This book is available (in whole or by chapter) in pdf format via digital

download from our website loveofmaths.co.uk.

Feedback of any kind – via the website – would be most welcome, including
any errors you find (there will be some I’m afraid) and suggestions for
improvement. Please comment too on anything you found hard to
understand: you should regard this as a failing on my part, not yours.

"The true spirit of delight, the exaltation, the sense of being more
than man, which is the touchstone of the highest excellence, is to
be found in Mathematics as surely as in poetry."

Bertrand Russell

"Sometimes a theorem can just be so elegant. It can draw together.

It can take a problem which seems to be intractable, almost
impossible to get your head around. And yet, within a few lines,
you can discover that you can demonstrate that this is absolutely
true and beyond dispute, and always will be. A sense of power and
beauty in that which can’t be replicated anywhere else."

John Waterman

Acknowledgements
I am hugely grateful for numerous helpful comments and suggestions from
Ian Christie and Mike Fairbank, Abbey College London, Alan Gregory MBE,
Prof Alastair McDonald, Barry Ainge, Sam Waterman, Steve Gooch, Ilona
Hurrell, Joe Waterman and Mike McGuire.
I particularly want to thank Matt Joy who, as a seasoned journalist, patiently
pointed the need for simplicity and succinct brevity. And Victor
Lunn-Rockliffe, with whom I spent many hours exploring how best to make
the layout and presentation as inviting as possible.
I want to thank Dan Balis and two of my grandchildren, Ethan and Sekai,
who road-tested some of it in the latter stages of development.
Most importantly, I need to acknowledge the hundreds of other students
whom I have had the privilege to teach, and who have contributed
immeasurably, albeit unwittingly, to this book.
Finally to my wife Anne who, despite having not the slightest interest in
Mathematics, patiently encouraged me over the many times it looked like it
would never get finished.
John Waterman, May 2019

Love of Maths Pure Maths Guide First edition published by Love of Maths Ltd
June 2021.
Contents

1 FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS 1-1

1.1 Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
1.1.1 Natural Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
1.1.2 Prime numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3
1.1.3 Integers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-4
1.1.4 Rational Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5
1.1.5 Irrational Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-7
1.1.6 Real Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8
1.1.7 Normal numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8
1.2 The ∞ symbol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
1.3 Commutativity and Associativity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-12
1.4 Set language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14
1.4.1 Elements or members of a set . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14
1.4.2 Subsets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-15
1.4.3 Intersection and Union of sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-17
1.5 Equations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
1.5.1 Solving equations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
1.5.2 The zero product principle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-22
1.5.3 Polynomial equations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-24
1.5.4 Quadratic formula . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-25
1.6 Inequalities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-26
1.7 Identities and Equivalence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-28
1.8 Function notation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-31
1.9 Reasoning and proof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-36
1.10 Directed Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-43
1.10.1 Adding and subtracting directed numbers . . . . . . . . . 1-43
1.10.2 The Box Principle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-45
1.10.3 Combining signs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-47
1.10.4 Dots and brackets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-52
Chapter 1

FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

Overview
Each chapter begins with a detailed description of its contents like the one
below, so you can skip any part you don’t need. If you are not sure what you
need the exercises will tell you.
1.1 Some of the terminology and notation you’ll need around number
systems: integers, prime numbers, rational & irrational numbers, Real
numbers. Converting a recurring decimal into a fraction.
Also a fascinating glimpse into a special type of number with mind-blowing
properties.
1.2 ∞ (infinity).
1.3 Commutativity and Associativity, two very important principles.
1.4 The language and notation of sets. The symbols ∈, ⊆, ∩ and ∪.
Subsets, union and intersection of sets
1.5 Equations, some language and an important principle.
Polynomial equations. The quadratic formula.
1.6 Inequalities. Basic principles.
1.7 Identities and the notion of equivalence (≡).
Difference between an equation and an identity.
1.8 A reminder about function notation. For example:
If f (x) = 1 + x2 , find f (−1) and solve the equation f (x) = x.
1.9 Introduction to mathematical reasoning and proof.
The symbols ⇐, ⇒, ⇐⇒ and ∴ An example of using elegant reasoning to
effortlessly solve a very difficult problem.
1.10 A review of directed numbers. For example:
Why is −4 − 6 = −10 when a rule says “two minuses make a plus"?
p
Simplifying an expression like b 2 − 4ac, if a = k, b = −k and c = −2k.

1-1
 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

1.1 Numbers
First some definitions, and a bit of background on number systems. Most of
this will be very straight forward, but behind the obvious all is not as simple
as it first appears, and you will get a glimpse of this here.

1.1.1 Natural Numbers

These are the whole numbers, or the counting numbers, and we use the
symbol N to represent them:

N = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, . . .

The row of dots at the end is our way of saying that the list goes on for ever.
For many thousand of years these were the only numbers humans used, so
there could be no notion of subtracting a bigger number from a smaller one,
and doing calculations with fractions would be out of the question. It would
only be in relatively recent times that a symbol for nothing (i.e. zero) was
introduced, without which even simple arithmetic is extremely difficult. This
was a crucial breakthrough1 .

1
The first recorded zero is attributed to the Babylonians in the 3rd century BC. A long
period followed when no one else used a zero place holder, until the Mayans independently
invented zero in the fourth century AD. The final independent invention of zero in India was
long debated by scholars, but seems to be set around the middle of the fifth century. It spread
to Cambodia around the end of the 7th century. From India it moved into China and then to
the Islamic countries. Zero finally reached western Europe in the 12th century (see Kristen
McQuillin, January 2004). The West got there in the end.

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

1.1.2 Prime numbers

Those of you familiar with Prof. Marcus du Sautoy’s wonderful book “The
Music of the Primes" will need no persuading that prime numbers are utterly
fascinating. We usually think of a prime number as a natural number that
only divides by itself and one (without a remainder).
So for example 7 is a prime number and so is 23.
But 50 is not a prime because it can also be divided by 2, 5, 10 and 25. We say
it is has altogether 6 factors2 .
In fact mathematicians define a prime number in a subtly different way: it is
a number that has precisely two factors. The point in defining it in this way
is to exclude the number 1. We won’t go into the reason this for this here; all
you need to remember is that

the number 1 is not a prime number.

You are most likely to meet prime numbers in the context of finding the
prime factorisation of a number. For example 2400 = 3 × 25 × 52 .
If this is a new idea to you, find the prime factorisation of 504 (the answer is
in the footnote3 .)

How many prime numbers are there? In fact there is an infinite

number. The Greek mathematician Euclid proved this very
elegantly. To see his proof turn to Appendix A (page ??), or click
on the page number.
On page ?? you will find the biggest prime number so far
discovered. You will also learn about the $150,000 reward being
offered to find an even larger one.

2
The four factors we just listed plus 1 and 50

3
504 = 2 × 252 = 22 × 126 = 23 × 63 = 23 × 7 × 9 = 23 × 32 × 7
We can break the number down in any order, but it’s obviously easiest to start with
low numbers like 2, 3 etc.

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

1.1.3 Integers
The Integers are all the Natural Numbers, together with their negative
counterparts and 0. We use the symbol Z for these:

Z = · · · − 4, −3, −2, −1, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, . . .

The dots at each end mean that the list extends indefinitely in both directions.
Without the negative numbers and zero, all but the most basic arithmetic is
very difficult (try multiplying Roman numerals). Once they were included,
whole new branches of mathematics started to blossom (excuse the pun).
Sometimes you will see the symbols Z+ and Z− . These stand respectively for
the positive integers and the negative integers, excluding zero:

Z+ = 1, 2, 3, 4, . . . and Z− = −1, −2, −3, −4, . . .

Notice that Z+ and Z− combined do not make up Z, because the number 0

belongs to neither. You will have realised that Z+ = N.
The integers from 0 to 9 are referred to as digits. So for example there are 4
digits in the number 3.916, and 5 digits in the number 72001.

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

1.1.4 Rational Numbers

As soon as we start dividing numbers we need fractions. That leads us to the
next category of numbers, the rational numbers. A rational number is any
number that can be formed by dividing two integers. We use the symbol Q
for these. It is possible to list4 all the rational numbers, although not as
simply as listing N or Z. Happily we don’t need to.
The integers involved could be positive or negative, and the top number
could be zero (obviously the bottom one can’t be zero, because it’s
impossible to divide by zero).
Some examples of rational numbers are:

2 376 1 1
, , − , 4 and 13
5 2117 3047 2
1 −1 4 1 27
because − 3047 = 3047 , 4 = 1 and 13 2 = 2 .

Most decimals that come to mind are rational numbers.

4
For example 0.4 = 10 = 25 and 3.6901 = 36901
10000 .

4 1 1 2 1 2 3 1 2 3 4
This gives you a clue as to how it can be done: 2 , 3 , 3 , 4 , 4 , 4 , 5 , 5 , 5 , 5 ...

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

Recurring5 decimals are also rational, a simple example being

1
0.333 . . . =
3
We can show that any recurring number is rational by demonstrating how to
convert a recurring decimal into a fraction. Take the number 0.10351035 . . .,
normally written 0.1̇035̇, the dots indicating the start and finish of the
repeating sequence. Let’s call this number x.

x = 0.1̇035̇ = 0.10351035 . . .
10, 000x = 1035.1̇035̇ = 1035.10351035 . . .

We have chosen to multiply x by 10, 000 because that gives us a new number
with exactly the same digits after the decimal point, and which therefore
differs from x by a whole number.

