsets of set
A. The power set theorem recognizes the empty set as a subset of any set. Also note that, a
set is its own subset. If set A has cardinality of 𝑛 then the power set of 𝐴 which is denoted
as 𝑃(𝐴) 𝑜𝑟 ℘(𝐴) 𝑜𝑟 ℙ(𝐴) is given by 2𝑛 and 2𝑛 − 1 of these subsets are proper subsets.
For set 𝐵 = {1,2,3}, 𝑛(𝐵) = 3 ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑛(𝑃(𝐵)) = 23 = 8.
𝑃(𝐵) = {∅, {1}, {2}, {3}, {1,2}, {1,3}, {2,3}, {1,2,3}}
The table below will help you understand why the cardinality of the power set of a set 𝐴
is 2𝑛 where 𝑛 is the cardinality of set 𝐴

Set Cardinality of set Subsets of set Number of subsets

{} 0 {} 1
{1} 1 {}, {1} 2
{1,2} 2 {}, {1}, {2}, {1,2} 4
{1,2,3} 3 {},{1}, {2}, {3}, {1,2}, 8
{1,3}, {2,3}, {1,2,3}
{1,2,3,4} 4 {},{1}, {2}, {3}, {4},{1,2}, 16
{1,3},{1,4}, {2,3}, {2,4},
{3,4}, {1,2,3},{1,2,4},
{1,3,4},{2,3,4},{1,2,3,4}

The numbers of subsets are all powers of two with the exponent in each case being equal to the
cardinality of the set.
J. Universal Set: A universal set is any set which is a superset of all the sets under
consideration. The Greek symbol 𝜇 (pronounced Mu) is used to denote a universal set. The
following symbols could also be used: 𝜔 (omega) or 𝜉 (Xi).

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Introduction to Venn Diagrams

Venn diagram was invented into set theory by English logician John Venn in
John Venn
1880. He constructed the Venn diagram to help him illustrate diagrammatically,
the inclusion and exclusion relations that exist between sets. What is interesting
is that, John Venn himself did not refer to this diagram as a Venn diagram but
rather, he called the circles “Eulerian Circles”. The name Venn diagram
became popular after Clarence Lewis referred to the diagram as Venn diagram
in his book: “A Survey of Symbolic Logic” in 1918.
Venn diagram today, is an outline of several geometric plane shapes (similar or different in
shape) each indicating a subset all of which are enclosed in one bigger shape denoting the
universal set with the aim of depicting the commonalities or differences between sets.
Illustrations:

Operations on Sets
Set theory in mathematics makes use of some unique operations which are totally different from
the four basic operations we know in mathematics(+, ×, −, ÷). There are basically three (3) types
of operations used in set algebra at this stage. These operations are:
1. Intersection of Sets
2. Union of Sets
3. Complements of Sets

Intersection of Sets
The intersection of sets is a set that contains elements common to all the sets. Intersection of sets
is represented using the symbol ∩. The expression 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 will read: “A intersection B” which will
contain elements that are in set A as well as in set B.

More formally, let A and B be two subsets of the universal set 𝜇 then

𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 = {𝑥𝜖𝜇|𝑥𝜖𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑥𝜖𝐵}

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E.g. If set 𝑀 = {2, 4, 6, 8, 10} and 𝑁 = {4, 8, 12, 16} then set 𝑀 ∩ 𝑁 = {4, 8}. Suppose 𝑀 and 𝑁
both belong to 𝜇, we can illustrate the information on a Venn diagram as follows with the shaded
region showing the region of intersection:

𝜇
𝑀 𝑁

2, 6, 10 4, 8 12, 16

Special Properties of Intersection

1. 𝐴 ∩ ∅ = ∅
2. 𝜇 ∩ 𝐴 = 𝐴
3. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐴 = 𝐴
Disjoint/Mutually Exclusive Sets
Two sets are said to be disjoint if they have no common elements. If two sets are disjoint, then
their intersection is a null set. E.g. Given 𝐹 = {1, 3, 5, 7} and 𝐺 = {2, 4, 6, 8}, then 𝐹 ∩ 𝐺 = {}.
Suppose F and G both belong to 𝜇 then we can represent the information on a Venn diagram by
one of the approaches below:

𝜇 𝜇
𝐹 𝐺 𝐹 𝐺

1, 3, 1, 3, 2, 4,
2, 4,
5, 7, 6, 8, 5, 7 6, 8,

Union of Sets
The union of two or more sets is a combination of elements of the sets into one unified set without
the repetition of common elements. The union of sets is denoted by the symbol ∪. So, 𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 will
read: “A union B”

More formally, if 𝐴 and 𝐵 are two subsets of the universal set 𝜇, then 𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 = {𝑥𝜖𝜇: 𝑥𝜖𝐴 𝑜𝑟 𝑥𝜖𝐵}

E.g. Given that set 𝐴 = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4} and set 𝐵 = {1, 3, 5, 7, 9} are subsets of the universal set 𝜇,
then 𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9}. The shaded region in the diagram below represents the union
of 𝐴 and 𝐵

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𝜇
𝐴 𝐵

0, 2, 4 1, 3 5, 7, 9

Special Properties of Union

1. 𝐴 ∪ ∅ = 𝐴
2. 𝜇 ∪ 𝐴 = 𝜇
3. 𝐴 ∪ 𝐴 = 𝐴

Complement of a Set
The complement of a set 𝐴 belonging to the universal set 𝜇 is the set of all elements that are in 𝜇
but not in 𝐴. The complement of a set 𝐴 will be denoted as 𝐴𝑐 𝑜𝑟 𝐴̅ 𝑜𝑟 𝐴′.

More formally, if 𝐴 is a subset of 𝜇, then 𝐴𝑐 = {𝑥𝜖𝜇: 𝑥 ∉ 𝐴}. E.g. Given 𝜇 = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, … ,10}
and 𝐴 = {2, 3, 5, 7} then 𝐴𝑐 = {0, 1, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10}. This could be represented on a Venn diagram
with the compliment of set 𝐴 depicted by the shaded region as follows:

𝜇
𝐴
0, 1,

2, 3, 5, 7 4, 6,

8, 9, 10

Special Properties of Complement

1. 𝐴 ∪ 𝐴′ = 𝜇
2. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐴′ = ∅
3. (𝐴′ )′ = 𝐴
4. 𝜇 ′ = ∅
5. ∅′ = 𝜇
The rest two properties are discussed separately as De Morgan’s Laws.

