MAT 125: DISCRETE MATHEMATICS II LECTURE NOTES

METHODS OF PROOF
By Dr. Runji Flora
Definition: A definition is an exact, unambiguous explanation of the
meaning of a mathematical word or phrase.
Even Integer: An integer n is even if, and only if, n equals twice some
integer. Symbolically, if n is an integer, then
n is even ⇔ ∃an integer k such that n = 2k.
Odd Integer: An integer n is odd if, and only if, n equals twice some
integer plus 1. Symbolically, if n is an integer, then
n is odd ⇔ ∃an integer k such that n = 2k + 1.
Consecutive Integers: Two integers a and b are consecutive if and only if
b=a+1
Prime Integer: An integer n is prime if, and only if, n>1 and for all positive
integers r and s, if n=rs, then either r or s equals n. In symbols:
n is prime ⇔ ∀positive integers r and s, if n = rs
then either r = 1 and s = n or r = n and s = 1.

Composite Integer: An integer n is composite if, and only if, n>1

and n=rs for some integers r and s with 1<r<n and 1<s<n.
In symbols: n is composite ⇔ ∃positive integers r and s such that n = rs
and 1 < r < n and 1 < s < n.
Perfect Square: An integer a is a perfect square if there is an integer b such
that a  b 2 .

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Parity: Two integers have the same parity if they are both even or they are
both odd. Otherwise they have opposite parity.
Rational Numbers: A real number x is defined to be a rational
number provided that there exist integers m and n with n≠0 such
m
that x  A real number that is not a rational number is called
n

an irrational number.
Divisors: Suppose a and b are integers. We say that a divides b, written
a|b, if b = ac for some c ∈ Z. In this case we also say that a is a divisor of b,
and that b is a multiple of a.
For example, 5 divides 15 because 15 = 5 · 3. We write this as 5|15.
Similarly, 8|32 because 32 = 8 · 4, and −6|6 because 6 = −6. −1.
However, 6 does not divide 9 because there is no integer c for which
9 = 6 · c. We express this as 6∤9, which we read as “6 does not divide 9.”

Theorems: A theorem is a mathematical statement that is true and can be

(and has been) verified as true.
In mathematical writing, the term theorem is usually reserved for a
statement that is considered at least somewhat important.
Theorems can also be referred to as facts or results.
A theorem may be the universal quantification of a conditional statement
with one or more premises and a conclusion. However, it may be some
other type of logical statement. We demonstrate that a theorem is true with
a proof.

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Propositions: A proposition is a theorem of lesser generality or of lesser
importance.
A proof is a valid argument that establishes the truth of a theorem. The
statements used in a proof can include axioms (or postulates), which are
statements we assume to be, the premises, if any, of the theorem, and
previously proven theorems. Axioms may be stated using primitive terms
that do not require definition, but all other terms used in theorems and
their proofs must be defined. Rules of inference, together with definitions
of terms, are used to draw conclusions from other assertions, tying together
the steps of a proof. In practice, the final step of a proof is usually just the
conclusion of the theorem.
Lemma: A lemma is a theorem whose main purpose is to help prove
another theorem.
Corollary: A corollary is a consequence of a theorem, usually one whose
proof is much easier than that of the theorem itself.
A conjecture is a statement that is being proposed to be a true statement,
usually on the basis of some partial evidence, a heuristic argument, or the
intuition of an expert. When a proof of a conjecture is found, the conjecture
becomes a theorem. Many times conjectures are shown to be false, so they
are not theorems.

Trivial Proof:
If we know q is true then p → q is true regardless of the truth value of p.
Example: Prove the statement: If there are 100 students enrolled in this
course this semester, then 62  36 .

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Proof. The assertion is trivially true, since the conclusion is true,
independent of the hypothesis (which, may or may not be true depending
on the enrollment).
Vacuous Proof:
If p is a conjunction of other hypotheses and we know one or more of these
hypotheses is false, then p is false and so p → q is vacuously true
regardless of the truth value of q.
Example: Prove the statement. If 6 is a prime number, then 62  30
Proof. The hypothesis is false, therefore the statement is vacuously true
(even though the conclusion is also false).
Direct Proof (Proof by Construction)
A direct proof of a conditional statement p → q is constructed when the
first step is the assumption that p is true; subsequent steps are constructed
using rules of inference, with the final step showing that q must also be
true.
A direct proof uses rules of inference to derive the conclusion from the
premises.
There are only two steps to a direct:
1. Assume that P is true.
2. Use P to show that Q must be true.
Example: Prove the statement: For all integers m and n, if m and n are
odd integers, then m + n is an even integer.
Proof. Assume m and n are arbitrary odd integers. Then m and n can be
written in the form m = 2a + 1 and n = 2b + 1,
where a and b are also integers.