9, 999x = 1035

hence 1035
x= .
9999
Cancelling6 this gives:
115
0.1̇035̇ = .
1111

If this technique is new to you, try it out for yourself using the number
0.297297 . . .. The answer is in the footnote7 .

If you want to have a go at a slightly trickier one, try 0.094̇28571̇.

For the answer turn to page ?? of Appendix A, or click on the page number.

While on the subject of recurring decimals, here is a question:

is 0.9̇ = 1?
The answer is obviously no, isn’t it. Or is it? Find out by going to page
??, or clicking on the page number.

5
A recurring decimal has the property that after a certain point the same digit, or
sequence of digits, is constantly repeated, e.g. 0.7777 . . . or 0.061137419419419 . . ..
6
You may recall that a number is divisible by 3 if the sum of its digits is divisible
by 3. Similarly, a number is divisible by 9 if the sum of its digits is divisible by 9.
These are the only two numbers for which this simple “sum of digits” test works.
7 11
0.2̇97̇ =
37

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

1.1.5 Irrational Numbers

So now we know that every fraction, every decimal with a finite number of
digits and every recurring decimal is a rational numbers. Is that it? Does that
leave any numbers out in the cold? Are there any decimals with an infinite
number of digits that never recur? And if there are, how could we possible
know thy never recurred!? The question was debated by mathematicians for
thousands of years.
It was the Greeks who showed there are such numbers, by proving that the
square roots of certain whole numbers cannot be written as a fraction, i.e.
cannot be rational. Such numbers are (not surprisingly) called irrational
numbers.
p
For a proof that 2 is irrational turn to Annex A page ??, or click on the page
number.
We now know that if the square roots p of an integer is not itself an integer,
then it is an irrational number, e.g. 17.
Some Greeks suspected π was also an irrational number but they couldn’t
prove it. In fact it would be well into the 19th century before π was proved to
be irrational. Establishing whether or not a number is irrational, can be
fiendishly difficult (well beyond degree level Maths).
Now prepare for a surprise.

You might expect that the irrational numbers are very much the
exception, i.e. most numbers are rational. In fact you couldn’t
be more wrong. There is an infinite number of rationals and
an infinite number of irrationals. But it doesn’t end there: it
turns out that there are so many more irrationals, the only way
we can describe the difference is to say that the kind of infinity
involved is of a higher order. So there we have it: not only does
the answer turn our intuition on its head, we discover that
some infinities are bigger than others!

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

1.1.6 Real Numbers

So every number is either rational or irrational. Put another way, every point
on the number line will correspond to either a rational number or an
irrational number, and we refer to the combination of rational and irrational
numbers as the Real numbers. The symbols for the Real numbers is R.
Real numbers = Rational numbers + Irrational numbers

When you see the term Real number, you can (for now) just think of it as any
number.
So why add the word “Real" at all? It’s because there are numbers that are not
real. The story of how they came to be discovered (or you might say invented)
is a fascinating one. Such numbers are called Complex numbers and to find
out what these peculiar numbers are you’ll find a brief description if you turn
to Appendix A page ??, or click on the page number.

1.1.7 Normal numbers

You don’t need to know about these, but if you want to have your mind
blown away on the subject of numbers there is a special kind of irrational
number called a Normal number. These are described on the same page in
Appendix A.
You are probably beginning to realise that there is a lot more to the idea of
numbers than meets the eye. There are still many unanswered questions
and many mathematicians devote their lives to delving ever deeper into it
Number Theory to try and find the answers.

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

1.2 The ∞ symbol

This is the symbol we use to stand for infinity. Infinity refers to a quantity that
is boundless or limitless. It isn’t really a number. This becomes obvious if we
think about adding another number to it: because of what is means we would
have to say: ∞+1 = ∞. Indeed ∞+∞ = ∞ or even ∞×∞ = ∞. We can go on:
for example ∞∞ = ∞.
Having a symbol for infinity is useful. For example, we can write x → ∞ (we
say “x tends to infinity") as shorthand for “the value of x becomes bigger and
bigger without limit".
We sometimes even write infinity as if it were a number. Look at the fraction

1
.
0
What’s the answer? Does it have an answer? Strictly speaking no—because
it is the answer to the question: “how many 0’s do we need to add together
to get 1?"! However many 0’s we add together we would never get there, so
we could say the answer is an infinite number. If this isn’t clear, look at these
divisions:
1 1 1 1
= 10, = 100, = 1, 000, = 10, 000 and so on.
0.1 0.01 0.001 0.0001
As the denominator gets smaller, the answer gets bigger.
More succinctly we say that as the denominator → 0 the fraction → ∞. Or,
1
in shorthand = ∞.
0
Treating ∞ as a number, what about this fraction?

1
∞
It’s asking the question “how many infinities are there in 1?" We can make
sense of his question if we use the same approach as before:

1 1 1 1
= 0.1, = 0.01, = 0.001, = 0.0001 and so on.
10 100 1000 100000
This time as the denominator → ∞ the fraction → 0. Summarising (and
using a shorthand that is strictly speaking illegal)

1 1

A
=∞ and = 0.
!

A
0 ∞
A

A

The statements are strictly speaking meaningless (because ∞ isn’t a number),

but you will find them useful memory aids.

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

Exercises 1

1. In each case, determine whether the number is irrational. If it is

rational write it in fraction form (i.e one integer divided by another).

(a) −11 (b) 1.5̇ (c) 0.03̇

q q
π
(d) 2
(e) 11 7
(f) 25 4

q
112
p p p p p
(g) 7 (h) 2+ 3 (i) 2( 2 + 1) − 2
1
p
(j) 0.6̇ (k) 0.1̇

2. (You may need to refer to Appendix A, page ??.)

(a) Express the number 32.70924924924 . . . as a fraction.

(b) Cancel this fraction to its simplest form.

3. ∗ There is well-known puzzle that goes like this:

• Pick any three digit number.

• Form a 6-digit number by repeating the same three digits.
(e.g. 291 becomes 291, 291.)
• Divide the 6-digit number by 7.
(Assure the participant that there won’t be a remainder.)
• Divide the answer by 11. (Again there won’t be a remainder.)
• Divide the answer by 13. (Again there won’t be a remainder.)
• The result will be the 3-digit number the participant started with.

Show how this “trick" works.

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

Solutions 1
−
11
1. (a) 1 (b) 1 59 = 14
9 (c) 31 ÷ 10 = 30
1

(d) Irrational (e) Irrational (f) 52 , since 25 × 25 = 25

4

p p p
(g) 16 = 4 (h) Irrational (i) 2 + 2 − 2 = 2
q
(j) 1 ÷ 23 = 32 (k) 19 = 13

3,267,654 544,609
2. (a) 99,900 (b) 166,500

It easy to see that 2 and 3 divide into numerator and denominator. To look
for other possible factors find the prime factors of the denominator. We
could use the numerator but factorising the denominator is much easier.
None of its factors divide into the numerator. (Notice we don’t need the
complete prime factorisation of the denominator, just which primes divide
into it.)

3. The process of repeating the original 3 digits to form a 6-digit number

amounts to multiplying it by 1001. For example 291 × 1001 = 291000 + 291.
Dividing by 7, then 11 and then 13 is equivalent to dividing by
7 × 11 × 13 = 1001.

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

1.3 Commutativity and Associativity

Take the calculation 3 × 5 × 2. We know that the answer can be worked out in
a number of ways. For example:
3 × 5 × 2 = (3 × 5) × 2 = 15 × 2 = 30
= 3 × (5 × 2) = 3 × 10 = 30
= 5 × (2 × 3) = 5 × 6 = 30 etc...
The order in which we do the calculations makes no difference to the answer.
Being able to group the multiplications differently (as indicated by the
brackets) is called Associativity; being able to swap the order, e.g. 5 × 2 or
2 × 5, is called Commutativity.The upshot is this:

when lots of numbers are multiplied together, we can

jumble them up and multiply them in any order.

We are using these principles8 when we simplify an expression like 7y × 2,

7y × 2 = 7 × y × 2 = 7 × 2 × y = 14y
By the way, it wouldn’t be wrong to write the answer y14, but it’s conventional
to put any numbers first. Here are some more examples:

4a × 3 × 2a = 4 × 3 × 2 × a × a = 24a 2
8 × 13y × 0.125 = 13y [because 8 × 0.125 = 1]
1 1
10x × x 2 = 10 × × x × x 2 = 5x 3
2 2
1 2 2
× y × 42 = 6y
7

8
It’s not difficult to see that, like multiplication, addition is also associative and
commutative. For example
(2 + 3) + 4 = 2 + (3 + 4) (associativity); 1 + 5 = 5 + 1 (commutativity).
Can you see that the same is not true of subtraction or division? For example
(7 − 1) − 3 6= 7 − (1 − 3); 6 − 2 6= 2 − 6.
Check for yourself that the same applies to division.

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

QQ

Simplify these for yourself (the answers are in the footnote9 )

(a) 5 × 798 × 2 (b) 13 × 11 × 27 (c) 0.7 × 0.03 × 2000

(d ) 1.25 × 7 × 16 (e) 3a × 5 × 2a 2 ( f ) 12 y × 8

(g ) 6x(x + 1) × 13 (h) 8 × 43p × 0.25

9
(a) 7980 (b) 3 × 11 = 99 (c) 42 (d) 1.25 × 8 × 2 × 7 = 140
3
(e) 30a (f) 4y (g) 2x(x + 1) (h) 2 × 43p = 86p

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

1.4 Set language

The study of sets is a field in its own right and has been pivotal in some of
the most profound developments in the philosophical foundations of
Mathematics10 . For AS Level all we need are some basic concepts and the
terminology that goes with them.
There are something like eight distinct meanings of the word “set" in the
English language.