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Exercise 1C
1. Which of these operations does not hold? Give an explanation.
a. 𝐴 ∩ 𝑛(𝐵)
b. [𝑛(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)]𝑐
c. 𝐴 ∩ (𝐵 𝑐 ∩ 𝐴𝑐 )𝑐
2. Two finite sets have 𝑚 and 𝑛 elements, their power sets differ by 56. Find 𝑚 & 𝑛, 𝑚 > 𝑛
3. TRUE/ FALSE: If 𝐴 and 𝐵 are two disjoint sets, then 𝑛(𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) = ∅
4. For each of the equations below, indicate whether TRUE/FALSE given that 𝐴 and 𝐵 are
subsets of 𝜇.
a. (𝐴𝑐 ∩ 𝐵 𝑐 )𝑐 = 𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 f. 𝜇 − (𝐴𝑐 ∪ 𝐵 𝑐 ) = 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵
b. 𝐴𝑐 ∩ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) = ∅ g. (𝐴𝑐 ∪ 𝐵 𝑐 )𝑐 = 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵
c. (𝐴𝑐 )𝑐 = 𝐴 h. (𝐴 ∩ 𝐴𝑐 ) ∩ 𝐵 = ∅
d. 𝐴 ∪ ∅ = ∅ i. (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 𝑐 )𝑐 = 𝐵
e. 𝐴 ∩ ∅ = 𝐴 j. (𝐴 ∩ 𝜇) ∪ (𝐵 ∩ 𝜇) = 𝐴 ∪ 𝐵
5. If 𝐴, 𝐵 and 𝐶 are subsets of μ, then indicate which of the following statements are true
and which are false.
a. 𝑛(𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶) > 𝑛(𝐴 ∩ 𝐵)
b. 𝑛(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 ∪ 𝐶) ≥ 𝑛(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)
c. 𝑛(𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) = 𝑛(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) ⇒ 𝐴 = 𝐵
d. 𝐼𝑓 (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) = ∅ 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑛 (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶) = ∅
e. 𝐼𝑓 (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶)𝑐 = ∅ 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝐴 = 𝐵 = 𝐶
f. 𝐴𝑐 ∪ 𝐴 = 𝜇
6. If 𝐴 and 𝐵 are subsets of 𝜇 = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10} such that 𝐴 = {𝑥: 0 < 𝑥 <
10, 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛} and 𝐵 is a set of odd numbers, list:
a. 𝐴𝑐 f. (𝐴𝑐 ∪ 𝐵 𝑐 )𝑐
b. 𝐵 𝑐 g. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵
𝑐 𝑐
c. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 h. 𝐴 ∪ 𝐵
𝑐 𝑐
d. 𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 i. (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵)𝑐
e. (𝐴𝑐 ∩ 𝐵 𝑐 )𝑐 j. (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)𝑐
7. The sets A, B and C are subsets of 𝜇 = {−6, −5, −4, −3, −2, −1, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6}. Given
that 𝐴 = {−6, −4, −2, 0, 2, 4}, 𝐵 = {−5, −3, −1, 1, 3, 5} 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐶 = {2, 3, 5} Evaluate:
a. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵
b. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐶
c. 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶
d. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶
e. 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ ∩ 𝐶 ′
f. (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 ∪ 𝐶)′
8. Given that 𝐸 = {2, 4, 6, 8, 10}, 𝐴 = {𝑥: 𝑥 = 𝑛 + 1, 𝑥 ⋲ 𝐸} 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵 = {𝑥: 𝑥 = 𝑛2 , 𝑛 ⋲ 𝐸}
evaluate:
a. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐸
b. 𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 ∪ 𝐸
c. (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) ∩ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐸)

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The Three General Properties of Intersection and Union of Sets

There are basically three properties of set operations, these properties work for just two of the
operations discussed earlier (union and intersection of sets) these properties are:
1. Commutative property
2. Associative property
3. Distributive property
Commutative property
Generally, in mathematics, if an operation is commutative then it means the order of the operands
(the objects being operated on) is not of great concern because the end result whichever way will
be same. Take addition and subtraction of numbers for instance, (1 + 2) will produce same result
as (2 + 1) but (1 − 2) will not produce same result as (2 − 1). We therefore say addition of
numbers is commutative while subtraction is not.
The commutative property of sets holds for both union and intersection of sets. In this case, our
operands are the sets and the operators are either the union or intersection. For any two given sets
𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵 belonging to a universal set 𝜇,
a. 𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 = 𝐵 ∪ 𝐴 (union of sets is commutative)
b. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 = 𝐵 ∩ 𝐴 (intersection of sets is commutative)
𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 means combining elements of sets 𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵 without repeating elements common to
𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵
𝐵 ∪ 𝐴 on the other hand, means combining elements of sets 𝐵 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐴 without repeating elements
common to 𝐵 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐴
At the other side of the coin, 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 means finding elements common to both 𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵 while 𝐵 ∩
𝐴 means finding elements common to both 𝐵 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐴
Associative property
Associativity has got to do with three operands but a single type of operator. It measures just one
thing (convenience). For instance, if I would want to perform the operation: 2 × 10 × 56, I would
have to start off with two numbers and then finally operating the result against the very last one.
If associativity holds for an operation, then it gives you so many choices of convenience. For me,
it will be convenient if I first multiply two by fifty-six and then attach zero at the end of the last
digit of the result as multiplication by ten. What this property is simply stating is that, it does not
matter which two you operate first, the end result in any case should be same. So, in the above
example,
2 × (10 × 56) = 2 × 560 = 1120
(2 × 10) × 56 = 20 × 56 = 1120
(2 × 56) × 10 = 112 × 10 = 1120

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We can then conclude that multiplication of numbers is associative.

When we come to operations on sets, we can also make the following declarations:
a. 𝐴 ∪ (𝐵 ∪ 𝐶) = (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) ∪ 𝐶 = (𝐴 ∪ 𝐶) ∪ 𝐵 (the union of sets is associative)
b. 𝐴 ∩ (𝐵 ∩ 𝐶) = (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) ∩ 𝐶 = (𝐴 ∩ 𝐶) ∩ 𝐵 (the intersection of sets is associative)
NB: The first two relations in both cases: 𝐴 ∪ (𝐵 ∪ 𝐶) = (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) ∪ 𝐶 and 𝐴 ∩ (𝐵 ∩ 𝐶) =
(𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) ∩ 𝐶 are enough to prove associativity.

