A Brief Guide to Mathematical Proofs

(Version 1.1.2)

Contents
0 A Note to the Students 2

1 Rules of Inference 3

2 Direct Proofs 3

3 Proof by Contraposition 7

4 Proof by Contradiction 8

5 Proof by Counterexample 9

6 Proof by Cases and Exhaustive Proof 11

6.1 Proof by Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
6.2 Exhaustive Proof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

7 Proofs of Equivalence 12

8 Vacuous Proofs 12

9 Other Proofs 13

10 Mistakes in Proofs 13

11 Appendix A: Some Important Logical Equivalences 15

12 Appendix B: Rules of Inference 16

1
 0 A NOTE TO THE STUDENTS

0 A Note to the Students

The principal aim of these notes is to help students tell whether or not the proof they have written
constitutes a valid mathematical argument. I noticed that most of the “proofs” the students write
do not make any mathematical sense.These notes are NOT about Proof Strategies, which are
entirely a different ballgame. Proof Strategies are what we learn everyday in a Pure Mathematics
class. Nothing in these notes is examinable.
In these notes, by a statement we shall mean a sentence that declares a fact that is either True
or False, but not both. A better technical term would have been a “proposition”. Thus “He is in
bed” is a proposition where as “Go to bed” is not. The Greek mathematicians were the first ones
to recognise that a mathematical statement must be supported by a proof. This explains why, for
instance, the Pythagorus Theorem was valid two thousand years ago, is still valid now, and it will
remain valid until Kingdom come!
A proof is not simply a collection of true mathematical statements. Rather, these true statements
much be structured in such a manner as to form a valid mathematical argument.
First and foremost, you must understand the definitions. You cannot do much in mathematics
unless you understand the definitions. Understanding a definition has nothing whatsoever to do
with memorising one.
I will give easy (sometimes trivial) examples since my main aim is simply to illustrate the struc-
ture of a valid proof.

Disclaimer: Just like in the MAT324 Notes, none of the material here is my creation. The
presentation might be different here and there, but I have simply compiled mathematical information
that has been out there for more than two thousand years. This, you must know.

JSK
Chirunga.

Page: 2 of 16
 2 DIRECT PROOFS

1 Rules of Inference
Rules of Inference act like templates for constructing valid arguments. In mathematics, they are
usually used without being mentioned explicitly.

We very frequently use Modus Ponens. Modus Ponens basically says that, if the two statements
P and P ùñ Q are both True, then the statement Q must also be True, that is, from P and
P ùñ Q we can conclude Q. Thus one would argue: Mary is a student at UNIMA. If Mary is a
student at UNIMA, then Mary has a UNIMA student ID. Therefore Mary has a UNIMA student
ID. Note that it is not important whether P or P ùñ Q comes first. In Mathematical Logic we
express Modus Ponens as:
P
P ñQ
6Q
It is based on the fact that the proposition pP ^ pP ñ Qqq ñ Q is a tautology.1

We also quite frequently use Modus Tollens. Modus Tollens says that, if the statement Q is
False and the statement P ùñ Q is True, then the statement P must be False, other wise if both
P and P ùñ Q were True then Modus Ponens would compel Q to be True as well, which is not the
case. Therefore from Q and P ùñ Q, we can conclude P . Thus one would argue: Mary has no
UNIMA student ID. If Mary is a student at UNIMA, then Mary would have a UNIMA student ID.
Therefore Mary is not a student at UNIMA. Note that it is not important whether Q or P ùñ Q
comes first. We express Modus Tollens as:

Q
P ñQ
6 P

This is based on the tautology p Q ^ pP ñ Qqq ñ P . For a more expansive list of Rules of
Inference, see Appendix B. Ignore the fancy Latin terms; I have never met a single mathematician
who cares about them!