In Mathematics we use the term set simply to describe a

collection of things. The “things" might be numbers, triangles,
functions,. . ., anything we like.

We might, for example, have a set called K that consists of the numbers −7.5,
0, 4 and 99, or it might be a collection of numbers we already have a name for,
like N. We use curly brackets when listing what’s in the set.

K = {−7.5, 0, 4, 99}
N = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, . . .}

In the case of N, we can’t list them all but we can see how they are generated
and the dots tell us the sequence goes on indefinitely. Sometimes it’s
impossible to write what’s in the set in the form of a list—even an infinite
one, for example
R = {Real numbers}

1.4.1 Elements or members of a set

If something belongs to a set we call it an element of the set or
a member of the set,

and we have a shorthand way of writing this using the symbol ∈. For example,
using the sets we talked about in the previous section

99 ∈ K , 99 ∈ N and 0.146 ∈ R.

We would say “99 belongs to K " or “99 is a member of K ", and ‘5 belongs to
the set of Natural numbers", or better “5 is a Natural number" and “0.146 is a
Real number". We occasionally come across the symbol 6∈, meaning “is not a
member of", for example −1 6∈ N and π 6∈ Q.
Set language provides a powerful tool for precise thinking.

10
If you want to know more about this, and enjoy a bit of mental gymnastics,
Google “Russell’s paradox".

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

1.4.2 Subsets
A subset, as the name suggests, is a set within a set. Consider the set of
integers A = {4, 5, 6}, for example. One subset of these might be the set {4, 6};
let’s label this B . Another would be the set consisting of the single number
C = {4}. The symbol for “is a subset of" is ⊆, and the statement

B ⊆ A means that every element of B is also an element of A

represented in a Venn diagram by showing B entirely inside A.

A

4


6
5 HH
Y
H
B

Can you see that we could also write C ⊆ B , and C ⊆ A?

What’s less obvious is that B ⊆ B , because every element of B is (of course)
an element of B . This is an example of sticking slavishly to the precise
wording of a definition. In this way mathematicians are rather like lawyers.
How many subsets does A have? Common sense would tell us 6: the subsets
{4, 5}, {5, 6}, {6, 4}, {4}, {5} and {6}. In fact, given what we said above,
mathematicians would also include the whole of A. Perhaps more
surprisingly, they would also include the set with nothing in it {}. This is
called the empty set and there is a special symbol for it: φ. So according to
this definition of a subset, A has 8 subsets.
How does this subset notion apply to the number sets we have defined? Well

N⊆Z⊆Q⊆R⊆C

In Venn diagram form

C
R
Q
Z
N

This hasn’t told us anything new, it just adds a bit of clarity. For example
where do the irrationals fit into this picture? They are the in the region inside
R, but outside Q.
A simple non-numerical example of a subset might be P ⊆ T , where
T = {Triangles}
P = {Polygons}
You can no doubt think of many other examples, mathematical and
non-mathematical.

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Why do we use set language?

Why are we going to all this trouble to use fancy language and invent new
symbols to convey dead simple ideas? The answer is to avoid ambiguity. If
someone asked you to “pick a number between 1 and 10", they would
probably be surprised if you said “6 14 ", or “π". This is because all spoken
languages rely heavily on context to convey additional information (in this
case that the number should be a whole number). Even if the question says
“pick a whole number. . . ", it’s still not entirely clear whether the numbers 1
and 10 are allowed—the word “between" is used in both ways. If we rely on
spoken language we can’t avoid running into this kind of problem: that’s why
in mathematics we have to invent a certain amount of new language, and
define mathematical terms precisely.
If we were asking a mathematician to select the number we could ask her to
select an element of the set
{x ∈ Z : 1 ≤ x ≤ 10}.
We include a variable simply to avoid having to say “a number" (we’ve
chosen x here but we could have chosen any variable). The colon sign : is
read “given that" or “such that". The whole thing we therefore read as “the
set of integers greater than or equal zero and less than or equal to 10".
Naturally we alter the detail to convey exactly what we mean. Suppose the
solution to an inequality problem is “any number greater than 7.5" (i.e. not
including 7.5 itself), we would describe the solution as
{x ∈ R : x > 7.5}.
In this case we specify R rather than Z because there’s nothing to say we are
restricted to whole numbers. It’s not that we must always use set language,
but it is beautifully concise and precise.
For a mathematician, there’s an altogether more compelling reason: it is a
powerful tool for thinking deeply. Set language plays an absolutely central
role in Bertrand Russell’s famous book Principia Mathematica, which
established for the first time a rigorous foundation for the whole of
Mathematics.
The following section introduces two of the key concepts upon which set
theory is built.

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1.4.3 Intersection and Union of sets

Intersection
The intersection of two sets A and B consists of the elements they have in
common. Those elements form a new set, which we call A ∩ B . A simple
example using the set K and N that we saw on page 1-14, i.e.

K = {−7.5, 0, 4, 99}
N = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, . . .}
would be K ∩ N = {4, 99}.
But the answer may not be quite so obvious. The way two sets overlap will
always happen in one of three ways. We can show the possible
configurations using Venn diagrams:

A B (a) The sets have no elements in common

—there is no overlap.
We say A and B are mutually exclusive, or
A ∩ B = φ (where φ is the empty set).
A
  B (b) The sets overlap.
 


  

 The set of common elements (the shaded
 area) we call the intersection, written A ∩ B .

A (c) One set is a subset of the other.



B The intersection is simply the smaller set:
 

A ∩B = B
 



Let’s take a simple example. Suppose the sets D, E and F are defined by

D = {0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10}, E = {1, 2, 3, 4} and F = {6, 8}.

Starting with D ∩ E = {2, 4}, the Venn would look like this

0 E
D 6 2 1
8 4 3
10

E and F are mutually exclusive, so E ∩ F = φ and the Venn diagram would be

E 1 2 F
3 6
8
4

F is a subset of D, so F ∩ D = {6, 8} = F giving the Venn diagram

0
F
D 2 6
4 8
10

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We won’t always we be able to mark the elements on the Venn diagram,

because there may be too many of them. Take these two sets

X = {x ∈ R : x > 2} and Y = {x ∈ R : x ≤ 5}

X ∩ Y = {x ∈ R : 2 < x ≤ 5}
Let’s see what this looks like on a number line diagram. X and Y are shown
by the lines with blobs and X ∩ Y is where they both cover the number line.
X ◦ H
H


Y


H
H •

0 1 2 3 4 5 6

The blobs on the ends of the lines are a neat device for indicating whether
the end point is included or not. For example the top line has an empty blob
at the end because is represents the interval x > 2, so 2 is not included; the
line below it, representing x ≤ 5, has a solid blob at the end because 5 is
included. The absence of a blob at the end of a line signifies that it extends
indefinitely at that end (i.e. to +∞ or −∞).

Using this convention we would show the set X ∩ Y like this

X ∩Y ◦ •

0 1 2 3 4 5 6

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Union
The union of two sets A and B is the aggregation of all the elements in both
sets. To be more precise: the elements that belong either to A, or to B or to
both A and B .
It is written A ∪ B and once again there are three ways the union of two sets
can be formed.
A B

 

 
(a) The sets have no elements in common.
  
 

  
 
     

A ∪ B is the whole of A plus the whole of B .

  
 
 
 
 

(b) The sets overlap.

A 




  B A ∪ B is everything lying in A or B or both.
 
 






 
   
 

If we were listing the elements of A ∪ B ,
 
    


    
     
the elements of A ∩ B (the intersection)
    

would only appear once.
A 


(c) One set is a subset of the other.
 
B
  

 








   
 

The union is the whole of the larger set.

  
 

 
  

  

In set language A ∪ B = A.

 


before let’s see what this looks like for the sets D, E and F , defined by

D = {0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10}, E = {1, 2, 3, 4} and F = {6, 8}

We start with D and E . D ∪ E = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10}.

The Venn diagram showing D and E is

0 E
D 6 2 1
8 4 3
10

The union we can think of as “aggregating". To describe it as “adding" could

be misleading: D has 6 elements and E has 4, but the set D ∪ E contains 8
element, not 10—we don’t double-count the two elements that are in both.
E and F are mutually exclusive. E ∪ F = {1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8}.
The Venn diagram looks like

E 1 2 F
3 6
8
4

In the case of F and D, F is a subset of D, D ∪ F = {0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10} = D

The Venn diagram is

0
F
D 2 6
4 8
10

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Can you see that for the sets X and Y defined on the previous page,
X ∪ Y = R?

Does the notion of sets and set language stills seems a bit pointless to you?
Well, you’ll need to have a working knowledge of it because it will be used in
exam questions. As for using it yourself, the area where you’ll definitely need
it is in probability theory.
We’ll come across some other applications of the union and intersection of
sets later in this book. We end with a puzzle that illustrates in a light-hearted
way the issue of muddled thinking around sets.

A boy taken to see a doctor turns out to be the doctor’s son. But the
doctor is not the boy’s father. How is this possible?
It’s not a trick question in the sense that there are no step-relationships,
adoptions or IVF treatments involved, and there is only one doctor in the
consulting room. If you can’t work it out, the explanation is in the footnote11 .