Distributive property
The distributive property under set theory makes use of three operands and two different types of
operators. It aligns with the expansion property in algebra where we could make pronouncements
such as 𝑎 × (𝑏 + 𝑐 ) = 𝑎 × 𝑏 + 𝑎 × 𝑐. Here in set theory, we can make use of two forms of the
distributive property:
a. 𝐴 ∩ (𝐵 ∪ 𝐶) = (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) ∪ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐶) (Intersection of sets is distributive over union of sets)
b. 𝐴 ∪ (𝐵 ∩ 𝐶) = (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) ∩ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐶) (Union of sets is distributive over intersection of sets)
Example
Given that 𝑃, 𝑄 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑅 are subsets of the universal set
𝜇 = {1, 3, 6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 55, 66, 78, 91} where 𝑃 is a set of even numbers, 𝑄 is a set of
composite numbers and 𝑅 is a set of multiples of 3, Evaluate the following:
a. 𝑃∪𝑄 j. (𝑃 ∪ 𝑄) ∪ 𝑅 q. What conclusions
b. 𝑄∪𝑃 k. 𝑃 ∩ (𝑄 ∩ 𝑅) can you draw on
c. 𝑃∪𝑅 l. (𝑃 ∩ 𝑄) ∩ 𝑅 your answers in:
d. 𝑃∩𝑄 m. 𝑃 ∩ (𝑄 ∪ 𝑅) i. 𝑎 and 𝑏
e. 𝑄∩𝑃 n. (𝑃 ∩ 𝑄) ∪ (𝑃 ∩ 𝑅) ii. 𝑑 and 𝑒
f. 𝑃∩𝑅 o. 𝑃 ∪ (𝑄 ∩ 𝑅) iii. 𝑖 and 𝑗
g. 𝑄∪𝑅 p. (𝑃 ∪ 𝑄) ∩ (𝑃 ∪ 𝑅) iv. 𝑘 and 𝑙
h. 𝑄∩𝑅 v. 𝑚 and 𝑛
i. 𝑃 ∪ (𝑄 ∪ 𝑅) vi. 𝑜 and 𝑝
Solution
𝜇 = {1, 3, 6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 55, 66, 78, 91},
𝑃 = {6, 10, 28, 36, 66, 78},
𝑄 = {6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 55, 66, 78, 91},
𝑅 = {3, 6, 15, 21, 36, 45, 66, 78}.
a. 𝑃 ∪ 𝑄 = {6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 55, 66, 78, 91}
b. 𝑄 ∪ 𝑃 = {6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 55, 66, 78, 91}
c. 𝑃 ∪ 𝑅 = {3, 6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 66, 78}

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d. 𝑃 ∩ 𝑄 = {6, 10, 28, 36, 66, 78}

e. 𝑄 ∩ 𝑃 = {6, 10, 28, 36, 66, 78}
f. 𝑃 ∩ 𝑅 = {6, 36, 66, 78}
g. 𝑄 ∪ 𝑅 = {3, 6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 55, 66, 78, 91}
h. 𝑄 ∩ 𝑅 = {6, 15, 21, 36, 45, 66, 78}
i. 𝑃 ∪ (𝑄 ∪ 𝑅) = {3, 6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 55, 66, 78, 91}
j. (𝑃 ∪ 𝑄) ∪ 𝑅 = {3, 6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 55, 66, 78, 91}
k. 𝑃 ∩ (𝑄 ∩ 𝑅) = {6, 36, 66, 78}
l. (𝑃 ∩ 𝑄) ∩ 𝑅 = {6, 36, 66, 78}
m. 𝑃 ∩ (𝑄 ∪ 𝑅) = {6, 10, 28, 36, 66, 78}
n. (𝑃 ∩ 𝑄) ∪ (𝑃 ∩ 𝑅) = {6, 10, 28, 36, 66, 78}
o. 𝑃 ∪ (𝑄 ∩ 𝑅) = {6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 66, 78}
p. (𝑃 ∪ 𝑄) ∩ (𝑃 ∪ 𝑅) = {6, 10, 15, 21, 28, 36, 45, 66, 78}
q. Below are the conclusions
i. Union of sets is commutative
ii. Intersection of sets is commutative
iii. Union of sets is associative
iv. Intersection of sets is associative
v. Intersection of sets is distributive over union of sets
vi. Union of sets is distributive over intersection of sets

Exercise 1D
1. Given 𝜇 = {1, 2, 3, 4, … ,10}, 𝐴 = {1, 4, 9}, 𝐵 = {1, 3, 5, 7, 9}𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐶 = {1, 3, 6, 10}, show
that:
a. (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) ∪ 𝐶 = 𝐴 ∪ (𝐵 ∪ 𝐶)
b. 𝐴 ∪ (𝐵 ∩ 𝐶) = (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) ∩ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐶)
c. (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) ∩ 𝐶 = 𝐴 ∩ (𝐵 ∩ 𝐶)
d. 𝐴 ∩ (𝐵 ∪ 𝐶) = (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) ∪ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐶)
e. (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) ∩ (𝐵 ∪ 𝐶) = (𝐶 ∪ 𝐵) ∩ (𝐵 ∪ 𝐴)
f. Identify the properties being demonstrated in each of the above
2. Think of a universal set and any other three subsets of this universal set and demonstrate
the following properties of set operations using your sets.
a. Commutative property
b. Associative property
c. Distributive property

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Describing Regions of a Two-Set Venn Diagram

Basically, the two-set Venn diagram consists of four regions. Consider 𝐴 and 𝐵 to be two subsets
of the universal set 𝜇, the regions of the Venn diagram for the sets are depicted in the figure below:

𝜇
𝐴 𝐵

𝑅𝑒𝑔1 𝑅𝑒𝑔3 𝑅𝑒𝑔2

𝑅𝑒𝑔4

Region 1

𝐵 𝜇
𝐴
This region will contain elements
that could be found in set 𝐴 only.
Mathematically, this region could
be denoted as 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵′

Region 2

𝜇
𝐴 𝐵
This region will contain elements
that could be found in set 𝐵 only.
Mathematically, this region is
denoted as 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵

Region 3

𝜇
𝐴 𝐵
This region will contain elements that
could be found in both sets 𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵.
Mathematically, this region is
denoted as 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵

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Region 4
𝜇
𝐴 𝐵 This region will contain elements
that could not be found in both sets
𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵 but are in the universal
set. Mathematically, this region is
denoted as (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′

Note the following combination of regions listed below:

1. 𝑅𝑒𝑔𝑖𝑜𝑛1 + 𝑅𝑒𝑔𝑖𝑜𝑛3 will contain elements belonging to set 𝐴
2. 𝑅𝑒𝑔𝑖𝑜𝑛2 + 𝑅𝑒𝑔𝑖𝑜𝑛3 will contain elements belonging to set 𝐵
Once these regions are known, the combination of regions could be represented mathematically
using the union of sets. E.g. (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ′ ) ∪ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′
Take note of this important formula for finding the number of elements in the union of two sets
when given the cardinality of the sets and the number of elements in their intersection.
1. 𝑛(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) = 𝑛(𝐴) + 𝑛(𝐵) − 𝑛(𝐴 ∩ 𝐵)
2. When the two sets are disjoint, then it means the number of elements in their intersection
is zero so the formula reduces to 𝑛(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) = 𝑛(𝐴) + 𝑛(𝐵)

Exercise1E
1. Shade the regions described below in a two-set Venn diagram and indicate where it is
impossible and why:
a. 𝐴 ∩ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)
b. 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵′
c. (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵)′
d. 𝐴′ ∪ 𝐵′
e. (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′
f. (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) ∪ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′
g. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐴′
h. 𝐵 ∩ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)
i. [𝐴′ ∩ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ]′
j. [𝐴 ∪ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ]′
1
2. Given that 𝑛(𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) = 3, 𝑛(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) = 18 and 𝑛(𝐴) = [𝑛(𝐵)], calculate the cardinality
2
of set B
3. Sets 𝑃 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑄 have 3 elements in common. Given that the sum of the cardinality of both
sets is 17, find the cardinality of their union.
4. Given that set 𝑀 represents students with school bags and set 𝑄 students without school
bags, find 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑄) and hence 𝑛(𝑀 ∪ 𝑄) given that there are 56 students in all.

