1.

1: - The Real Numbers

 Natural (counting) numbers –> 1, 2, 3, . . . . . . . . .
 Whole numbers –> 0, 1, 2, 3, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
 Integers –> . . . . . . -3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3, . . . . . . . . . .
𝑝
 Rational numbers –> All numbers that can be written in the form ,
𝑞
where p and q are integers and 𝑞 ≠ 0
3 5
Ex: - , 3.45, − , -1.2 etc. are rational numbers.
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 Irrational numbers – Real numbers that are not rational numbers
Ex: - √2, √3, √5, 𝜋, 𝑒 𝑒𝑡𝑐. are irrational numbers.
 Real numbers – All rational and irrational numbers are real numbers

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Examples:
1. What kind of number is each of the following?
a) 6  It belongs to N, W, I, Q, R
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b)  Rational and real number. (belongs to Q and R)
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c) 3𝜋 Since 𝜋 = 3.14159 … is not rational, so 3𝜋 is an irrational and

real number
d) √5 It is an irrational and real number
e) √16 Since √16 = 4, so it is not an irrational number. It is belongs
to I, Q and R.

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f) −2 It belongs to I, Q and R
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g) −  It is a rational and real number
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𝜋
h)  Irrational and real number
5

i) 4𝑒 Since 𝑒 is irrational, 4𝑒 also irrational and real number

j) √−5 It is not a real number

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Properties of Real Numbers
For all real numbers a, b and c the following properties hold true:
Property Addition Multiplication
Commutative a+b=b+a ab=ba
Associative (a + b) + c = a + (b + c) (a b) c = a (b c)
Identity a.1=1.a=a
a+0=0+a=a
(1 is the multiplicative
(0 is the additive identity)
identity)
Inverse 1 1
a + (- a) = (- a) + a = 0 𝑎. = . 𝑎 = 1
𝑎 𝑎
(- a is the additive inverse of 1
( is the multiplicative
𝑎
a)
inverse of a)
Distributive a (b + c) = a b + a c and (a + b) c = a c + b c

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Examples
1. Commutative property
a) 3 + 4 = 4 + 3 b) (6 + x) + 9 = 9 + (6 + x)
c) 2 . 3 = 3 . 2 d) 5 . (9 . 8) = (9 . 8) . 5
2. Associative property
a) 4 + (9 + 8) = (4 + 9) + 8 b) 3 . (9 . x) = (3 . 9) . x
3. Identity property
a) – 8 + 0 = – 8 b) (– 9) . 1 = – 9
4. Inverse property
a) 9 + (– 9) = 0 b) – 15 + 15 = 0
1 1
c) – 8 . ( ) = 1 d) . √5 = 1
–8 √5

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5. Distributive property
a) 9(6 + 4) = 9.6 + 9.4 b) 3(𝑥 + 𝑦) = 3. 𝑥 + 3. 𝑦
c) −8(𝑚 + 2) = −8𝑚 + (−8)2 d) (5 + 𝑥 )𝑦 = 5. 𝑦 + 𝑥. 𝑦
Exercise
Name the property in the following
a) (2 + 3) + 9 = (3 + 2) + 9 
b) (2 + 3) + 9 = 2 + (3 + 9) 
c) (2 + 3) + 9 = 9 + (2 + 3) 
d) (4 . 6) . 𝑝 = (6 . 4) . 𝑝 
e) 4(6𝑝) = (4 . 6)𝑝 

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f) 2 + 0 = 2 
1
g) . (−4) = 1 
−4
1 1
h) − + = 0 
2 2
2 2
i) 1 . = 
3 3

j) 2(𝑎 + 𝑏) = 2𝑎 + 2𝑏 
k) 4(−2 + 5) = 4(−2) + 4(5) 
l) −3(𝑝 + 1) = −3𝑝 − 3 
m) (8 − 𝑘)𝑚 = 8𝑚 − 𝑘𝑚 
n) 5𝑥 + 3𝑥 = (5 + 3)𝑥 

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o) 5𝑥 + 5𝑦 = 5(𝑥 + 𝑦) 
p) 3𝑚 − 3𝑛 = 3(𝑚 − 𝑛) 
Order of Operations
1) Calculate the expressions inside the brackets (Parentheses, Square
brackets, etc.)
2) Find all powers and roots, working from left to right.
3) Do the multiplications or divisions in the order in which they occur,
from left to right.
4) Finally, do the additions or subtractions in the order in which they
occur, working from left to right.