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Then m + n = (2a + 1) + (2b + 1) (substitution)
= 2a + 2b + 2 (associative and commutative laws of addition)
= 2(a + b + 1) (distributive law)
Since m+n is twice another integer, namely, a+b+1, m+n is an even integer.
♦
Example: Theorem: The sum of two even numbers x and y is even.
Proof: Assume there are two even numbers x and y , then show that their
sum x  y is even.
Let m and n be integers so that x  2m and y  2n (by defn of “even”).
Then x  y  2m  2n (by substitution).
 2(m  n) (by left distribution)

which is even, by the definition of evenness. ♦

Example: Show that the square of an odd integer is odd.
Proof: Let n be an odd integer.
Then n  2t  1for some integer t , and
 
n2  2t  1  4t 2  4t  1  2 2t 2  2t  1
2

Where 2t 2  2t is an integer. Hence, n 2 is odd. ♦

Example: Show that the product of two odd integers is odd.
Proof: Let m and n be two odd integers.
Then m  2a  1, n  2b  1 for some integers a, b
This implies
mn  2a  12b  1
 4ab  2a  2b  1
 22ab  a  b   1

2ab  a  b is an integer and thus mn is an odd number. ♦

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Example: Give a direct proof that if m and n are both perfect squares, then
nm is also a perfect square.
Proof: Assume that m and n are both perfect squares. By the definition of a
perfect square, it follows that there are integers s and t such that m  s 2 and
n  t 2 . We show that mn must also be a perfect square when m and n are;

mn  s 2 . t 2  st  . By the definition of perfect square, it follows that mn is also

2

a perfect square, because it is the square of st, which is an integer.

Proof by Contraposition
Direct proofs lead from the premises of a theorem to the conclusion. They
begin with the premises, continue with a sequence of deductions, and end
with the conclusion. However, we will see that attempts at direct proofs

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often reach dead ends. We need other methods of proving theorems of the
form
∀x(P(x) → Q(x)). Proofs of theorems of this type that are not direct
proofs, that is, that do not start with the premises and end with the
conclusion, are called indirect proofs.
An extremely useful type of indirect proof is known as proof by
contraposition. Proofs by contraposition make use of the fact that the
conditional statement p → q is equivalent to its contrapositive, ￢q →￢p.
This means that the conditional statement p → q can be proved by showing
that its contrapositive, ￢q →￢p, is true.
In a proof by contraposition of p → q, we take ￢q as a premise, and using
axioms, definitions, and previously proven theorems, together with rules
of inference, we show that ￢p must follow.
Example: Prove the statement: For all integers m and n, if the product of m
and n is even, then m is even or n is even.
Proof: We prove the contrapositive of the statement: If m and n are both
odd integers, then mn is odd.
Proof. Suppose that m and n are arbitrary odd integers.
Then m = 2a + 1 and n = 2b + 1, where a and b are integers.
Then mn = (2a + 1)(2b + 1) (substitution)
= 4ab + 2a + 2b + 1 (associative, commutative, and
distributive laws)
= 2(2ab + a + b) + 1 (distributive law)
Since mn is twice an integer (namely, 2ab + a + b) plus 1, mn is odd.

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Proposition: Let a,b and c be integers. If a|b and b|c, then a|c.
Proof. Suppose a | b and b | c.
By Definition, a|b means there is an integer d with b = ad.
Likewise, b|c means there is an integer e for which c = be.
Thus c = be = (ad)e = a(de), so c = ax for the integer x = de. Therefore, a | c.
■
Proposition: If x is an even integer, then x2 −6x+5 is odd.
Proof: Suppose x is an even integer. Then x = 2a for some a ∈ ℤ, by
definition of an even integer.
So x2−6x+5 = (2a)2 - 6(2a) +5
= 4a2 - 12a+5
= 4a2 -12a+4+1
= 2(2a2 - 6a+2) +1.
Therefore, we have x 2 - 6x+5 = 2b +1, where b = 2a2 −6a+2 ∈ ℤ.
Consequently, x2 - 6x+5 is odd, by definition of an odd number. ■

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Proof by Cases
In proving a statement is true, we sometimes have to examine multiple
cases before showing the statement is true in all possible scenarios.