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De Morgan’s Laws of Complement of Sets

Augustus De Morgan (27 June 1806 to 18 March 1871) was a British Mathematician and logician
who formulated the laws below in set theory. He also introduced the term
De Morgan “Mathematical Induction”
1. The complement of the union of sets is the intersection of the complements
of the sets. Thus, (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ = 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵′. This law applies to any number of sets.
2. The complement of the intersection of sets is the union of the complements
of the sets. Thus, (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵)′ = 𝐴′ ∪ 𝐵′. Again, this law could apply to any number
of sets.
Proof (Law 1)
Method 1
Let 𝑥 ⋲ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ Then, 𝑦 ⋲ 𝐴′ 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑦 ⋲ 𝐵′
Then, 𝑥 ∉ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) Which implies that 𝑦 ∉ 𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑦 ∉ 𝐵
Which implies that 𝑥 ∉ 𝐴 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑥 ∉ 𝐵 Hence, 𝑦 ∉ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)
Therefore, 𝑥 ⋲ 𝐴′ 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑥 ⋲ 𝐵′ Therefore, 𝑦 ⋲ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′
Hence, 𝑥 ⋲ 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵′ So, if 𝑦 ⋲ 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ then 𝑦 ⋲ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) … … .2
So, if 𝑥 ⋲ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) then 𝑥 ⋲ 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ … … .1 Comparing 1 and 2, we can conclude that
(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ = 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵′
Similarly, let 𝑦 ⋲ 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵′

Method 2
Note that,
𝐴′ = [(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∪ (𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵)], that is to say that elements in the universal set but not in set 𝐴 will
consist of elements not in both 𝐴 and 𝐵 plus elements in B only.
Similarly, 𝐵 ′ = [(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∪ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵′)], which also implies elements in the universal set but not
in set 𝐵 will consist of elements not in both 𝐴 and 𝐵 plus elements in 𝐴 only
Hence, 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ = [(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∪ (𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵)] ∩ [(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∪ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵′)]
By expansion, we will arrive at:

𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ = [(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∩ [(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∪ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ′ )]] ∪ [(𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵) ∩ [(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∪ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ′ )]]

𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ = [[(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∩ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ] ∪ [(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∩ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ′ )]] ∪ [[(𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵) ∩ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ]

∪ [(𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵) ∩ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ′ )]]

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

Note that,
1. [(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∩ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ] = (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ the intersection of two equal sets is the same set.
2. [(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∩ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ′ )] = ∅ The intersection of two disjoint sets (Set of elements not in
both 𝐴 and 𝐵 and set of elements in 𝐴 only) is a null set.
3. [(𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵) ∩ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ] = ∅ The intersection of two disjoint sets (Set of elements in 𝐵
only and set of elements not in both 𝐴 and 𝐵) is a null set.
4. [(𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵) ∩ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ′ )] = ∅ The intersection of two disjoint sets (Set of elements in 𝐵
only and set of elements in 𝐴 only) is a null set.
Hence, 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ = [(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∪ ∅] ∪ [∅ ∪ ∅]
This reduces to 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ = (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∪ ∅
And then finally, 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ = (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′
Method 3
This method demonstrates the proof using Venn diagram illustrations. To prove that (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ =
𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵′, we will shade the two regions in a Venn diagram and compare.

𝐴 𝐵 𝜇 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵

𝐴 ∪ 𝐵- elements in A or B (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ − 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑖𝑛 𝐴 𝑜𝑟 𝐵

𝜇 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵 𝐴 𝐵

𝐴′ − 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑖𝑛 𝐴 𝐵 ′ − 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑖𝑛 𝐵

𝐴 𝐵 𝜇 𝐴 𝐵 𝜇

𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ − 𝑅𝑒𝑔𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑑𝑜𝑢𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑒 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ − 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑙𝑦 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑜𝑢𝑡

Comparing the regions (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵′, we can conclude they are equal.

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

Exercise 1F
1. Prove De Morgan’s second law using all three methods discussed above.
2. Given 𝐴 = {1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11}𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵 = {2, 3, 5, 7, 11}, evaluate:
a. (𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ )′
b. (𝐴′ ∪ 𝐵 ′ )′
3. Using the sets in question 2, calculate (𝐴′ ∪ 𝐵 ′ ) given that 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ = {4, 6}
4. Given that 𝑃 = {𝑥: 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛} 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑄 = {𝑥: 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑎 𝑤ℎ𝑜𝑙𝑒 𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟}𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑏𝑠𝑒𝑡𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝜇 =
{𝑥: −1 ≤ 𝑥 < 6, 𝑥 ⋲ ℤ}, find:
a. (𝑄 ′ )′
b. (𝑃 ∪ 𝑄)′
c. (𝑃 ∩ 𝑄)′
d. 𝑃′ ∩ 𝑄′
e. 𝑃′ ∪ 𝑄′
f. What conclusion can you draw from your results in 𝑏 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑 as well as 𝑐 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑒?