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Examples
1. Simplify:[(3 + 2) − 7]5 + 2[(6 . 3) − 13]
Sol: - [(3 + 2) − 7]5 + 2[(6 . 3) − 13]
= [5 − 7]5 + 2[18 − 13]
= (−2)5 + 2(5) = −10 + 10 = 0
2. Use the order of operations to evaluate each of the following
expressions if x = -2, y = 5 and z = -3
a) −4𝑥 2 − 7𝑦 + 4𝑧
Sol: - −4(−2)2 − 7(5) + 4(−3)
= −4(4) − 35 − 12 = −16 − 35 − 12 = −63

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 2(𝑥−5)2 +4𝑦
b)
𝑧+4
2(−2−5)2 +4(5) 2(−7)2 +20
Sol:- = = 2(49) + 20 = 98 + 20 = 118
−3+4 1

Square Roots: -
 The square root of a non – negative number d is defined to be the
non – negative number whose square is d. This number is denoted by
√𝑑.
Example: - 1) Since 42 = 16, the square root of 16 is 4. That is √16 =
2) 62 = 36 √36 = 6
3) √0 = 0 4) √1.44 = 1.2 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒 (1.2)2 = 1.44

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Note: 1) For negative numbers there is no real square root
2) √𝑎 + 𝑏 ≠ √𝑎 + √𝑏
Ex: - √9 + 16 = √25 = 5 but √9 + √16 = 3 + 4 = 7
3) √𝑎 − 𝑏 ≠ √𝑎 − √𝑏 Ex: - √16 − 9 = √7 but √16 − √9 = 4 − 3 = 1
4) √𝑎𝑏 = √𝑎√𝑏 Ex: - √9.16 = √144 = 12 and √9. √16 = 3 . 4 = 12
𝑎 √𝑎 9 √9 3
5) √ = Ex: - √ = =
𝑏 √𝑏 16 √16 4

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The Number Line: - The real numbers can be illustrated geometrically
with a diagram called number line. Each number corresponds to exactly
one point on the line and vice versa.

Greater than and Less than:

Symbol Read Meaning
𝑎<𝑏 a is less than b a is smaller than b
𝑎>𝑏 a is greater than b a is bigger than b
𝑎≤𝑏 a is less than or equal to b 𝑎 < 𝑏 𝑜𝑟 𝑎 = 𝑏
𝑎≥𝑏 a is greater than or equal to b 𝑎 > 𝑏 𝑜𝑟 𝑎 = 𝑏
Note: - If a ≥ b then b ≤ a
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Examples
1. Write true or false for each of the following
a) 8 < 12  [true] b) – 6 > – 3 [false] c) – 2 ≤ – 2  [true]
d) – 9 ≤ – 12  [false] e) 8 > – 2  [true] f) – 14 ≥ – 20  [true]
2. Use an inequality symbol to write the following statements
a) x is less than or equal to y  x ≤ y
b) – 5 is less than 2 –5<2
c) 10 is greater than or equal to 4  10 ≥ 4
d) p is greater than q  p>q

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3. Graph the real numbers x such that 1 < x < 5
Sol:

4. Graph all real numbers x such that

a) – 5 ≤ x < 1

b) 4 < x ≤ 7
Intervals
Interval Inequality Explanation
All real numbers between a and b including a
[𝑎, 𝑏] 𝑎≤𝑥≤𝑏
and b