2 Direct Proofs
A statement of the form P ùñ Q is False only when P is True and Q is False. A Direct Proof
of the statement P ùñ Q therefore starts with the assumption that the statement P is True, and
uses a sequence of deductions to show that, with this assumption about P , Q must also be True.
From the hypothesis2 (P is True) to the conclusion (Q is True), the proof makes use of any or all of
the following: axioms3 , definitions, previously already proven results, and Rules of Inference. Any
1
A tautology is a proposition that is always True. In Propositional Logic, the theorems are precisely the tautologies.
But we won’t worry about these fine points.
2
Hypothesis is also called Premise
3
Axioms (also called Postulates) are mathematical statements we assume to be always True. For example, we
assume that 0 ` x “ x @ x P R. In Euclidean Geometry, we assume that, given two distinct points, there is a unique
straight line passing through the two points.

Page: 3 of 16
 2 DIRECT PROOFS

proof which is not a Direct Proof is called an Indirect Proof.

Definition: An integer n is odd if it can be expressed as n “ 2k ` 1 for some integer k, and it

is called even if it can be expressed as n “ 2k for some integer k.

Example 1: Prove that the square of an odd integer is also odd.

Observe that this statement can be reformulated as: Prove that, if n is an odd integer, then n2
is also an odd integer.

Formal Direct Proof:

Step Reason
1. n is an odd integer Premise/Hypothesis
2. n “ 2k ` 1 for some integer k Definition of (1)
3. n2 “ p2k ` 1q2 “ 4k 2 ` 4k ` 1 “ 2p2k 2 ` 2kq ` 1 Known Results4 , using (2)
4. n2 “ 2m ` 1 where m is integer 2k 2 ` 2k Known Results5 , using (3)
2
5. n is odd Definition of an odd integer, using (4)
4
Here, we are using Axioms of integers.
5
Again here we are using Axioms of integers. Specifically, we are using the fact that, if k is an integer, then so is
2k 2 ` 2k.

In practice, however, we don’t include minute details like we have done above. The Direct Proof
would ordinarily be written simply as:

Let n be an odd integer. Then n “ 2k ` 1 for some integer k. Therefore n2 “ p2k ` 1q2 “
4k 2 ` 4k ` 1 “ 2p2k 2 ` 2kq ` 1 “ 2m ` 1 for integer m “ 2k 2 ` 2k. Therefore n2 is odd, by definition
of an odd integer. l

Note: We can use the following phrases to express a hypothesis: “Let n be an odd integer”,
“Suppose n is an odd integer”, “Assume n is an odd integer”, “We are given that n is an odd
integer”, etc. The words, “Assume”, “Suppose”, “Let”, “Given” , etc. all indicate the same thing:
you are making an assumption.

Definition: Let n, m be integers. We say that n divides m, and write n | m, if there is some
integer k such that m “ nk.

Example 2: Let n be a positive integer. Prove that rpn ´ 1q2 sn “ r1sn .

This is the same as: If n is a positive integer, then rpn ´ 1q2 sn “ r1sn .

Page: 4 of 16
 2 DIRECT PROOFS

Formal Direct Proof:

Step Reason
1. n is a positive integer Premise/Hypothesis
2. pn ´ 1q2 ´ 1 “ pn2 ´ 2n ` 1q ´ 1 “ n2 ´ 2n “ npn ´ 2q Known Results, Using (1)
3. pn ´ 1q2 ´ 1 “ nk where k is the integer n ´ 2 Known Results, Using (2)
2
4. n | pn ´ 1q ´ 1 Definition, Using (3)
2
5. rpn ´ 1q sn “ r1sn Known Result6 , Using (4)
6
Here, we are using Corollary 0.4.3(3) from the Notes.

Remark: In the first example, n was any odd integer; and in the second example, n was any
positive integer. Other than that, we did not specify what the integer n was. In mathematical
parlance, n was an arbitrary odd integer in the first example, and an arbitrary positive integer in
the second example. Because of this arbitrariness in the choice of n, we have proved much stronger
results here: the proof of Example 1 shows that the square of every odd integer is odd, and in the
second example we have shown that for every positive integer n, rpn ´ 1q2 sn “ r1sn . The proofs for
the stronger statements are exactly the same as the ones above.