QQ

Say whether each of these statements is true or false. (The answers are in the
footnote12 .)

π
(a) N ⊆ Z+ (b) 3
∈Q (c) Q ⊆ R

(d ) {2, 4, 6, 8} ⊆ {4, 6, 8, 10} (e) φ ∈ {1, 2, 3}

( f ) {all real numbers less than 1} ⊆ {all real numbers less than 2}

(g ) If x ∈ R, then x 2 ∈ Q

If you want to explore sets a little further or try some questions turn to
Appendix B page ??, or click on the page number.

11 The doctor is the boy’s mother. The set of doctors is not a subset of the set of men.
(a) T (The two sets are identical.) (b) F (π is not a rational number.) (c) T. (d ) F.
12 (e) T (φ is the empty set and an element of every set.) ( f ) T. (g ) T (Z− ⊆ Z ⊆ Q)
p p
(h) F (Sometimes true e.g. x = 51 , x = 2, but not always e.g. x = 1 + 2.)

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1.5 Equations
It’s extraordinary to think that the = sign was not invented until the 16th
Century, when today equations lie at the heart of Mathematics. Designing an
aircraft wing or forecasting the weather both involve solving equations.
Sophisticated equations underpin the so-called “financial engineering" that
underpins some aspects of the modern global economy. Sometimes the
equation is so complicated that we can only solve it by trial and error
(generally using a computer), but here we’ll be studying equations that we
can solve directly using some kind of algorithm13 .
In this section we are just reminding you of the basics. You’ll find more
through explanations later on: Chapter 5 for linear equations, Chapter 7 for
quadratic equations, you’ll meet polynomial equations again in Chapters 4
and 8, and Chapter 12 for trigonometrical equations.

1.5.1 Solving equations

Sometimes we can simply spot the solution. An example would be the
equation
2x + 1 = 13.
We are looking for a number which, when we double it and add one, gives 13.
The value x = 6 “fits” the equation. We say the solution is x = 6 .
It is much harder to spot the solution of an equation like

x3
3(1 − 5x) = x + 7 or = 12 − x 2 .
x −1
That’s when we need to learn some techniques.
The solutions of an equation are often called its roots;

the terms solution and root can be used interchangeably.

Sometimers an equation will only have one root, sometimes it will have
more than one. Occasionally it will have an infinite number.

13
A series of steps that lead to the answer.

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1.5.2 The zero product principle

When an equation has more than one root, there is a very important
principle that may allow us to find them all. We’ll call it the zero product
principle.
Imagine there are two boxes. In each one there is a card with a number
written on it. We don’t know either number, but we are told their product is
zero.

? × ? =0

What could the numbers be? Think about it.

It can’t work unless one of the numbers is zero. Or both could be zero.

A very simple application is solving an equation like

5x = 0.
One of the two numbers must be zero. The left hand one clearly isn’t, so
x = 0.
A common application of the zero product principle is with quadratic
equations. For example if
x(x − 7) = 0
we can think of his as the two numbers x and x − 7 multiplied together14 . So
either

x =0 or x − 7 = 0
i.e. x =0 or x = 7.

Or we may have two brackets multiplied together, like this15

(x − 10)(x + 2) = 0 ⇒ x − 10 = 0 or x + 2 = 0
⇒ x = 10 or x = −2.

14
Being adjacent to each other means they are multiplied. For example 5a means 5 × a.
15
⇒ means “implies"

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

It is not difficult to see that the zero product principle applies however many
numbers are multiplied together: the product of the numbers can’t be zero
unless at least one of the numbers is zero.
For example
x(x − 2)(x − 4) = 0.
This is a cubic equation: when we multiply it out we get

x 3 − 6x 2 + 8x = 0
but we can easily solve it. The zero product principle tells us that

x = 0, x − 2 = 0, or x − 4 = 0

so it has three solutions: x = 0, x = 2 and x = 4.

This leads us onto other types of equation.

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1.5.3 Polynomial equations

A type you will meet a lot is the polynomial equation, which is a general
name which some we have already met.

A linear equation is one in which the highest power of x is 1,

for example. 3(2 − x) = 5x.

In a quadratic16 equation the highest power of x is 2,

for example 3x 2 = x + 4.

In a cubic equation the highest power of x is 3,

for example x 3 + 2x 2 − 7x + 1 = 0.

In a quartic equation the highest power of x is 4,

for example 7x 4 − x 2 + 1 = 0.
and so on. Notice that some of the powers of x may be missing.
A polynomial equations can only involve terms like
1 5
5x 3 , −3x, x , 17, and so on
3
To be precise each term must be of the form ax n , where a is a fixed number
(called a constant) and n is an integer greater than or equal to zero.

Equations like
1p
2x = 32, sin x = 0.5, x+
+1 = 0
x3
are therefore not polynomial equations.

The order of a polynomial

The highest power of x we call the order of the polynomial.

So the order of a quadratic is 2, the order of a cubic is 3, and so on.
Can you see what the order of this polynomial is?

x 2 (1 − x 2 ) = 7
The answer17 is in the footnote.

17
Multiplying the bracket out gives x 2 − x 4 so the order is 4.

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1.5.4 Quadratic formula

Not all quadratics can be factorised. In Chapter 7 you will learn two methods
for solving them if they don’t. One which you may have met is the quadratic
formula.

The quadratic formula is:

p
A
−b ± b 2 − 4ac
!

A
x=
A
2a
A

where the a, b and c in the formula refer to the coefficients of the quadratic
equation when it is written in the form

ax 2 + bx + c = 0
i.e. with zero on one side of the equation.

For example
2x 2 − 4x − 3 = 0.
a = 2, b = −4, c = −3, so
p
−b ± b 2 − 4ac
x =
2a
p
4 ± (−4)2 − 4(2)(−3)
=
4
p
4 ± 16 + 24
=
4
p p
4 + 40 4 − 40
= or
4 4
We could reach for our calculator at this point, and get the answers to as
many decimal points as we wish.
Alternatively we could keep the answer exact but simplify it:
p p p p p
40 = 4 × 10 = 4 10 = 2 10
so p
4 ± 2 10
x =
4
p p
2 + 10 2 − 10
= or
2 2
p
If you are unsure about how we rewrote 40, this is covered in Chapter 2.

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1.6 Inequalities
An inequality18 is the same as an equation except the equals sign is replaced
by the sign
<, ≤, >, or ≥ .
Typical wording used to describe these relationships are:

< “less than"

≤ “less than or equal to"; “no greater than"; “at most"
> “greater than"
≥ “greater than or equal to"; “no less than"; “at least".

Notice that the phrase “at least" includes the value itself. So for example a
score of “at least 10" means a score of 10 or above. Similarly a distance of at
most 50 miles means 50 miles or less.
Almost always inequalities have more solutions than equations do— usually
an infinite number. For example the solution of the inequality

2x + 1 < 7
i.e. x <3
Or in set notation {x : x < 3}.

Every single value of x smaller than 3 satisfies this inequality. And of course
there is an infinite number of such values.
We could represent the solution using a number line, where the empty circle
indicates that the value x = 3 is not included.


H
H ◦

−2 −1 0 1 2 3 4

The set {x : x ≤ 3} would be represent using a filled circle like this:



H
H ◦

−2 −1 0 1 2 3 4

18
You may occasionally see it referred to as an inequation.

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Analytical vs Numerical solutions

When an equation is solved by following a series of logical steps, this is
referred to as an analytical solution.
In real life situations the equations can be so complex that often no such
method exists. In this case we have to use a so-called numerical method, the
simplest example of which is trial and error, i.e. trying out lots of values until
we hit upon a value that fits the equation or equations close enough.
Happily we can invariable do better than just trial and error, because
mathematicians have developed a battery of techniques, which, though still
basically number-crunching, home in the solution much more efficiently.
Obviously computers are used for this; you may learn about some of these
techniques in later modules.
A mathematician will always prefer an analytical solution—a general
formula that works with different numbers. For that she needs to know
what’s going on.
But before you dismiss numerical methods as “inferior", spare a thought for
the
p engineer whose clever formula tells him the dimension he is after is, say,
3(1 + sin 5π
17
) mm. If his laptop can find the answer numerically in
milliseconds, to as many decimal places as he needs, a formula giving him
the exact answer is of little value.

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1.7 Identities and Equivalence

Look at these two statements:

x +1 = 7 and 2(x + 1) = 2x + 3.

They both express equality but there is a key difference.

x +1 = 7 is an equation: it only applies to one value of x, namely x = 6

2(x + 1) = 2x + 3 is an identity: it applies to all values of x

We say that the two sides of an identity are equivalent, and when we want to
make this explicit we use the sign ≡, rather than the = sign:
2(x + 3) ≡ 2x + 6
You have already met this concept in arithmetic: an equivalent fraction is the
same fraction just written a different way, so strictly speaking we should use
the ≡ sign when we write:
2 4
≡ .
3 6
The term identity is related to the word “identical"— a stronger term than
“equal". It is not essential to use the ≡ notation every time, in fact we usually
don’t. The key thing is to recognise the difference: with an equation we are
looking for the value (or values) of the variable that satisfies it. An identity
gives us an alternative way of writing something. Therein lies it’s power: it
provides a different way of looking at something.

QQ

Say which of these is an equation and which is an identity:

10 − 5x = x
3y − 9 = 3(y − 3)
x2 = 9
x(x + 1) − (x − 1) = x 2 + 1

The answers19 are in the footnote.