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 All real numbers between a and b without
(𝑎, 𝑏) 𝑎<𝑥<𝑏
including a and b
[𝑎, 𝑏) 𝑎≤𝑥<𝑏 All real numbers between a and b including a
(𝑎, 𝑏] 𝑎<𝑥≤𝑏 All real numbers between a and b including b
(𝑎, ∞) 𝑥>𝑎 All real numbers greater than a
[𝑎, ∞) 𝑥≥𝑎 All real numbers greater than a including a
(−∞, 𝑎) 𝑥<𝑎 All real numbers less than a
(−∞, 𝑎] 𝑥≤𝑎 All real numbers less than a including a

Example:
1. Graph the interval (−2, ∞)
Sol:

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2. Graph the intervals
a) (−∞, 4]

b) [−2, 1]

Absolute Value: - The absolute value of a real number a is the distance

from a to 0 on the number line.
Examples: a) |9| = 9 and |– 9| = 9
b) |5.3| = 5.3 c) |- 2.5| = 2.5 d) |50 – 100| = 50
−𝑎, 𝑖𝑓 𝑎 < 0
 For any real number a, |𝑎| = {
𝑎, 𝑖𝑓 𝑎 ≥ 0

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Examples:
1. Find the following
a) |– 6| = 6 b) –|7| = –7 c) –|–2| = –2 d) |–3 – 4|= 7
e) |2 – 7| = 5 f) |8 – 9| = 1 g) –|–5 – 8|= –13
2. Find the following
a) For x < 7, |x – 7| = –(x – 7) = – x + 7
b) For x > 5, |x – 5| = x – 5
c) For x < 2, |2 – x| = 2 – x
d) For x > 3, |3 – x| = – (3 – x) = x – 3

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For Extra Questions & Students Queries

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 1.2: - Polynomials
 If n is a natural number and a is a real number, then 𝑎𝑛 =
𝑎. 𝑎. 𝑎 … (𝑛 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒𝑠). The number a is the base, and the number n is the
exponent.
Ex1: - Find the following values
a) 44 = 4 ∙ 4 ∙ 4 ∙ 4 = 256
b) (−5)3 = (−5) ∙ (−5) ∙ (−5) = −125
c) 63 = d) 19 =
3 4 3 3 3 3 81
e) ( ) = ∙ ∙ ∙ =
2 2 2 2 2 16

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Rules
i) 𝑎𝑚 ∙ 𝑎𝑛 = 𝑎𝑚+𝑛 ii) (𝑎𝑚 )𝑛 = 𝑎𝑚𝑛 iii) 𝑎0 = 1, (𝑎 ≠ 0)
Ex: - Simplify the following
1) 74 ∙ 76 = 710 2) (−2)3 ∙ (−2)5 = (−2)8
3) (2𝑘)2 ∙ (2𝑘)3 = (2𝑘)5 4) (𝑚 + 𝑛)2 ∙ (𝑚 + 𝑛)5 = (𝑚 + 𝑛)7
5) (𝑥 3 )4 = 𝑥 12 6) 170 = 1 7) (−10)0 = 1
8) −(12)0 = −1 9) 00 is not defined.

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Polynomials: -
 A polynomial is an algebraic expression and it is sum of terms.
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Ex: - 5𝑥 4 + 2𝑥 3 + 6𝑥, 8𝑚3 + 9𝑥 2 + 𝑚 + 3, −10𝑝 , 5
2
 The letter used in polynomial is called variable.
 The constants that appear in each term are the coefficients of
the polynomial.
 The coefficient of 𝑥 0 is called the constant term.
 The highest power of variable with non-zero coefficient in a
polynomial is the degree of the polynomial.
 The coefficient of highest power term is called leading
coefficient of the polynomial.

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  A polynomial that consists only constant term is constant
polynomial.
 If the constant term in a constant polynomial is 0, then it is zero
polynomial.
Names of Some Polynomials according to their degree:
 A first-degree polynomial is also called a "Linear" polynomial.
Ex: 4x, x – 9, ax + b etc.
 A second-degree polynomial is also called a "quadratic" polynomial.
Ex: 4x2, x2 – 9, ax2 + bx + c etc.
 A third-degree polynomial is also called a "cubic" polynomial.
Ex: –6𝑥3, 7𝑥3 – 27 etc.
 A fourth-degree polynomial is also called a "quartic" or “biquadratic”
polynomial. Ex: 5𝑥4, 7𝑥4 – 3x2 + 9 etc.