The following simple example illustrates the use of Modus Ponens.

Example 3: Prove that every subgroup of a cyclic group is abelian.

So we need to prove that, If H ď G and G is cyclic, then H is abelian.

Formal Direct Proof:

Step Reason
1. G is cyclic Premise/Hypothesis
2. HďG Premise
3. If G is cyclic, then G is abelian Theorem 1.5.1
4. G is abelian Modus Ponens from (1) and (3)
5. If G is abelian, then H is abelian Theorem 2.2.4 Using (2)
6. H is abelian Modus Ponens from (4) and (5)
In practice, the Direct Proof would ordinarily be written simply as:

Since G is cyclic, it is abelian. Since H is a subgroup of G and every subgroup of an abelian

group is abelian, H must be abelian. l

The following simple example illustrates Modus Tollens at work.

Example 4: For an integer n ě 3, the group Sn is not cyclic.

So we need to prove that, If n ě 3, then Sn is is not cyclic.

Page: 5 of 16
 2 DIRECT PROOFS

Formal Direct Proof:

Step Reason
1. ně3 Premise
2. Sn is not abelian Known Result7 , Using (1)
3. If Sn is cyclic, then Sn is abelian Theorem 1.5.1
4. Sn is not cyclic Modus Tollens from (2) and (3)
7
See Exercise #13 on Exercise Set 1.3.

In practice, the Direct Proof would ordinarily be written simply as:

For n ě 3, Sn is not abelian. Since every cyclic group is abelian, we conclude that for n ě 3, Sn
is not cyclic.l

Let us use an example from MAT311.

Definition: Let A Ď R and let f : A ÞÑ R. The function f is said to be monotonic increasing

on A if, whenever x1 , x2 P A satisfies x1 ď x2 , we have f px1 q ď f px2 q. The function f is said to be
bounded above on A if there is a fixed number M such that f pxq ď M @ x P A.

Example 5: Let f : r2, 5s ÞÑ R be a monotonic increasing function. Prove that f is bounded

above on r2, 5s.

By the Remark above we need to to find a fixed M such that, If f : r2, 5s ÞÑ R is a monotonic
increasing function and x is an arbitrary element of r2, 5s, then f pxq ď M .

Formal Direct Proof:

Step Reason
1. x P r2, 5s Premise8
2. xď5 Definition of r2, 5s,9 Using (1)
3. f is monotonic increasing on r2, 5s Premise
4. If x ď 5 then f pxq ď f p5q Definition10 , Using (2) and (3)
5. f pxq ď f p5q Modus Ponens, Using (2) and (4)
6. f is bounded above on r2, 5s Definition, Using (5) with M “ f p5q
8
That x is an arbitrary element of r2, 5s is one of the two hypotheses.
9
r2, 5s is defined to be tx P R | 2 ď x ď 5u.
10
Definition of a monotonic increasing function.

In practice, one would simply write: Let x P r2, 5s. Then x ď 5. Since f is monotonic
increasing, we have f pxq ď f p5q. As the choice of x P r2, 5s was arbitrary, we conclude that
f pxq ď f p5q @ x P r2, 5s, hence f is bounded above on r2, 5s.l

Page: 6 of 16
 3 PROOF BY CONTRAPOSITION

3 Proof by Contraposition
A statement of the form P ùñ Q is logically equivalent to the statement of the form Q ùñ P .
We call Q ùñ P the contrapositive form of P ùñ Q. A proof of one statement is therefore also
a proof of the other statement. A proof by contraposition of the statement of the form P ùñ Q is
a Direct Proof of the statement Q ùñ P . Thus we start with the assumption Q is False, and
then go on to show that P must also be False.

Example 1: Let n be an integer. Prove that, If 5n ` 4 is odd, then n is odd.

