
398 Appendix A
A.1.4 Sets
A set is a collection of entities that can be identified. The entities are called members or elements of
the set. Sets are characterized by the concept of membership, denoted by the symbol ∈.
a ∈ S, the entity a is a member of the set S.
a ∉ S, the entity a is not a member of S.
A set can be Finite, for example, the set of non-negative integers less than 5.
A small finite set is often written out fully as, for example {1, 2, 3, 4}.
A set can be Empty, for example, a set of all human beings aged more than 500 years. Such a set
is also called null-set and denoted by symbol ∅.
A set can be Infinite, for example, the set of ...