Two-Set Problems
Example
In a first-year science class of Mawuli School, students were asked to make a choice between any
one of the electives: chemistry and Geography or be left with no choice than to offer elective Math.
15 students opted for Chemistry as an elective and 27 opted for Geography. Given that one-third
of the class declined the choices of Chemistry and Geography, find the number of students in the
class.
Solution
Let: 𝜇 represent students in the class, 𝑛(𝜇) = 𝑥
Set G represents students who opted for Geography
Set C represents students who opted for Chemistry
From the question, 𝑛(𝐶) = 15 and 𝑛(𝐺) = 27 and since a student can make only one choice,
𝑛(𝐶 ∩ 𝐺) = 0
1
It was said also that 𝑛(𝐶 ∪ 𝐺)′ = 𝑥
3

The information is represented on the Venn diagram below:

𝐶 𝐺 𝑛(𝜇) = 𝑥

15 27

1
𝑛(𝐶 ∪ 𝐺)′ = 𝑥
3

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

𝑛(𝜇) = 63 𝑛(𝜇) = 𝑛(𝐶) + 𝑛(𝐺) + 𝑛(𝐶 ∪ 𝐺)′

𝐶 𝐺
1
𝑥 = 15 + 27 + 3 𝑥
15 27
3𝑥 = 45 + 81 + 𝑥
3𝑥 − 𝑥 = 126
𝑛(𝐶 ∪ 𝐺)′ = 21
2𝑥 = 126
There were 63 students in the class. 𝑥 = 63

Exercise 1G
1. An adult party was held in a club house. Seventeen adults were in attendance, fourteen of
which were males and six, married people. Five were married males. How many spinsters
were at the party?
2. In a research conducted to determine the type of upbringing children have undergone and
how that will affect their future parenthood, data was gathered on 55 children. Ten more
than one-fifth of this number grew up with neither parent, while 20 grew up with their
moms and 24 with their dads.
a. Represent the information on a Venn diagram
b. How many children grew up with both parents?
c. How many were victims of single parenting?
3. Moadi and Pascal contested for class prefect position. In their class of 25 student, 3
happened to be absent on the day of election. Moadi had 19 votes while Pascal had 6 votes.
Every student present was supervised by the class advisor to cast a vote. How may rejected
ballots were recorded?
4. Doctors testing for corona virus are particular about two symptoms: cough and high body
temperature. Patients exhibiting exactly one of the symptoms are prescribed a drug for
treating cold while those exhibiting both symptoms are made to do the Covid 19 test. In a
contact tracing of 55 potential patients, 31 exhibited exactly one of the symptoms and 7
exhibited no symptom. How many were made to do the Covid 19 test?
5. At a birthday party, fried rice and jollof was served. Of the 15 people invited, 3 couldn’t
make it due to the risk of contracting corona virus. Esther was the only one to have both
meals. If eight people had fried rice, how many people had jollof only?
6. Study had shown that, most females who fall victims of rape are either nakedly dressed in
public or victims of home robberies. In a survey of 30 rape victims at the Winston
Rehabilitation Center, three were decent students raped by their high school teachers while
16 were raped in home robberies. The rest were raped for indecent public dressing.
Represent the information on a Venn diagram.
7. In a class of 60 students, 40 students like math, 36 like science, 24 like both of the subjects.
Find the number of students who like:
a. Math only c. Either math or science
b. Science only d. Neither math nor science

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

Description of the Regions of a Three-Set Venn Diagram

A three-set Venn diagram basically has eight regions. These regions are marked with Roman
numerals in the diagram below.

𝜇
𝐴 𝐵
𝐼𝑉
𝐼 𝐼𝐼
𝑉𝐼𝐼
𝑉 𝑉𝐼
𝐼𝐼𝐼
𝑉𝐼𝐼𝐼 𝐶

𝜇 𝐴 𝐵 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵

𝐶 𝐶
Contains elements belonging to set A Contains elements belonging to set B
only. It is denoted as 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵′ ∩ 𝐶′ only. It is denoted as 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶′

𝜇 𝐴 𝐵 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵

𝐶 𝐶
Contains elements belonging to sets A
Contains elements belonging to set C
and B only. It is denoted as 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶′
only. It is denoted as 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵′ ∩ 𝐶

𝜇 𝐴 𝐵 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵

𝐶 𝐶
Contains elements belonging to sets A Contains elements belonging to sets B
and C only. It is denoted as 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵′ ∩ 𝐶 and C only. It is denoted as 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

𝐴 𝐵 𝜇 𝐵 𝜇
𝐴

𝐶 𝐶
Contains elements belonging to sets A, Contains elements not belonging to set
B and C. It is denoted as 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶 A, B or C. It is denoted as (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 ∪ 𝐶)′
or 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵′ ∩ 𝐶′

Other Combination of Regions

𝐵 𝜇 𝐴 𝐵 𝜇
𝐴

𝐶 𝐶
Contains elements belonging to sets A Contains elements belonging to sets A
and B. It is denoted as 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 and C. It is denoted as 𝐴 ∩ 𝐶

𝜇 𝐴 𝐵 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵

𝐶 𝐶
Contains elements belonging to set A.
Contains elements belonging to sets B
It is denoted as 𝐴
and C. It is denoted as 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶

𝜇 𝐴 𝐵 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵

𝐶 𝐶
Contains elements belonging to set B. Contains elements belonging to set C.
It is denoted as 𝐵 It is denoted as 𝐶

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

𝐴 𝐵 𝜇 𝐵 𝜇
𝐴

𝐶 𝐶
These regions denote elements These regions denote elements
belonging to exactly one set or only belonging to exactly two sets or
one set. This could be written as only two sets. This could be written
(𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ′ ∩ 𝐶 ′ ) ∪ (𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶 ′ ) ∪ as (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶 ′ ) ∪ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵′ ∩ 𝐶) ∪
(𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ ∩ 𝐶) (𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶)

𝐴 𝐵 𝜇 Take note of this important formula for

calculating the cardinality of the union of three
sets: 𝑛(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 ∪ 𝐶) = 𝑛(𝐴) + 𝑛(𝐵) + 𝑛(𝐶) −
𝑛(𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) − 𝑛(𝐴 ∩ 𝐶) − 𝑛(𝐵 ∩ 𝐶) + 𝑛(𝐴 ∩
𝐵 ∩ 𝐶)
𝐶
These regions denote elements
belonging to two sets. This could be
written as (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) ∪ (𝐴 ∩ 𝐶) ∪
(𝐵 ∩ 𝐶)

Exercise 1H
1. Prove De Morgan’s Laws for three sets:
a. (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 ∪ 𝐶)′ = 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵′ ∩ 𝐶′
b. (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶)′ = 𝐴′ ∪ 𝐵′ ∪ 𝐶′
Using all three methods discussed earlier on.
2. Shade the following regions in a three-set Venn diagram for a universal set 𝜇 and subsets
𝐴, 𝐵, 𝐶.
a. 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵′
b. (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵)′
c. (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶)′
d. 𝐴 ∩ (𝐵 ∪ 𝐶)′
e. (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵)′ ∪ 𝐶′
f. [(𝐴 ∩ 𝐵) ∪ (𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶)]′
3. Show that, (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 ∪ 𝐶)′ = (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)′ ∩ 𝐶′
4. Show that, (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶)′ = 𝐴′ ∪ (𝐵 ∩ 𝐶)′