The contrapositive form of this statement is: If n is even, then 5n ` 4 is even.

Formal Proof by Contraposition:

Step Reason
1. n is an even integer Premise/Hypothesis
2. n “ 2k for some integer k Definition of (1)
3. 5n ` 4 “ 5p2kq ` 4 “ 10k ` 4 “ 2p5k ` 2q Known Results, Using (2)
4. 5n ` 4 “ 2m where m is the integer 5k ` 2 Known Results, Using (3)
5. 5n ` 4 is even Definition of an even integer, Using (4)
In practice, you would write the following:

Suppose n is an even integer. Then n “ 2k for some integer k. So 5n`4 “ 5p2kq`4 “ 10k `4 “
2p5k ` 2q “ 2m for integer m “ 5k ` 2, hence 5n ` 4 is even. Therefore if n is even, then 5n ` 4 is
also even. So we conclude that, if 5n ` 4 is odd, then n is odd. l

Example 2: Let n be an integer. Prove that, If n2 is even, then n is even.

The contrapositive form of this statement is: If n is odd, then n2 is odd.

Formal Proof by Contraposition:

Step Reason
1. n is an odd integer Premise/Hypothesis
2. n “ 2k ` 1 for some integer k Definition of (1)
3. n2 “ p2k ` 1q2 “ 4k 2 ` 4k ` 1 “ 2p2k 2 ` 2kq ` 1 Known Results, Using (2)
4. n2 “ 2m ` 1 where m is the integer 2k 2 ` 2k Known Results, Using (3)
5. n2 is odd Definition of an odd integer, Using (4)
In practice, you would write the following:

Suppose n is an odd integer. Then n “ 2k ` 1 for some integer k. So n2 “ p2k ` 1q2 “

4k 2 ` 4k ` 1 “ 2p2k 2 ` 2kq ` 1 “ 2m ` 1 for integer m “ 2k 2 ` 2k, hence n2 is odd. Therefore if n
is odd, then n2 is also odd. So we conclude that, if n2 is even, then n is even. l

Page: 7 of 16
 4 PROOF BY CONTRADICTION

There are no obvious direct proofs of the two statements above.

Definition: A function f : X ÞÑ Y is said to be one-to-one if, whenever x1 ­“ x2 in the domain

X, we have f px1 q ­“ f px2 q in the codomain Y .

Example 3: Let f : Z ÞÑ Z be defined by f pnq “ 2n ` 5. Show that f is one-to-one.

Let a, b P Z. We need to show that, If a ­“ b, then f paq ­“ f pbq. Instead, we will prove the
contrapositive form of the statement: If a, b P Z and f paq “ f pbq, then a “ b.

Formal Proof by Contraposition:

Step Reason
1. a, b P Z Hypothesis
2. f paq “ f pbq Hypothesis
3. 2a ` 5 “ 2b ` 5 Definition of f , Using (2)
4. a“b Known Results, Using (3)
In practice, you would write the following:

Let a, b P Z. Suppose f paq “ f pbq. Then 2a ` 5 “ 2b ` 5, hence 2a “ 2b and a “ b. Therefore,

if a ­“ b, then f paq ­“ f pbq. This shows that f is indeed one-to-one. l

4 Proof by Contradiction
Suppose you want to show that a statement P is a True statement. We first assume that P is
False. If this assumption on P results in a contradiction, i.e. results in a “problem”, then the
assumption P is False was incorrect. Therefore P must be True and we are done! This is how proof
by contradiction works. Note that P can be any statement, maybe even a conditional statement
(i.e. a statement of the form A ùñ B).

For the rest of examples in these notes, we will dispense with formalities and not bother about
Formal Proofs.

Definition: A real number x is called a rational number if x “ a{b for some integers a, b with
b ­“ 0, otherwise x is called an irrational number.