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Examples: -
1. Identify the coefficients and the constant term of the given
polynomial
5𝑥 2 − 𝑥 + 12  The coefficients are 5, -1 and 12. The constant term is 12.
2. List the degree of the polynomial, coefficients, leading coefficient and
constant term of the given polynomials.
Polynomial Degree Coefficients Leading Constant
coefficient term
6𝑥 7 + 4𝑥 3 + 5𝑥 2 7 6, 4, 5, −7, 10 6 10
− 7𝑥 + 10
4 3
1 4 1 −1 1
−𝑥 + 2𝑥 + −1, 2,
2 2 2
𝑥3
12

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Addition and Subtraction: -
 The terms having the same variable with same exponent are
called like terms. Other terms are unlike terms.
 Only like terms can be combined by adding or subtracting.
Ex: - 12𝑦 4 + 6𝑦 4 = (12 + 6)𝑦 4 = 18𝑦 4
−2𝑚3 + 8𝑚3 = (−2 + 8)𝑚3 = 6𝑚3

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1. Add the following polynomials
a) (8𝑥 3 − 4𝑥 2 + 6𝑥 ) + (3𝑥 3 + 5𝑥 2 − 9𝑥 + 8)
Sol: - 8𝑥 3 − 4𝑥 2 + 6𝑥 + 3𝑥 3 + 5𝑥 2 − 9𝑥 + 8 (Eliminated parentheses)
= (8𝑥 3 + 3𝑥 3 ) + (−4𝑥 2 + 5𝑥 2 ) + (6𝑥 − 9𝑥) + 8 (Group like terms)
= 11𝑥 3 + 𝑥 2 − 3𝑥 + 8 (Combine like terms)
2. Subtract: (2𝑥 2 − 11𝑥 + 8) − (7𝑥 2 − 6𝑥 + 2)
Sol: - 2𝑥 2 − 11𝑥 + 8 − 7𝑥 2 + 6𝑥 − 2 (Eliminated parentheses)
= (2𝑥 2 − 7𝑥 2 ) + (−11𝑥 + 6𝑥 ) + (8 − 2) (Group like terms)
= −5𝑥 2 − 5𝑥 + 6 (Combine like terms)

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Multiplication: -
 We use the distributive property to multiply polynomials.
Ex: - 8𝑥 (6𝑥 − 4) = 8𝑥 (6𝑥 ) − 8𝑥(4) (Distributive property)
= 48𝑥 2 − 32𝑥
1. Find the following products
a) 2𝑝3 (3𝑝2 − 2𝑝 + 5)
Sol: - 2𝑝3 (3𝑝2 ) − 2𝑝3 (2𝑝) + 2𝑝3
= 6𝑝5 − 4𝑝4 + 10𝑝3

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b) (3𝑘 − 2)(𝑘 2 + 5𝑘 − 4)
Sol: - 3𝑘(𝑘 2 + 5𝑘 − 4) − 2(𝑘 2 + 5𝑘 − 4)
= 3𝑘 3 + 15𝑘 2 − 12𝑘 − 2𝑘 2 − 10𝑘 + 8
= 3𝑘 3 + 13𝑘 2 − 22𝑘 + 8
2. Find the product (2𝑥 − 5)(3𝑥 + 4)
Sol: - (2𝑥 − 5)(3𝑥 + 4)
= 2𝑥 (3𝑥 + 4) − 5(3𝑥 + 4)
= 2𝑥 ∙ 3𝑥 + 2𝑥 ∙ 4 + (−5) ∙ 3𝑥 + (−5) ∙ 4
= 6𝑥 2 + 8𝑥 − 15𝑥 − 20
= 6𝑥 2 − 7𝑥 − 20

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For Extra Questions & Students Queries

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