There is one important identity that crops up again and again in different
contexts. We will look at it now and remind you about it from time to time.

19
First and third are equations, the other two are identities.
x(x + 1) − (x − 1) = x 2 + x − x + 1 = x 2 + 1. If this is rusty don’t worry for now.

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This identity is known as the difference of two squares. It can be expressed

as:
x 2 − y 2 ≡ (x + y)(x − y)

It’s greatest value is in algebraic manipulation: you’ll be expected to spot

when it would be useful to replace the left hand side with the right hand side,
or vice versa.
For example
x 2 − 9 = (x + 3)(x − 3)
We will see many more examples in the coming chapters.

The difference of two squares identity is a simple but very valuable algebtraic
tool. It can also be used in some arithmetic situations. Of course we don’t
need to use it for arithmetic calculations since we can use a calculator. Our
main purpose here is to help you embed the relationship in your mind.

Suppose we want to find the value of 2000.22 − 1999.82 .

The identity tells us that

2000.22 − 1999.82 = (2000.2 + 1999.8)(2000.2 − 1999.8) = 4000 × 0.4 = 1600.

It turns the original calculation into one we can do in our head. The identity
can also be used in reverse.

Suppose we want to evaluate 1996 × 2004.

We can rewrite the calculation as

1996 × 2004 = (2000 − 4)(2000 + 4) = 20002 − 42 = 4, 000, 000 − 16 = 3, 999, 984

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Another very important identity that crops us a lot in trigonometry is this:

sin2 x + cos2 x ≡ 1

It says that if we take the sine of an angle and the cosine of the same angle and
square each of them, the two numbers add up to 1—regardless of the angle
we choose.
For example if x = 30◦ , sin x = 0.5 and cos x = 0.866025 (to 6 DP), so we have

0.52 + 0.8660252 = 0.25 + 0.75 = 1

Try an example for yourself. It’s powerful because it’s far from obvious,
although as it happens it is easy to prove.

Notice that
when we write sin2 x and cos2 x, we mean (sin x)2 and (cos x)2 .

This is the convention that is adopted. It is certainly better than sin x 2 and
cos x 2 , which would mean that it is the quantity x that is being squared.

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1.8 Function notation

The more you study Maths the more you will come to value the concept of a
function. Simple though it is, few ideas are more central to mathematical
thinking.

If you are very familiar with the function notation you may be able to skip this
section. The questions at the end of the chapter will tell you if you can safely
do this.
The concept of a function is very important in Maths. A simple example20
would be:
f (x) = x + 5.
We use a formula to describe the function. For example, if we start with the
number 2, f turns it into 7.
We would write f (2) = 7, f (−4) = 1 or f (−5) = 0.
For a reason that is about to become clear, it is actually better to think of a
function as a process rather than a formula: the process in this case is that of
“adding 5" to a number.
Imagine a magic box: a number is fed in at one end (the input) and a new
number (the output) comes out at the other end.

2 - f - 7

We could make the process notion even clearer in this case by labelling the
box like this:

−4 - +5 - 1

Of course most functions will be more interesting than this one!

20
Because brackets can be used to indicate multiplication, f (x) could mean f × x.
The context will always tell you which it is.

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The reason it is best to think of a function as a process is because the number

we feed in could be algebraic. (It’s still a number of course—one whose value
we don’t yet know.) The process is the same: whatever goes in we add 5 to it.
For example f (a 2 ) = a 2 + 5.

a2 - f - a2 + 5

Or f (y − 3) = (y − 3) + 5 = y + 2

y −3 - f - y +2

The important thing to notice here is that the x in f (x) simply stands for
whatever number (arithmetic or algebraic) the function is going to operate
on. It’s like a place keeper; we input whatever value we want and f operates
on it to give an output.
Bearing this in mind an expression like f ( f (2)) makes sense. The function f
is going to operate on the number f (2). We know f (2) = 7, so

f ( f (2)) = f (7) = 12.

Another way you will see the same function described is like this:

f : x → x + 5.
We shall use both notations.

By the way since the x in the formula is just a “place keeper"; we could use
any algebraic symbol we like. We could equally well describe f by saying, for
example
f (t ) = t + 5 or f : t → t + 5.
Or
f (z) = z + 5 or f : z → z + 5.
It is this that separates functions from formulae. A formula describes the
relationship between certain variables, whereas

a function decribes a process

that can be applied to any number or any variable.

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Sometimes we want to think of the process in reverse. What number would

we have to input to get a certain output? For example to find x, given that
f (x) = 12.
This defines an equation: in this case the equation x + 5 = 12. The answer of
course is x = 7. Viewed as a process, we are asking what the input to f would
have to be if the output is 12.

? - f - 12

We can extend this idea to a less obvious question, for example to solve the
equation
f (x) = 3x.
In plain English what number would we have to start with if the effect of
adding 5 to it is the same as trebling it? A little bit of algebra will tell us.
Since f (x) = x + 5, the statement f (x) = 3x is equivalent to saying
x + 5 = 3x
Subtracting x from both sides of the equation, we have 2x = 5, so x = 2.5.
We can verify this is correct: f (2.5) = 2.5 + 5 = 7.5 = 3 × 2.5.

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What if the function is not quite so simple?

Example
Solve the equations g (x) = 1, where

g (x) = 2x − 5

This is the same as saying 2x − 5 = 1 , in other words 2x = 6

the solution of which is obviously x = 3.

Solving an equation defined using a function (like we just did) involves

reversing the process. “What would we have to start with to get this answer?"
That reverse process we call the inverse function.

You won’t need to know any more about inverse functions at this stage, but if
want to delve a bit deeper go to page ?? in Appendix A (or click on the page
number).

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The unique nature of Mathematics

This section is recommended reading but missing it out won’t prevent you
from understanding what follows.

Who could fail to be impressed by, and hugely grateful for, the monumental
advances brought to us by scientists. From microelectronics to DNA testing
to Black Holes the history of science reflects man’s ingenuity and dogged
dedication. But none of it is fact. For thousands of years some of the truly
great minds thought the Sun went around the Earth. Then Newton came
along and gave us his beautiful Laws of Motions. Along with numerous other
developments, they enabled humans to travel to the Moon.
Then Einstein came along and told us his Laws are not quite correct—and in
some cases far from correct. We find the same story in all branches of
science. What we understand today to be “scientific truth" is simply the
latest view. We see this very clearly in the field of cosmology where new
observations are routinely causing scientists to re-think their theories.
Mathematics is different. Once a mathematical
p fact has been established, it
is immutable. The Greeks established that 2 cannot be written as a fraction
using whole numbers. If you could find a way of doing it you’d become
famous, but it isn’t going to happen, because there is a mathematical proof
that it can never be done. It’s the absolute, timeless nature of Maths that
makes it unique,and what makes the notion of “proof" so important. A
proven mathematical statement we call a Theorem, which in turn can be
used as a building block for a further Theorem, and so on. The development
of Mathematics has been largely about doing this again and again, building
ever more sophisticated bodies of mathematical knowledge that now stretch
into almost every area of our lives. The whole edifice would be vulnerable to
collapse if we had a single doubt about any one of the building blocks.
Hence the need for rigour21 .
What makes mathematicians highly sought after is their ability to bring
rigorous, clear thinking to very complex problems. Calculations may be
needed too, but in real life situations that is often the easy bit. So an essential
part of mathematical training is developing an ability to think
rigorously—that means not jumping to invalid conclusions.

For a fascinating example of how something can looks true but

turns out to be wrong, see Appendix A page ?? (or click on the
p page
number). You’ll also find a beautiful proof, on page ??, that 2 is an
irrational number.

21
Mathematicians haven’t always regarded it necessary; it would be well into the 19th
Century, after some serious blunders, before they woke up to the fact.

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1.9 Reasoning and proof

In 1637 the Frenchman Pierre to Fermat claimed to have had proved an
interesting theorem, that

an + bn = c n has no integer solutions if n > 2.

We know it works for n = 2 e.g. 3, 4, 5 or 7, 24, 25 because when n = 2 this is

Pythagoras’ Theorem and these are example of so-called Pythagorean
triples. No proof was ever found however so many of the greatest
mathematicians tried to construct one, over a period spanning several
hundred years. Some even tried to show it was not true by looking for
solution using a computer. None were found but that didn’t mean there were
no solutions. It seemed we may never know for sure one way or the other.
It’s important to understand that Mathematics is unique among all
disciplines in that it only deals with irrefutable fact. Science is the closest to
it but even there what we often regard as “scientific facts" are only
hypotheses, theories that stand until they are of disproved or replaced by
something better.
Then in 1995 the Cambridge mathematician Andrew Wiles, after 7 years
working almost entirely on his own, came up with a 129 page proof of the
theorem.
The proof uses a number off different approaches and we are going to
explore some of them here.

Direct proof
This is the commonest type: using a series of logical steps, building on
previously proved results. For example the proof that the angles of a triangle
add up to 180◦ . Or indeed Pythagoras’ Theorem.

Proof by exhaustion
We can sometimes show that somethings is true for all possible cases. An
example would be that if n is an integer either n 4 or n 4 − 1 is divisible by 56.
This seemingly impossible task is easily cracked when we see that the last
digit of the fourth power comes from raising the final digit of the original
number to the power 4. So for example if the number n ends in 3, then the
last digit of n 4 is 34 = 81, i.e. it ends in 1. All we have to do is check this for all
the integers 0, 1, 2, 3, . . . 9. When we do this we find n 4 always ends in 0, 1, 5 or
6, and the result follows.