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

Three-Set Problems
Example1
In a survey of university students, 64 had taken mathematics course, 94 had taken chemistry
course, 58 had taken physics course, 28 had taken mathematics and physics, 26 had taken
mathematics and chemistry, 22 had taken chemistry and physics course and 14 had taken all three
courses. How many had taken one course only?
Solution
Let: 𝑀 = {𝑠𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑠}
𝐶 = {𝑠𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝐶ℎ𝑒𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑦}
𝑃 = {𝑠𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑝ℎ𝑦𝑠𝑖𝑐𝑠}
𝑛(𝑀) = 64, 𝑛(𝐶) = 94, 𝑛(𝑃) = 58, 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑃) = 28, 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝐶) = 26, 𝑛(𝐶 ∩ 𝑃) =
22, 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝐶 ∩ 𝑃) = 14
This information is represented on a Venn diagram as follows with unknown regions marked by
letters:

𝑀(64) 𝐶(94) 𝜇
𝑎 𝑥 𝑏
𝑦 14 𝑧
𝑑
𝑃(58)

𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑃) = 𝑦 + 14 𝑛(𝐶 ∩ 𝑃) = 𝑧 + 14 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝐶) = 𝑥 + 14

28 = 𝑦 + 14, 22 = 𝑧 + 14 26 = 𝑥 + 14

𝑦 = 14 𝑧=8 𝑥 = 12

In Set M, In Set C, In Set P,

𝑥 + 𝑦 + 14 + 𝑎 = 64 𝑥 + 𝑧 + 14 + 𝑏 = 94 𝑦 + 𝑧 + 14 + 𝑑 = 58

12 + 14 + 14 + 𝑎 = 64 12 + 8 + 14 + 𝑏 = 94 14 + 8 + 14 + 𝑑 = 58

𝑎 = 24 𝑏 = 60 𝑑 = 22

The number of students who had taken only one course is the sum of regions 𝑎, 𝑏 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑: 24 +
60 + 22 = 106 𝑠𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

Example 2
In a survey of 150 people to determine their preference for these three automobiles: Mercedes,
Nissan and Toyota, 90 people preferred Mercedes, 70 preferred Nissan and 80 preferred Toyota.
26 had preference for both Mercedes and Nissan, 30 preferred Mercedes and Toyota while 40
preferred Nissan and Toyota. Each one of the 150 had at least one preference. Represent the
information on a Venn diagram and compute the number of people who preferred all 3
automobiles.
Solution
Let: 𝑀 = {𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑒𝑟 𝑀𝑒𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑑𝑒𝑠}
𝑁 = {𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑒𝑟 𝑁𝑖𝑠𝑠𝑎𝑛}
𝑇 = {𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑒𝑟 𝑇𝑜𝑦𝑜𝑡𝑎}
𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑁 ∩ 𝑇) = 𝑥
𝑛(𝜇) = 150, 𝑛(𝑀) = 90, 𝑛(𝑁) = 70, 𝑛(𝑇) = 80, 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑁) = 26, 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑇) = 30,
𝑛(𝑁 ∩ 𝑇) = 40, 𝑛(𝑀 ∪ 𝑁 ∪ 𝑇)′ = 0
The information is represented on the Venn diagram below:

In the diagram, 𝑀(90) 𝜇(150)

𝑁(70)
𝑎 + 𝑥 = 26 ⟹ 𝑎 = 26 − 𝑥 𝑎
𝑏 + 𝑥 = 30 ⟹ 𝑏 = 30 − 𝑥 𝑥
𝑏 𝑐
𝑐 + 𝑥 = 40 ⟹ 𝑐 = 40 − 𝑥
In set M, 𝑇(80)

𝑎 + 𝑏 + 𝑥 + 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑁 ′ ∩ 𝑇 ′ ) = 90
26 − 𝑥 + 30 − 𝑥 + 𝑥 + 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑁 ′ ∩ 𝑇 ′ ) = 90
𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑁 ′ ∩ 𝑇 ′ ) = 34 + 𝑥
In the entire universal set,
𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑁 ′ ∩ 𝑇 ′ ) + 𝑛(𝑁 ∪ 𝑇) = 150
𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑁 ′ ∩ 𝑇 ′ ) + 70 + 80 − 40 = 150
𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑁 ′ ∩ 𝑇 ′ ) = 40
Hence, 34 + 𝑥 = 40 ⟹ 𝑥 = 6
So, 6 people preferred all three automobiles

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

Example 3
At a shop, a store keeper realized that a number of customers bought pens, pencils and books for
a particular week. Three bought one of each artefact. Of the customers who bought two artefacts,
3 did not buy pen, 5 not pencil and 2 not book. The same number of customers bought pen only as
bought pen with other artefacts. The same number bought books only as bought pencils only. More
customers bought pens and books but not pencils than bought books only, but more customers
bought pencils only than bought pencils and books but not pens. How many customers were at the
shop that week?
Solution
Let: 𝑃 = {𝑐𝑢𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑝𝑒𝑛𝑠}
𝐿 = {𝑐𝑢𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑝𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑖𝑙}
𝐵 = {𝑐𝑢𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑘}
Three bought one of each artefact implies 𝑛(𝑃 ∩ 𝐿 ∩ 𝐵) = 3
Of the customers who bought two artefacts: “3 did not buy pen” implies 𝑛(𝑃′ ∩ 𝐿 ∩ 𝐵) = 3, “5
not pencil” implies 𝑛(𝑃 ∩ 𝐿′ ∩ 𝐵) = 5 and “2 not book” implies𝑛(𝑃 ∩ 𝐿 ∩ 𝐵 ′ ) = 2
“The same number of customers bought pen only as bought pen with other artefact” implies
𝑛(𝑃 ∩ 𝐿′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ ) = 𝑛(𝑃 ∩ 𝐿 ∩ 𝐵 ′ ) + 𝑛(𝑃 ∩ 𝐿′ ∩ 𝐵) + 𝑛(𝑃 ∩ 𝐿 ∩ 𝐵) = 2 + 5 + 3 = 10
“The same number bought books only as bought pencils only” implies 𝑛(𝑃′ ∩ 𝐿′ ∩ 𝐵) = 𝑛(𝑃′ ∩
𝐿 ∩ 𝐵′)
“More customers bought pens and books but not pencils than bought books only” implies 𝑛(𝑃 ∩
𝐿′ ∩ 𝐵) > 𝑛(𝑃′ ∩ 𝐿′ ∩ 𝐵)
“More customers bought pencils only than bought pencils and books but not pens” implies
𝑛(𝑃 ∩ 𝐿′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ ) > 𝑛(𝑃′ ∩ 𝐿 ∩ 𝐵)
The information is shown on the diagram below:

𝜇
𝑃 𝐿 From the very last two information in the
question, 5 > 𝑥 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑥 > 3
2 𝑥
10
We could rewrite this as 3 < 𝑥 < 5 . Since
3 𝑥 represents number of people, it implies 𝑥
5 3
is whole and 𝑥 = 4
𝑥 𝐵

The number of customers at the shop is the universal set which is the sum of all regions in the
diagram. Thus, 10 + 2 + 4 + 5 + 3 + 3 + 4 = 31
Hence, there were 31 customers at the shop that week.