We are now going to give an elegant Proof by Contradiction of a famous result that goes back
to antiquity. It uses the fact that, given a nonzero rational number x “ a{b where a, b P Z, you
can always cancel out common factors of a and b and express it as x “ m{n where m and n are
integers with no common factors other than ˘1. For example, 30{24 can be expressed as 5{4, with
no common factor between 4 and 5. In particular, m and n cannot be both even, otherwise they
would have a common factor of 2. If a rational number x cannot be expressed as m{n where m, n
are not both even, then there is a problem!

Page: 8 of 16
 5 PROOF BY COUNTEREXAMPLE

?
Example 1: Show that 2 is irrational.
? ?
The Proof by Contradiction goes as follows: Suppose 2 is rational. Then 2 “ a{b where a, b
are integers and b ­“ 0. After cancelling out whatever common factors that may exist between a
and b, we may write
? m
2 “ (1)
n
where m, n are integers not both even and n ­“ 0. Squaring both sides of (1) we get 2 “ m2 {n2 ,
hence

2n2 “ m2 . (2)

The LHS of (2) is even, so the RHS must be even. Since m2 is even, m must be even. Therefore
m “ 2k for some integer k. From (2), we conclude that 2n2 “ p2kq2 “ 4k 2 . Therefore

n2 “ 2k 2 . (3)

see that n2 is even, hence n is even. So both m and n are even, which is a contradiction.
Again, we ?
Therefore 2 is irrational.l

Given two rational numbers x “ a{b and y “ c{d with a, b, c, d integers and b, d ­“ 0, it’s easy to
see by a Direct Proof that their sum
ad ` bc
x`y “
bd
is also rational, since ad ` bc, bd are integers and bd ­“ 0. Similarly, x ´ y is also rational.

Example 2: Prove that, If x is rational and y is irrational then x ` y is irrational.

Note that the given statement is a conditional statement. The negation of A ùñ B is the
statement A ^ B, that is, A is True and B is False. In our case, A is the statement “x is rational
and y is irrational”, and B is the statement “x ` y is rational”. In order to carry out proofs by
contradiction, you must familiarise yourself with how to negate a proposition as we have just done
(see Appendix A).

We now give a Proof by Contradiction of the above statement: Assume x is rational, y is

irrational, and x ` y is rational. Since both x and x ` y are rational, y “ px ` yq ´ x must be
rational, contradicting the hypothesis. Therefore x ` y must be irrational. l

5 Proof by Counterexample
You may have been told that you never prove a statement by giving an example. To be precise,
you cannot prove a statement by giving examples unless every possible case has been covered (more
about this in the next section). However, one can prove that a statement of the form “Every element
has property X” is False by exhibiting a single element that does not have property X. The example

Page: 9 of 16
 5 PROOF BY COUNTEREXAMPLE

you give to disprove a statement is called a counterexample. The rule of thumb is that one uses an
example to disprove an assertion, and not to prove one.

Example 1: Consider the statement: Given an integer n, n2 ` 1 is always prime.

False Proof: Let n “ 2. Then n2 ` 1 “ 5, a prime number. Therefore n2 ` 1 is always prime for
every n. l

Correct Approach: Let n “ 3. Then n2 ` 1 “ 10, which is not prime. Therefore it is not the
case that n2 ` 1 is always prime for an integer n. l

In the first case, one has given an example to falsely prove that the statement is True. In the
second case, one has given a counterexample to disprove the statement.

Definition: Let G be a group, and let K ď G. Then H is a normal subgroup of G if, for every
g P G we have gK “ Kg.

Example 2: Consider the subgroup K “ te, p23qu of S3 . Prove or disprove that it is a normal
subgroup of S3 .

False Proof: p23qK “ Kp23q. Therefore K is a normal subgroup of S3 . l

In the above “proof”, the person has given an example of a g P S3 such that gK “ Kg and then
in essence declares that it is always the case that gK “ Kg for all g P S3 .