Proof by contradiction
This can sometimes be used if we can show that the opposite is not true. If
you ask a young child what the largest number is they will often say a billion,
or a trillion, or a trillion trillion. We know of course that there is no largest
number and don’t need to prove it. But it is easy to prove, by assuming that
there is a largest number, call it N . But then N + 1 is a larger one, which
contradicts our assumption that N is the largest number. Our assumption
must have been wrong: there is no largest number.

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Disproof by counterexample
Sometimes we want prove that a statement is not true. This usually when it
seems to be true, or is evidently true in most cases. We want to know if it is
always true. For example the statement “3x = kx implies that k = 3". The
counterexample would be x = 0.

Proof by induction
This is another method, which you are likely to meet if you continue to study
maths to a higher level. Conceptually it is more difficult to understand than
other methods so we won’t attempt to illustrate it here.

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

The symbols ⇒, ⇐ and ⇔

You may or may not have seen this notation.
The symbol ⇒ means “implies".
So we could say

“This month is June" ⇒ “This month has 30 days"

It is sometimes useful, for the purposes of discussion, to label each statement,

like this:
A ⇒ B
where A and B are statements defined by

A: “This month is June" B: “This month has 30 days"

A simple algebraic example:

x =3 ⇒ x2 = 9

Implicit in the use of the symbols is the word “definitely" or “always". The
statement on the right is definitely true if the statement on the left is true.
Clearly
The symbol ⇐ means “is implied by",

with the same definiteness implied. So we could equally well say

“This month has 30 days" ⇐ “This month is June"

or
x2 = 9 ⇐ x =3
However it clearly wouldn’t be correct to say

“This month has 30 days" ⇒ “This month is June"

or
x2 = 9 ⇒ x =3
because neither follows for certain. “This month" could equally well be April,
September or November, and x could be −3.

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The ⇐⇒ symbol is for when the implication does apply both ways, e.g.

x +1 = 5 ⇒ x =4
x +1 = 5 ⇐ x =4

in which case we can replace the two statements by the single statement

x +1 = 5 ⇐⇒ x =4

and we say that x + 1 = 5 is a necessary and sufficient condition for x to be

equal to 4. The necessary part is the ⇐ and the sufficient part is the ⇒.
Another way to express this is to say “x + 1 = 5 if and only if x = 4".
An if and only if example using the months of the year could be:

“I was born in June" ⇐⇒ “my birthday is in June"

QQ

For each of these statements fill in the appropriate sign: ⇒,⇐, ⇐⇒ or none
of them.

(a)“I have no background in Physics" `‘I believe the earth is flat"

(b) “I was born on 29th of February" “I don’t have a birthday every year"
(c) “The Prime Minister is a woman" “Men and women are paid equally
for the same job"
The answers are in the footnote22 .

The symbols ∴ and ∵

In practice, when one statement follows from another, we more use the
symbol ∴ meaning “therefore", rather than ⇒. For example

“I was born in the month of June" ∴ “My birthday is in June"

Similarly, when the implication goes the other way, we can use the the
symbol ∵ meaning “because", rather than ⇐, and write:

“My birthday is in June" ∵ “I was born in the month of June"

This is no less rigorous than using the symbols ⇒ and ⇐. There is no
equivalent symbol using little dots for ⇐⇒ .

22
(a) ⇐ (b) ⇐⇒ (c) none apply.

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Exercises 2

In each case see if you think the statement is true. If so, try to prove it; if not
try to disprove it.

1. N is an integer. N is odd ⇒ N 2 is odd.

2. N is an integer. N 2 is odd ⇒ N is odd.

3. a 2 = ax ⇒ x = a

4. b x = 1 ⇒ x = 0

5. The sum of three consecutive integers is dividable by 3.

6. The sum of 4 consecutive odd numbers is divisible by 8.

7. Today did Monday. My birthday is in 100 days. Show that it will fall on
a Wednesday this year.

8. The sum of two consecutive odd numbers is always a multiple of 4.

9. If two integer differ by k, their squares differ by a multiple of k.

10. Their exit a pair of prime numbers other than 2 and 3 that differ by 1.

11. The difference between any two prime numbers greater than 2 is an
even number.
1 1
12. x > y ⇒ x < y .

1
13. If n is an integer 2 n(n + 1) is also an integer.

14. Every number of the form n 2 (n + 17) is even.

15. The 100th term of the Fibonacci sequence is an odd number. [This is
the sequence formed by string with two 1’s and adding the previous two
terms to get the next. So it starts 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, . . . .]

m2
16. If m and n are even numbers, then n is even.

17. If a and b are rational, then ab is rational.

18. If a 2 is rational, a is rational.

19. No square number ends in an 8.

20. In a class of 28 students at least two have a surname starting with the
same letter.

21. If n is an integer, n(n 2 + 2) is a multiple of 3. [Clue: every integer n can

be written in the form 3m, 3m + 1 or 3m + 2 for some other integer m]

22. If n is an integer 9n 2 + 6n is a multiple of 12.

23. If p 1 and p 2 are prime numbers greater than 2, p 1 p 2 + 1 is not a prime

number.

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Solutions 2

1. True. We can write N = 2n + 1 for some other integer n.

So N 2 = (2n + 1)2 = 4n 2 + 4n + 1 = 2(2n 2 + 2n) + 1 which is odd.

2. True. Proof by contradiction. Suppose N is not odd. Then it can be

written N = 2m for some other integer m. So N 2 = 4m 2 which is even,
contradicting the statement that N 2 is odd.

3. Not true. Counterexample a = 0.

4. Not true. Counterexample b = 1.

5. True. Let the number be n, n +1 and n +2. Their sum is 3n +3 = 3(n +1).

6. True. Let the number be 2n + 1, 2n + 3, 2n + 5 and 2n + 7. Their sum is

8n + 16 = 8(n + 2).

7. True. Every multiple of 7 brings us to another Monday. 100 = 14 × 7 + 2.

8. True. An odd number can be written 2n +1 for some integer n. The next
odd number is 2n + 3. Their sum is therefore 4n + 4 = 4(n + 1).

9. True. (n + k)2 − n 2 = 2nk + k 2 = k(2n + k)

10. Not true. For any two consecutive numbers one his odd, the other even.
But all prime numbers greater than 2 are odd numbers.

11. True. All primes > 2 are odd numbers.

12. Not true. Counterexample: any values for which x > 0 and y < 0.

13. True. Either n or n + 1 will be an even number.

14. True. If n is even so is n 2 (n + 17). If n is odd n + 17 is even.

15. True. Look at the parity of each term (whether it is odd or even). It goes
O, O, E, O, O, E, O, O, E etc. Every third term is even, so the 99th term is
even and the 100th is odd.

16. Not true. Counterexample m = 2, n = 4.

17. True. Since a and b are rational there will be integers p, q, r, and s such
p r pr
that a = q and b = s . Therefore ab = q s so ab is rational.
p
18. Not true. Counterexample a = 2.

19. True. By exhaustion. Last digit of any number is 0, 1, 2, 3 . . . 9, so any

square number ends is 0, 1, 4, 9, 6, 5, 6, 9, 4, 1.

20. True. Proof by contradiction. Suppose all the surnames start with a
different letter. We would need 28 letters in the alphabet.

21. True. Proof by exhaustion. If n = 3m then the result is proved.

If n = 3m+1, n(n 2 +2) = (3m+1)(9m 2 +6m+3) = 3(3m+1)(3m 2 +2m+1).
We leave the reader to check that it also works for n = 3m + 2.

22. Not true. Counterexample n = 1.

23. True. p 1 and p 2 are odd, so their product will be odd and p 1 p 2 + 1 is
even, so is not a prime.

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An elegant proof
The following problem illustrates the power of simple reasoning.
At first sight it seems impossibly hard. Take a chessboard, which has
8 × 8 = 64 squares. Now suppose we have 32 dominoes, each of which covers
two squares of the chessboard exactly. So all 32 dominoes could cover the
entire chessboard. There are, of course, a great many ways of doing this.
What if we now cut away a square from two opposite corners, and discard
one of the dominoes. The question is can we cover the (mutilated)
chessboard with the 31 dominoes? Spend a few minutes thinking about the
problem.

I can tell you that any attempt is bound to fail. For a beautifully simple
reason why, turn to Appendix A (page ??), or click on the page number.
Apart from the sheer joy of a powerful proof, there is another point to
describing it. It’s about elegance and creativity. It has been said that a good
mathematician is a lazy one—because she will always look for an easy
method. You can start straight away to look for quick methods for yourself.

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1.10 Directed Numbers

Is a section on directed numbers really necessary? Well it depends. If you
find yourself using a calculator to help you with negative numbers—yes,
definitely. Or you may be very comfortable when the numbers are arithmetic
but less so when they are algebraic. Remember there is a big difference
between knowing the rules and having real understanding.
If you believe you are are already quite at home with them, by all means skip
this section. But first do the exercises at the end, without using a calculator,
and check your answers. If you are already an expert it won’t take you long; if
not it will tell you which aspects you need to brush up on.

1.10.1 Adding and subtracting directed numbers

You will have met the number line and be familiar with using it in the
context of directed numbers.