27
 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

Example 4
At a health conference of 100 people, there are 29 Ghanaian women and 23 Ghanaian men. Out
of these Ghanaian people, 4 are doctors and 24 are either men or doctors. There are no foreign
doctors. Find the number of women doctors attending the conference.
Solution
Let: 𝑀 = {𝐺ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑎𝑖𝑎𝑛 𝑀𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒}
𝑊 = {𝐺ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑎𝑖𝑎𝑛 𝑤𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒}
𝐷 = {𝐷𝑜𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑠 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒}
𝑛(𝜇) = 100, 𝑛(𝑀) = 23, 𝑛(𝑊) = 29, 𝑛(𝑀 ∪ 𝐷) = 24
Since the set of men and women are disjoint, 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑊) = 0 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑊 ∩ 𝐷) = 0
Since there are no foreign doctors, it implies 𝑛(𝑀′ ∩ 𝑊 ′ ∩ 𝐷) = 0 and the only doctors at the
conference are Ghanaians which are 4 in number.
The information is on the Venn diagram below:

In set D, 𝑥 + 𝑦 = 4
𝜇(100) But 𝑛(𝑀 ∪ 𝐷) = 24
𝑀(23) 𝑊(29)
0 𝑛(𝑀) + 𝑛(𝐷) − 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝐷) = 24
10 𝑥
0 23 + 4 − (𝑥 + 0) = 24
𝑥 𝑦
𝑥=3
48 0
𝐷(4)
Hence, 𝑦 = 1

The number of women doctors is given by 𝑛(𝑊 ∩ 𝐷) = 0 + 𝑦 = 0 + 1 = 1

Hence, there is just one-woman doctor at the conference.

Example 5
In a survey of 120 workers on means of transport to work, the following data was gathered: 50
use the train, 65 use a bus and 35 use flight. 28 use only two means of transport and 10 uses
other means apart from the ones stated.
1. How many workers use all three means of transport?
2. How many uses only one means of transport?

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

Solution
Let: 𝑇 = {𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑙 𝑏𝑦 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛}
𝐵 = {𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑙 𝑏𝑦 𝑏𝑢𝑠}
𝐹 = {𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑙 𝑏𝑦 𝑓𝑙𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡}
𝑛(𝜇) = 120, 𝑛(𝑇) = 50, 𝑛(𝐵) = 65, 𝑛(𝐹) = 35
𝑛[(𝑇 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐹 ′ ) ∪ (𝑇 ∩ 𝐵 ′ ∩ 𝐹) ∪ (𝑇 ′ ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐹)] = 28 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑛(𝑇 ∪ 𝐵 ∪ 𝐹)′ = 10
The information is represented on the Venn diagram below with unknown regions marked
with alphabets.
𝜇(120)
𝑇(50) 𝐵(65
𝑥 𝑞
𝑝
𝑠
𝑦 𝑧
10 𝑟
𝐹(35)

Adding sets T, B and F, we have:

From the information given, 𝑝 + 𝑞 + 𝑟 + 2𝑥 + 2𝑦 + 2𝑧 + 3𝑠 = 150
𝑥 + 𝑦 + 𝑧 = 28 … … 1 𝑝 + 𝑞 + 𝑟 + 𝑠 + 2𝑠 + 2(𝑥 + 𝑦 + 𝑧) = 150
In the diagram, Substituting eqn. 1 and 2 into the above
equation produces:
𝑝 + 𝑞 + 𝑟 + 𝑥 + 𝑦 + 𝑧 + 𝑠 + 10 = 120
82 + 2𝑠 + 2(28) = 150
But, 𝑥 + 𝑦 + 𝑧 = 28
2𝑠 = 150 − 138
Hence, 𝑝 + 𝑞 + 𝑟 + 28 + 𝑠 + 10 = 120
𝑠=6
𝑝 + 𝑞 + 𝑟 + 𝑠 = 82 … … … .2
Hence, 6 workers use all three means of
In set T,
transport.
𝑝 + 𝑥 + 𝑦 + 𝑠 = 50
Workers who use exactly one means of
In set B, transport is given by: 𝑝 + 𝑞 + 𝑟
𝑞 + 𝑥 + 𝑧 + 𝑠 = 65 From 𝑝 + 𝑞 + 𝑟 + 𝑠 = 82
In set F, 𝑝 + 𝑞 + 𝑟 = 82 − 𝑠
𝑟 + 𝑦 + 𝑧 + 𝑠 = 35 𝑝 + 𝑞 + 𝑟 = 76
Hence, 76 workers use only one means of
transport

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

Exercise 1I
1. There are 800 guests at a party. 300 of the guests of the party are males, 315 are young
people and 355 are married people. Additionally, 109 are young males, 167 are married
males, 193 are young married people and 95 are young married males.
a. How many old married males are at the party?
b. How many young married females are at the party?
c. How many young bachelors are at the party?
d. How many old bachelors are at the party?
e. How many old married females?
f. How many old spinsters are at the party?
g. How many young spinsters are at the party? (Excellent Elective Mathematics for SHS-
Pg. 16)
2. The housemaster of Mawuli Senior High School made took a roll call at cleaning events
organized in the dormitories during the weekend. 60% of the students deed weeding, 45%
deed scrubbing and 40% deed mopping. 30% deed weeding and scrubbing, 20% deed
weeding and mopping, 15% deed scrubbing and mopping and 10% partook in all three
activities. The housemaster will punish all students who partook in one or less activities at
Monday’s morning assembly. What percentage of students will be punished?
3. A school has 13 mathematics teachers. Of these, 6 teach first year classes, 5 teach second
year classes and 5 teach third year classes. 2 teach first and second year classes but no one
teaches first and third year classes. Illustrate the information on a Venn diagram and find
the number of teachers who teach:
a. Forms two and three classes
b. Only form two.
4. A number of students prepared for an examination in Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics.
Out of this number, 15 took Physics, 20 took Chemistry and 23 took Mathematics. 9
students took both Chemistry and Mathematics, 6 took both Physics and Mathematics and
all those who took Physics also took Chemistry. One student fell ill and couldn’t write any
of the papers. How many students prepared for the examination?
5. In a school, 4 pupils read Physics, 7 read Biology and 7 read Elective Math. 3 pupils read
Biology and Elective Math while it is compulsory for all Physics students to read Elective
Math. There is one physics student who also reads Biology. Represent the information on
a Venn diagram.
6. At a school board meeting of 47 members, apart from the P.T.A chairman who was in
African outfit, 19 members were in suit, 26 were in tie and 27 in vest. 23 members put on
exactly one of suit, tie or vest. How many members were in suit, tie and vest?
7. Of the 62 valid voters in the Baglo constituency, 10 couldn’t turn up on the day of voting
in the 2020 general elections. 15 voted for Trump, 29 voted for Joe and 24 voted for Erica.
10 voted for exactly two candidates. How many rejected ballots were counted?
8. A survey of 500 TV watchers revealed that 285 watch football, 195 watch hockey and 115
watch basketball. 45 watch football and hockey, 50 watch hockey and basketball, 75 watch
football and basketball and 50 do not watch any of the three games. How many watch
exactly one of the three games?