Correct Approach: Let g “ p12q. Then gK “ tp12q, p123qu and Kg “ tp12q, p132qu. Thus
gK ­“ Kg for this choice of g and therefore it is not always the case that gK “ Kg for every g P S3 .
This shows that K is not a normal subgroup of S3 . l

Observe that g “ p12q has played the role of a counterexample to the statement “for every g P G
we have gK “ Kg” in the definition of normality of a subgroup.

Definition: A group pG, ˚q is called abelian if a ˚ b “ b ˚ a for every a, b P G.

Example 3: Consider the statement: The group of quaternions Q8 is abelian.

False Proof: 1 ¨ j “ j “ j ¨ 1. Therefore Q8 is abelian. l

Correct Approach: i ¨ k “ ´k ¨ i “ ´j while k ¨ i “ j. Therefore i ¨ k ­“ k ¨ i. This shows that Q8

is not abelian. l

Page: 10 of 16
 6 PROOF BY CASES AND EXHAUSTIVE PROOF

6 Proof by Cases and Exhaustive Proof

6.1 Proof by Cases
Sometimes no single argument works for all cases. You therefore deal with each case individually,
assuming there aren’t too many cases. Make sure, though, that you cover every possible case.

Recall that "

x if x ě 0
|x| “
´x if x ă 0
Example 1: Prove that |x|2 “ x2 @ x P R.

Proof:

CASE 1: x ě 0. Then |x| “ x, hence |x|2 “ x2 .

CASE 2: x ă 0. Then |x| “ ´x, hence |x|2 “ p´xq2 “ p´1q2 x2 “ x2 .

Therefore |x|2 “ x2 for every x P R. l

The following is the last part of the proof of Theorem 2.4.3 in the notes. So it is advisable to
revisit this theorem now.

Example 2: Let pG, ˚q be a group. Let H ď G. Suppose H and GzH are the only right cosets
of H and the only left cosets of H. Show that H E G.

Proof: (We want to show that gH “ Hg for every g P G.)

Let g P G.

CASE 1: g P H. Then gH “ H by Theorem 2.3.1(3) and Hg “ H by Theorem 2.3.1(4).

Therefore gH “ Hg if g P H.

CASE 2: g R H. Then gH ­“ H by Theorem 2.3.1(3). Since by assumption H and GzH are the
only left cosets of H, we conclude that gH must be GzH. Similary, Hg ­“ H and hence Hg “ GzH.
Therefore gH “ Hg if g R H.

We conclude that gH “ Hg for every g P G hence H E G. l

6.2 Exhaustive Proof

Sometimes one can brutally go through all the possibilities and show that a statement is True. This
only works if there are a relatively small number of possibilities to consider. An Exhaustive Proof
is a special case of Proof by Cases whereby each case involves a single example.

Page: 11 of 16
 8 VACUOUS PROOFS

Example 1: Prove that every even integer greater than 2 and less than 22 is a sum of two
prime numbers.

Proof: 4 “ 2 ` 2, 6 “ 3 ` 3, 8 “ 3 ` 5, 10 “ 5 ` 5, 12 “ 5 ` 7, 14 “ 7 ` 7, 16 “ 5 ` 11,
18 “ 5 ` 13, 20 “ 7 ` 13.
Therefore every even integer greater than 2 and less than 22 is a sum of two prime numbers. l11

Example 2: Show that the subgroup K “ te, p123q, p132qu of S3 is a normal subgroup of S3 .

Proof: (We are going to use Exhaustive Proof to show that gK “ Kg for every g P S3 .12 )

I will not include all details. But one proceeds by computing all the cosets

eK, p12qK, p13qK, p23qK, p123qK, p132qK, Ke, Kp12q, Kp23q, Kp123q, Kp132q

and, at the end of the day, show that

eK “ Ke, p12qK “ Kp12q, p13qK “ Kp13q, p123qK “ Kp123q, p132qK “ Kp132q.