−5 −4 −3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3 4 5

Having this structure clearly one’s mind is fundamental to our understanding

of directed numbers. Without it, statements like
−
3−7 = 4
−
and 5 < 1
−
or 3 < −1

don’t immediately make sense23 .

23
The number − 5 is less than the number 1 because it is to the left of 1 on the number
line.
If you don’t readily remember that < means "less than" and > means "greater than”,
just remember that the thin end of the sign is always next to the smaller number, and the
fat end is always next to the larger number.

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

We use the notation

−
5 to mean the point on the number line 5 units to the left of zero;
−5 refers to the operation of subtracting 5.

We shall see that in practice the two notations are interchangeable.

A picture of a number line is always useful, and—until it is firmly embedded

in your mind’s eye—you will often find it helpful to draw it. Sometimes you
won’t need to—the idea it embodies will be enough.
Take the calculation
−71 + 50.
We can visualise the number line and see that the answer is going to be a
negative number, and its size is the difference between 71 and 50: the answer
is −21.

The same applies when the calculation is algebraic; the number line principle
tells us what the relationship is between the two quantities even though we
don’t mark them on an actual line, e.g.

3a − 7a = −4a
−71x + 50x = −21x

QQ

Make sure you are comfortable simplifying these in your head:

−10 + 700

29x − 31x

−100y − 90y

The answers24 are in the footnote.

We are now in a position to home in on some of the common errors that arise
with directed numbers. We can avoid them all if we use what I call the box
principle.

24
690, −2x, −190y

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1.10.2 The Box Principle

This neat idea is really useful when manipulating expressions involving
directed numbers, especially ones with algebra terms.

We shall illustrate it using a simple arithmetic expression:

−
2 − 3 + 9.

To someone new to directed numbers this might look like one subtraction
and one addition. Or is it two subtractions?
It’s best to think of it as a series of steps, moving up and down the number
line:

−5 −4 −3 −2 −1 0 1 2 3 4 5

−2: we start at − 2;
−3: we move 3 to the left, bringing us to − 5;
+9: we move 9 to the right, which brings us to 4.
−
2 − 3 + 9 = 4.
It would be quite nice if we could rearrange the order of the numbers if we
wanted to, but it’s not obvious where the minus signs would go.

The trick is to think of each number as being

inside a box that includes the sign in front of it.

Then we are always adding numbers—some of which may be positive and

some negative.

−2 −3 +9
In this form we can rearrange the boxes in any way we like. e.g.

−2 +9 −3 or +9 −2 −3

Notice that it doesn’t matter which sort of minus sign it is. This is why we say
they are interchangeable.

If there is no sign, insert a +. e.g.

17 − 25 + 29 = +17 −25 +29 = +29 −25 +17 = 21

We don’t need to physically put the boxes in. The important thing is to “see"
the numbers in this way—with the signs in front of them super-glued to them.
After a while it becomes so instinctive it’s impossible to think in any other
way. The benefit of being able to rearrange the numbers is very apparent in
the following example, where we can combine the numbers in convenient
pairs:

−17 + 15 + 19 − 13 − 9 + 11 = +19 −17 +15 −13 +11 −9

= +2 +2 +2
= 6

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Turning to an algebraic example, we use the ability to rearrange in order to

group together all the a terms and all the b terms:

−2a + 6b − a − 7b + 4a = −2a +6b −a −7b +4a

= +4a −2a −a +6b −7b
= a −b

To summarise, in any expression involving minus signs:

• See the sign in front of each number as being stuck to it.
A

!

A

A
• Think: number line.
A

QQ

Try this out for yourself: simplify the expression:

2y − x − 5y + 8x

The answer25 is at the bottom of the page.

25
−3y + 7x or 7x − 3y

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

1.10.3 Combining signs

We start by looking at a very common error. What is

−5 − 2 ?

The answer is −7. But what about the rule that says “two minuses make a
plus"? That suggests the answer is +7, or is it +10? In the following sections
we’ll see exactly when that “rule" applies.

Combining adjacent signs

Two adjacent plus signs are equivalent to a single plus sign.

++ 5 = +5.

If the signs are different, it’s equivalent to having a single minus sign.

+− 5 = -5 −+ 5 = -5 .

We can think of −+ 5 as giving away $5 and +− 5 as receiving a bill for $5.

They amount to the same thing.

That leaves the case of two adjacent minus signs.

For example suppose we are substituting a = 12 and b =− 5 into the
expression a − b.
It gives us 12 −− 5. You probably know that the answer is 12 + 5 = +17, not 7,
but why do the two minuses combine to make a plus? In other words

how come −− 5 = +5 ?

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Here’s a practical example. Imagine a department store,

6
whose floors go from floor − 2 (below ground) to floor 6.
5
To get from floor 1 to floor 5, we go up 5 − 1 = +4 floors. 4
3
To get from floor −2 to floor 3, we go up 3−− 2 = +5 floors.
2
In other words 1
3 −− 2 = 3 + 2. 0
−1
−− 2 has become +2 −2

Similarly −− 3 = +3
−− 7 = +7
−− 3x 2 = +3x 2 etc

Another example would be temperature change.

Warming up from 2o C to 9o C represents an increase of 9 − 2 = 7o . Warming
up from −4o C to 6o C represents an increase of 10o

6 −− 4 = 6 + 4 = 10.

Let’s put all this together: the box principle plus combining adjacent signs.

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We are now in a position to confidently simplify an expression like

this—where minus signs abound
−
7 − 5 + 17 −− 11 = −7 −5 +17 +11
= +17 −7 +11 −5 = +16.

We have used the box principle, thinking of the calculation as four numbers
added together, two of which happen to be negative. And we’ve rearranged
them to make the mental arithmetic a bit easier.

QQ

Try these examples for yourself:

−
(i) 5 + 2 −− 4 − 8
(ii) 2a +− 8a −− 10a − 3a

The answers26 are in the footnote.

26
(i) −7 (ii) a

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Combining signs when multiplying or dividing

Suppose the a in 3a has a negative value e.g. − 5, we would have

3a = 3 ×− 5

You probably know the answer to this is − 15, which we can easily verify:

3 ×− 5 =− 5 +− 5 +− 5 = -5 -5 -5 =− 15

Similarly − 3 × 5 = 5 ×− 3 =− 15.

It remains to deal with − 3 ×− 5. The answer can’t also be − 15, since changing
the sign of one of the numbers must make a difference to the answer. So the
answer has27 to be
−
3 ×− 5 =+ 15.
The rules for dividing directed numbers come from the same rules. For
example, from relationships like 3 ×− 5 =− 15, we can see that
− −
15 − 15 − 15
= 5, −3
= 5 and −3
=+ 5.
3

27
Or if you are not persuaded by this:
−
3 ×− 5 = −(− 5) − (− 5) − (− 5) = +5 + 5 + 5 = +15.

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Summarising, the sign rules for multiplying and dividing directed numbers
are:

+
3 × 5 = 15
− −
3 × 5 = 15
− −
3 × 5 = 15
− − +
3 × 5 = 15

15 +
= 5
3
−
15 −
= 5
3
15 −
−3
= 5
−
15 +
−3
= 5

So the rule: “two minuses make a plus" only applies when

• adjacent signs are combined into one , or

A

!

A
• two directed numbers are multiplied or divided.
A

A

Don’t be tempted to apply it when adding directed numbers. For example

−4 − 6 = −10

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1.10.4 Dots and brackets

When multiplying integers we sometimes use
a dot to stand for a multiplication sign.

For example
2.3.5 means 2 × 3 × 5 = 30.
Depending on how you write your x’s the notation avoids possible confusion
between x and ×.
But it may also strike you as odd: how do we know that the multiplication 5.2
doesn’t mean the decimal 5.2? In practice this is never an issue: we only adopt
the notation where the meaning is unambiguous.
In the expression
1 + 1.2 + 1.2.3 + 1.2.3.4
the terms follow a pattern which clearly relates to integers. Anyway we can
see from the later terms that the dots can’t be decimal points. The dots in
this context signify multiplication.

With negative integers, we can still use a dot, for example 7.− 2, meaning 7 ×−
2, but the dot could be overlooked—and the expression misread as 7 − 2. It
would be better to use a bracket28 —and write

7(− 2).
Similarly we would use bracket writing things like this:
¡1¢¡
− 12 − 32 .
¢¡ ¢
(−6)(−8) and 2

28
The meaning of y(−2) is clear because in algebra being adjacent to means multiply.

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In algebra we rarely need to use the × (times) symbol—we know that

something like 2ab means 2 × a × b.
But when there are minus signs around we have to be a bit careful.
With this expression
y × −2
we can’t just miss out the × sign—it would look like y − 2. The neatest way to
write it is using a bracket:
y(−2)
or better still write is as −2y .

Here is another example. It is better to write

(3x 2 − 1) × −6x as (3x 2 − 1)(−6x).

Better still, since it is always better to have the minus sign at the front, we
could write this:
(−6x)(3x 2 − 1) or − 6x(3x 2 − 1).
This may seem like labouring a trivial point. It isn’t: tidying up isn’t just
about housekeeping it’s about maximizing our chance of seeing
connections. So much of maths is about spotting patterns and recognising
relationships, so
visual clarity about what’s on the page is very important.

But most important of all, whatever notation you use make sure it’s
unambiguous. Not just for another reader (like an examiner), but for
yourself.

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Using bracket with powers.