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

ANSWERS TO EXERCISES
Exercise 1A
a. Roster Notation, Set D is a set of natural numbers, 𝐷 = {𝑥: 𝑥 ⋲ ℕ}
b. Set Builder Notation, Set H is a set of integers from negative five to five, 𝐻 =
{−5, −4, −3, −2, −1, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5}
c. Semantic Description Notation, 𝑃 = {4, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12, 14, 15, 16, 18}, 𝑃 = {𝑥: 𝑥 <
20, 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑒}
d. Roster Notation, Set T is a set of triangular numbers less than 56, 𝑇 = {𝑥: 𝑥 <
56, 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑎 𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟}
e. Semantic Description Notation, 𝑌 = {𝑥: 𝑥 < 8, 𝑥 ⋲ ℕ}, 𝑌 = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}
f. Set Builder Notation, 𝑆 = {2, 3, 4, 5, … }, Set S is a set of natural numbers greater or
equal to two.
g. Roster Notation, Set C is a set of composite numbers, 𝐶 = {𝑥: 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑒}
h. Roster Notation, Set N is a set of integers, 𝑁 = {𝑥: 𝑥 ⋲ ℤ}
i. Set Builder Notation, Set W is a set of whole numbers less than five, 𝑊 = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4}
j. Roster Notation, Set R is a set of irrational numbers, 𝑅 = {𝑥: 𝑥 𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑟𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙}
Exercise 1B
1.
a. The set name is denoted using a small letter. Moreover, its elements are not
enclosed in a curly bracket.
b. Elements of the set are in caps
c. The set name is denoted by a small letter and its elements are in parentheses instead
of a curly bracket
d. There is a comma after the last element
e. No flaws
2.
a. 1 element
b. Infinitely many
c. 6 elements
d. 1 element
e. 10 elements
Exercise 1C
1.
a. The operation does not hold since 𝑛(𝐵) is not a set
b. The operation does not hold since 𝑛(𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) is not a set
c. The operation holds
2. 𝑚 = 6, 𝑛 = 3
3. False
4.
a. True b. True

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

c. True g. True
d. False h. True
e. False i. False
f. True
5.
a. False d. True
b. True e. True
c. True f. True
6.
a. 𝐴𝑐 = {1, 3, 5, 7, 9}
b. 𝐵 𝑐 = {2, 4, 6, 8, 10}
c. 𝐴𝑐 ∩ 𝐵 𝑐 = {}
d. 𝐴𝑐 ∪ 𝐵 𝑐 = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10}
e. (𝐴𝑐 ∩ 𝐵 𝑐 )𝑐 = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10}
f. (𝐴𝑐 ∪ 𝐵 𝑐 )𝑐 = {}
g. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 = {}
h. 𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10}
i. (𝐴 ∩ 𝐵)𝑐 = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10}
j. (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵)𝑐 = {}
7.
a. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 = {}
b. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐶 = {2}
c. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐶 = {}
d. 𝐴′ ∩ 𝐵 ′ ∩ 𝐶 ′ = {6}
e. (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 ∪ 𝐶)′ = {6}
8.
a. 𝐴 ∩ 𝐵 ∩ 𝐸 = {}
b. 𝐴 ∪ 𝐵 ∪ 𝐸 = {2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 16, 36, 64, 100}
c. (𝐴 ∪ 𝐵) ∩ (𝐴 ∪ 𝐸) = {3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11}
Exercise 1D
1. Answers to this exercise are not provided here
Exercise 1E
Regions that are not shaded here do not exist

𝑎. 𝐴 𝐵 𝜇 𝑏. 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

𝑐. 𝐴 𝐵 𝜇 𝑑. 𝐴 𝐵 𝜇

𝑒. 𝐴 𝐵 𝜇
𝑓. 𝐴 𝐵 𝜇

ℎ. 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵
𝑖. 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵

𝑗. 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵

2. 14
3. 14
4. 𝑛(𝑀 ∩ 𝑄) = 0 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑛(𝑀 ∪ 𝑄) = 56
Exercise 1F
1. Answer to this question is not provided here
2.
a. {1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11}
b. {3, 5, 7, 11}
3. {1, 2, 4, 6, 9}
4.
a. {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5}
b. {−1}
c. {−1, 0, 1, 3, 5}
d. {−1}
e. {−1, 0, 1, 3, 5}
f. Answer in b is same as answer in d and answer in c is same as answer in e

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

Exercise 1G
1. 2 spinsters
2.
𝜇(55)
a. 𝑀𝑜𝑚𝑠(20) 𝐷𝑎𝑑𝑠(24)

20 − 𝑥 𝑥 24 − 𝑥

21

b. 10
c. 24
3. 3 rejected ballots
4. 17
5. 4
6.
𝜇(30)
𝑃𝑢𝑏𝑙𝑖𝑐(11) 𝐻𝑜𝑚𝑒(16)

11 0 16

7.
a. 16
b. 12
c. 52
d. 8
Exercise 1H
1. Answer to this question is not provided here.
2.
𝑎. 𝜇 𝑏. 𝐵 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵 𝐴

𝐶 𝐶

𝜇 𝑑. 𝜇
𝑐. 𝐴 𝐵 𝐴 𝐵

𝐶 𝐶

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 General Senior High School Mathematics for Dummies

𝑒. 𝜇 𝑓. 𝜇
𝐴 𝐵 𝐴 𝐵

𝐶 𝐶

3. The answer to this question is not provided here

4. The answer to this question is not provided here

Exercise 1I
1.
a. 72
b. 98
c. 14
d. 119
e. 90
f. 204
g. 108 𝜇(13)
2. 55% 𝐹1 (6) 𝐹3 (5)
4 0 5−𝑥
3.
a. 1 0
2 𝑥
b. 2 3−𝑥
4. 35 students 𝐹2 (5)
5.

𝐸(7) 𝜇
𝐵(7)

1 3 1 2 4

6. 3 members
7. 13 rejected ballots
8. 320

35