After this, you can declare that gK “ Kg for every g P S3 hence K is a normal subgroup.

7 Proofs of Equivalence
If we want to prove a statement of the form “P if and only if Q”, that is, a statement of the form
P ðñ Q, we prove that “P ùñ Q” as well as “Q ùñ P ”.

Example: Let G be a finite group. Prove that G is cyclic if and only if there exists an element
g P G such that |G| “ |g|.

Proof: pñq Suppose G is cyclic. Then G “ xgy for some element g P G, by definition of a cyclic
group. Therefore |G| “ |g| by Corollary 1.5.3(a).

pðq Suppose there is a g P G such that |G| “ |g|. We know that xgy Ď G. The argument in
Theorem 1.5.3 shows that |xgy| “ |g|. Since |G| “ |g|, the finite set G and its subset xgy have the
same number of elements. Therefore G “ xgy, a cyclic group. l

8 Vacuous Proofs
Recall that the conditional statement P ùñ Q is False only when P is True and Q is False, other-
wise it is a True statement. In particular, when P is False, then the statement P ùñ Q is always
True. So if you can establish that P is False, then you have proved that the statement P ùñ Q
11
The Goldbach’s Conjecture states that every even integer greater than 2 is a sum of two primes. To date, there
is no proof of this statement, and neither is there a counterexample to this claim.
12
Instead of using this brute force method, one can always use Theorem 2.4.3 or Corollary 2.4.4.

Page: 12 of 16
 10 MISTAKES IN PROOFS

is a True statement. Such a proof is called a Vacuous Proof. Usually, it is employed to prove a
statement of the from P ùñ Q in a Proof by Cases whereby in some cases P is False. It is not
a very common proof, and in MAT324 it is explicitly needed exactly once and it will not appear
again. Here is where you need it in MAT324:

Consider the axiom M4 which a ring may or may not satisfy. It says that, IF a P R and a ­“ z,
THEN D a1 P R such that a ¨ a1 “ a1 ¨ a “ e. But in the zero-ring R “ t0u, there is no element a P R
such that a ­“ z, since the ring has only the single element z. Thus “a P R and a ­“ z” is always
False, and therefore axiom M4 holds vacuously in this ring. Quite a technicality!

9 Other Proofs
There are many other proofs in mathematics, for example the Mathematical Induction Proof.13
More next time! In “real life”, a combination of techniques could be employed in a single proof.
For example, in the proof of Theorem 2.4.3 in the Notes, the first part of the proof was a Direct
Proof from the hypothesis rG : 2s “ 2 to the fact that H and GzH were the only cosets of H. From
here, Proof by Cases was employed to show that indeed H E G.

10 Mistakes in Proofs
We have already seen that we don’t prove a statements by giving examples, unless it’s an instance
that calls for a counterexample. Always check your computations; elementary algebra mistakes can
make your life miserable. Also check the structure of your arguments, for (a) sometimes one assumes
the conclusion is true before it has been proven to be true; or (b) steps are taken that do not logi-
cally follow from the preceding ones14 ; and (c) oftentimes students confuse the conditional statement
P ùñ Q with its converse Q ùñ P : the statement P ùñ Q is not logically equivalent to Q ùñ P .15

Example 1: Let n be a positive integer. Prove that rpn ´ 1q2 sn “ r1sn .

If you place any of the statements “Let rpn ´ 1q2 sn “ r1sn ”, or “Suppose rpn ´ 1q2 sn “ r1sn ”,
or “Since rpn ´ 1q2 sn “ r1sn ”, etc. anywhere before the conclusion, then you are assuming the
conclusion has already been proved. As a Golden Rule, you don’t want any step you take to depend
on the truth of the statement you are trying to prove.