If we write −24 , it may not be entirely clear whether we mean −(24 ) or (− 2)4 .
The brackets dispose of any ambiguity:
−(24 ) = −16 (− 2)4 = +16.
4
Here is another example. What is the value of 23 ? Does it mean
4
(23 )4 or 2(3 ) ?
There’s a big difference29
4
(23 )4 = 212 = 4, 096 ≈ 4 × 103 2(3 ) = 281 ≈ 2 × 1024

The more algebraic our work, the more helpful all of this is, as we shall see next.

29
Measured in kilograms, the first number is about half the the mass of a bus;
the second is about half the mass of the earth.

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Using brackets when substituting.

Using brackets is especially useful when substituting negative numbers.

Example 1

Substitute a = 4 and b = −2 into the expression a 3 − 3b 3 .

a 3 − 3b 3 = 43 − 3(−2)3 = 64 − 3(−8) = 64 + 24 = 84.

However sure you are of the directed number rules—and brilliant at mental
arithmetic—doing all this entirely in your head would be risky.

Example 2
2a 2 −5b−c
Substitute a = −3, b = 5 and c = −1 into the expression .
1−ac

2a 2 − 5b − c 2(−3)2 − 5(5) − (−1)

=
1 − ac 1 − (−3)(−1)
18 − 25 + 1 −6
= =
1−3 −2
= 4

Using a bracket can also be helpful when substituting in algebraic values.

Example 3

Substitute x = 3a and y = −a into x 2 + 3x y − y 2 .

(3a)2 + 3(3a)(−a) − (−a)2 = 9a 2 − 9a 2 − a 2 = −a 2 .

Example 4
p
Simplify b 2 − 4ac, given that a = k, b = −k and c = −2k.
p p
b 2 − 4ac = (−k)2 − 4k(−2k)
p
= k 2 + 8k 2
p
= 9k 2 = 3k

You will find some examples to try for yourself in the Exercises that follow.

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A cautionary tale
While on the subject of combining directed numbers we take some time out
for a diversion that we think you will find intriguing.

Look at this sum:

S = 1−2+3−4+5−6+7−8+9...

Notice that it goes on for ever.

What is the value of S?
If you think you have the answer, turn to Appendix A page ?? (or click
on the page number). I promise you a surprise!

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Exercises 3

Don’t use a calculator in questions 1 and 2.

1. Evaluate the following entirely in your head (use the box principle)
(a) − 4 + 7 (b) 2 − 6 + 11 (c) −1 − 2 − 3 − 4 + 10
(d) −1 − 5 (e) −12 − 27 + 50 (f) −9 + 11 − 1
(g) 26 − 73 + 44 − 1 (h) −150 − 90 + 310 − 20
(i) 2.3 − 18.9 + 11.6 − 10 (j) 1.4 − 1.5 + 1.6 − 1.7 + 1.8 − 1.9

2. Evaluate these. Not all of these are designed to be done completely in

your head.

(a) 3 −− 2 (b) 11 +− 5 (c) −7 +− 10

(d) 4 +− 3 −− 6 (e) −7 −− 5 (f ) 1 −− 3 +− 9

(g) −240 −− 350 (h) (−3)2 (i) −32

(j) 7 − (−2)2 (k) 2(−5) − 1 (l) −(−8)(−3)

−20 −30
(m) −12 ÷ 6 (n) −4
(o) 7.5
−0.8
(p) −0.04 (q) (−1)2 − (−4)2 (r) −(−2)2 −− 5

(s) 2(−10)2 (t) (−2)5 (u) 2(−3)2 − (−4)2

(v) (−1)100 (w) (−1)101

3. Use your calculator (and the BIDMAS rule) to evaluate these.

8+0.4×10 1.63×78 1
(a) (b) (c) 2 1
11−3×3 4−1.082 +
7 5

4. Simplify these expressions (remember the box principle).

(a) 6a + 8a − a (b) 4y − 9y

(c) 3b − 7b + 20b − 2b (d) −15x 2 + 33x 2 − 5x 2

(e) −8x y + 4y x + 4x y (f ) 6a − 8b − a + 2b

(g) −3p − 10q + p − 5q + 6p (h) x 2 y + 6x y 2 − 7x 2 y

(i) −4p 3 − 3p 2 − 2p

5. In each case substitute in the values x = 2, y = 4. They start fairly gently

but don’t be fooled! You will be doing very well if you can get them all
correct first time.
(a) 3x − 5y (b) x − 10y (c) y − x 2 (d) −7x − 2y

(e) y − (3x − 1) (f ) 1 + (x − y)2 (g) 2 y − 2x (h) 2 y+x

³ ´2
(i) x1 − 1y (j) 1
x2
− y12

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

6. We suggest you check your answers to the previous question before

going on to this last one—where pitfalls abound. Substitute in the
values a = 3, b = −5 and c = −2.

(a) 2a + b (b) a + 2b + c (c) 1 − 3c (d) 4a − b

(e) b + c (f) ac + b 2 (g) 5a − b 2 (h) c + (b − c)2

a b−1 a−b c
(i) b+2 (j) a (k) a+b (l) b−a
1
(m) b 3 (n) 1 − c 3 (o) ab 2 c (p) 2a 2
1
(q) (−c)4 (r) 12 (a + 7) − b (s) 5c − (1 − b 2 ) (t) p 2
b −a 2
−c a a+b−c
(u) 3 (v) c (w) 2
(x) [(2a + b)7 − 3(b − 4c − a)5 ]3 (A juicy one to finish with.)

7. In each case substitute as indicated and simplify the resulting

expression as far as you can.

(a) (3x + y)2 , y = −6x

(b) p 2 + 3pq − 2q 2 , p = 2t and q = −t

(c) x 2 + y 2 , y = −x

(d) x 3 + y 3 , y = −x

(e) b(b 2 − 2a 2 ) , b = −3a

p
(f) 4x y + 2y 2 , y = 2x
x−y
(g) , x = −y
5x+4y
(h) (2a − b)(a + b)2 , a = 2t and b = −t

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

Solutions 3

1. (a) 3 (b) 7 (c) 0 (d) −6 (e) 11 (f) 1 (g) −4

(h) 50 (i) −15 (j) −0.3 [Combine them in pairs.]

2. (a) 5 (b) 6 (c) −17 (d) 7 (e) −2

(f) −5 (g) 110 (h) 9 (i) −9 (j) 3

(k) −11 (l) −24 (m) −2 (n) 5 (o) −4

(p) + 80
4 = 20 (q)1 − 16 = −15 (r) −4 + 5 = 1 (s) 200
(t) (−2)2 (−2)2 (−2) = (+4)(+4)(−2) = −32

(u) 2(9) − (16) = 2 (v) 1 [50 pairs of (−1) × (−1)]

(w) −1 [(−1)100 × (−1)]

3. (a) 6. You can check this by hand.

(b) 44.89872 = 44.9 (3 SF) (c) 0.7714285 = 0.771 (3 SF)

4. (a) 13a (b) −5y (c) 14b (d) 13x 2 [Box principle.]

(e) 0 (x y = y x) (f) 5a − 6b (g) 4p − 15q (h) 6x y 2 − 6x 2 y

(i) −4p 3 − 3p 2 − 2p [The powers of p all differ.]

5. (a) 2 (b) −38 (c) 0 (d) −22 (e) −1

1 3
(f) 5 (g) 12 (h) 64 (i) 16 (j) 16

6. (a) 1 (b) −9 (c) 7 (d) 17 (e) −7

(f) 19 (g) −10 (h) 7 (i) −1 (j) −2

1
(k) −4 (l) 4 (m) −125 (n) 9 (o) −150
1 1
(p) 18
(q) 16 (r) 10 (s) 14 (t) 2

(u) 9 (v) −8 (w) 1 [20 = 1]

(x) 1 [(2a + b)7 = 17 = 1 and (b − 4c − a) = 0]

[In part (p) only the a is squared]

7. (a) (−3x)2 = 9x 2

(b) (2t )2 + 3(2t )(−t ) − 2(−t )2 = 4t 2 − 6t 2 − 2t 2 = −4t 2

(c) x 2 + (−x)2 = 2x 2 (d) x 3 + (−x)3 = 0

(e) (−3a)(9a 2 − 2a 2 ) = (−3a)(7a 2 ) = −21a 3

p p
(f) 8x 2 + 2(4x 2 ) = 16x 2 = 4x
−y−y −2y
(g) = = 2
−5y+4y −y

(h) (4t − (−t ))(t − 2t )2 = (5t )t 2 = 5t 3

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 CHAPTER 1. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS

Summary of key ideas

• Integers are whole numbers. Prime numbers are integers having
exactly two factors. So 1 is not prime numbers.
a
• A rational number has the form b , where a and b are integers.

1 1
• Infinity is an undefined number but we write 0 = ∞ and ∞ = 0

• Associativity and commutativity: the order can be changed when

multiplying algebraic numbers.

• The language of sets and the meaning of intersection and union.

• Solving equations. The zero product principle. Polynomial equations.

The quadratic formula. “Root" means the same as solution. The
difference between an equation and an identity.

• The notion of an inequality.

• Definition of a function. A function as a process not a formula.

• Methods of proof: direct, by exhaustion, by contradiction. Disproof

by counterexample.

• Directed numbers. The importance of the number line. The box

principle. “Combining signs" in different contexts e.g. −− 3 = +3, and
−2 − 5 = −7 but −2 × −5 = +10. Using brackets and dots when
multiplying.

PURE MATHS: AS LEVEL GUIDE 1-60