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Example: Show that if an integer n is not divisible by 3, then n2 -1 must be a
multiple of 3.
Proof: Let n be an integer that is not divisible by 3.
When it is divided by 3, the remainder is 1 or 2.
Hence, n=3q+1 or n=3q+2 some integer q.
Case 1: If n=3q+1 for some integer q, then

Case 2: If n=3q+2 for some integer q, then

Treating Similar Cases

Occasionally two or more cases in a proof will be so similar that writing
them separately seems tedious or unnecessary. Here is an example.
Proposition: If two integers have opposite parity, then their sum is odd.
Proof: Suppose m and n are two integers with opposite parity. We need to
show that m+ n is odd.
This is done in two cases, as follows.
Case 1. Suppose m is even and n is odd.
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Thus m = 2a and n = 2b +1 for some integers a and b.
Therefore m+ n = 2a+2b +1 = 2(a+ b)+1, which is
Case 2. Suppose m is odd and n is even.
Thus m = 2a +1 and n = 2b for some integers a and b.
Therefore m+ n = 2a+1+2b = 2(a+ b)+1, which is odd.
In either case, m+ n is odd. ■
The two cases in this proof are entirely alike except for the order in which
the even and odd terms occur. It is entirely appropriate to just do one case
and indicate that the other case is nearly identical. The phrase “Without
loss of generality...” is a common way of signaling that the proof is treating
just one of several nearly identical cases.
Here is a second version of the above example.
Proposition: If two integers have opposite parity, then their sum is odd.
Proof: Suppose m and n are two integers with opposite parity. We need to
show that m+ n is odd. Without loss of generality, suppose m is even and n
is odd. Thus m = 2a and n = 2b +1 for some integers a and b.
Therefore m+n = 2a+2b+1 = 2(a+b)+1, which is odd. ■

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Exercise:

Proof by Contradiction
The proof by contradiction is grounded in the fact that any proposition
must be either true or false, but not both true and false at the same time.
We arrive at a contradiction when we are able to demonstrate that a
statement is both simultaneously true and false, showing that our
assumptions are inconsistent. We can use this to demonstrate P ⇒ Q by
assuming both P and ¬Q are simultaneously true and deriving a
contradiction. When we derive this contradiction it means that one of our
assumptions was untenable. Presumably we have either assumed or

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already proved P to be true so that finding a contradiction implies that ¬Q
must be false.
The method of proof by contradiction.
1. Assume that P is true.
2. Assume that ¬Q is true.
3. Use P and ¬Q to demonstrate a contradiction.
Theorem: If a and b are consecutive integers, then the sum a + b is odd.
Proof. Assume that a and b are consecutive integers.
Assume also that the sum a + b is not odd.
Because the sum a + b is not odd, there exists no number k such that a + b =
2k + 1.
However, the integers a and b are consecutive, so we may write the sum a
+ b as 2a + 1. Thus, we have derived that a + b 6≠2k + 1 for any integer k
and also that a + b = 2a + 1. This is a contradiction. If we hold that a and b
are consecutive then we know that the sum a + b must be odd.
Example: Prove the statement is true: Let x and y be real numbers. If 5x +
25y = 1723, then x or y is not an integer.
Proof: Assume x and y are real numbers such that 5x+25y = 1723, and
assume that both x and y are integers. By the distributive law, 5(x + 5y) =
1723. Since x and y are integers, this implies 1723 is divisible by 5. The
integer 1723, however, is clearly not divisible by 5. This contradiction
establishes the result.
Example: Prove that√2 is irrational by giving a proof by contradiction

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Proof by Mathematical Induction
Mathematical Induction is a mathematical technique which is used to
prove a statement, a formula or a theorem is true for every natural
number.

The principle of mathematical induction

Let P(n) be a given statement involving the natural number n such
that
(i) The statement is true for n = 1, i.e., P(1) is true (or true for any
fixed natural number) and
(ii) If the statement is true for n = k (where k is a particular but
arbitrary natural number), then the statement is also true for
n = k + 1, i.e, truth of P(k) implies the truth of P(k + 1).
Then P(n) is true for all natural numbers n.
Example: Prove statements in the examples below, by using
the Principle of Mathematical Induction for all n ∈ N :

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Example: The sum of the first n odd numbers is equal to the nth

square. i.e.

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Example: Show that if n is a positive integer, then

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Example: Use mathematical induction to show that

for all nonnegative integers n.

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 Example: Use mathematical induction to show that

Example: Prove using mathematical induction that for all n ≥ 1,

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Example: Use the Principle of Mathematical Induction to verify that, for n
any positive integer, 6n - 1 is divisible by 5.

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Example: The sum of n consecutive cubes is equal to the square
of the sum of the first n numbers. i.e.
n 2 n  1
2
13  23  33  ...  n3  1  2  3  ...  n  
2

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Example: Prove by mathematical induction:

Proof:

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Therefore the formular is true for all natural numbers.

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