Example 2: The set K “ te, p23qu is a subgroup of the symmetric group of degree 3, pS3 , ˝q.
Show that K is not a normal subgroup of S3 .

|S3 |
False Proof: rS3 : Ks “ “ 26 “ 3. Since 3 ­“ 2, K is not normal in S3 . l
|K|
13
Although not at all obvious at this point, the Principle of Mathematical Induction is equivalent to the Well-
Ordering Principle for Natural Numbers we encountered in the course – a very potent weapon in the right hands!
14
To avoid this, familiarise yourself with the Rules of Inference in Appendix B
15
If in doubt about whether two statements are equivalent, consult Appendix A.

Page: 13 of 16
 10 MISTAKES IN PROOFS

This is supposedly using Theorem 2.4.3, which asserts that

If rG : Hs “ 2, then H E G.

This statement is not logically equivalent to the converse statement If H E G, then rG : Hs “ 2.

As a matter of fact, the false statement

If H E G, then rG : Hs “ 2

is logically equivalent to

If rG : Hs ­“ 2, then H is not a normal subgroup of G,

and it is this false last statement that has been employed in the false proof above.

....... to be continued ......

Page: 14 of 16
 11 APPENDIX A: SOME IMPORTANT LOGICAL EQUIVALENCES

11 Appendix A: Some Important Logical Equivalences

In this appendix, you will see important examples of statements that are logically equivalent, as
well as negations of some statements. You don’t need to master everything at once.

TABLE 1 Important Logical Equivalences.

Equivalence Name
p^T”p Identity laws
p_F”p
p_T”T Domination laws
p^F”F
p_p”p Idempotent laws
p^p”p
p pq ” p Double negation law
p_q ”q_p Commutative laws
p^q ”q^p
pp _ qq _ r ” p _ pq _ rq Associative laws
pp ^ qq ^ r ” p ^ pq ^ rq
p _ pq ^ rq ” pp _ qq ^ pp _ rq Distributive laws
p ^ pq _ rq ” pp ^ qq _ pp ^ rq
pp ^ qq ” p _ q De Morgan’s laws
pp _ qq ” p ^ q
p _ pp ^ qq ” p Absorption laws
p ^ pp _ qq ” p
p_ p”T Negation laws
p^ p“F

[Here, T (respectively F) denotes a proposition that is always True (respectively False). The
logical operator _ stands for or , ^ stands for and, and stands for the negation of a statement.]

TABLE 2 Extra Logical Equivalences.

pñq ” p_q
pñq” qñ p
p_q ” pñq
p ^ q ” pp ñ qq
pp ñ qq ” p ^ q
pp ñ qq ^ pp ñ rq ” p ñ pq ^ rq
pp ñ rq ^ pq ñ rq ” pp _ qq ñ r
pp ñ qq _ pp ñ rq ñ p ñ pq _ rq
pp ñ rq _ pq ñ rq ” pp ^ qq ñ r
p ô q ” pp ñ qq ^ pq ñ pq
pôq” pô q
p ô q ” pp ^ qq _ p p ^ qq
pp ô qq ” p ô q

Page: 15 of 16
 12 APPENDIX B: RULES OF INFERENCE

12 Appendix B: Rules of Inference

This appendix assists you in ensuring that steps you take logically follow from the preceding ones.
As before, you don’t need to master everything at once.

TABLE 3 Rules of Inference.

Rule of Inference Tautology Name
p
pñq pp ^ pp ñ qqq ñ q Modus ponens
6q
q
pñq p q ^ pp ñ qqq ñ p Modus tollens
6 p
pñq
qñr ppp ñ qq ^ pq ñ rqq ñ pp ñ rq Hypothetical syllogism
6pñr
p^q
pp ^ qq ñ p Simplification
6p
p_q
p pp _ qq ^ pq Ñ q Disjunctive syllogism
6q
p
q pppq ^ pqqq ñ pp ^ qq Conjunction
6p^q
p
p ñ pp _ qq Addition
6p_q
p_q
p_r ppp _ qq ^ p p _ rqq ñ pq _ rq Resolution
6q_r
pñF
p p ñ Fq ñ p Contradiction
6p

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