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What is proof by deduction?

Proof by deduction is a proof that consists of using known theorems to prove a given statement is always true.

How do you prove by deduction?

How do you prove by deduction?

  • Proof by deduction begins with a known theorem.
  • We use a series of logical steps to go from the theorem to the final statement.
    • You need to write out each step clearly and consider all potential cases.
  • This statement should either prove the conjecture is always true or that it must be false.
Example

Example

  • Prove that the sum of two odd numbers is even.
Assumptions

Assumptions

  • If xx and yy are odd, we can write them as:
    • x=2a+1x = 2a+1 and y=2b+1y = 2b+1
  • Where aa and bb are integers.
Sum

Sum

  • Adding xx and yy together, we get:
    • x+y=2a+1+2b+1=2a+2b+2x+y = 2a+1+2b+1 = 2a + 2b + 2
  • Collecting terms in a sum like this is known to be always true, so it's a valid step in the proof.
Inspection

Inspection

  • In order for x+yx+y to be even, we need to be able to write it as 2c2c, where cc is an integer.
  • By inspecting the equation for x+yx+y we obtained earlier, we can rewrite it as:
    • x+y=2a+2b+2=2(a+b+1)x+y = 2a+2b+2 = 2(a+b+1)
  • As aa and bb are integers, a+b+1a+b+1 is also an integer.
  • This means x+yx+y is an even number, for all possible odd values of xx and yy.
Final statement

Final statement

  • The sum of two odd numbers is an even number.
Jump to other topics
1

Proof

2

Algebra & Functions

2.1

Powers & Roots

2.2

Quadratic Equations

2.3

Inequalities

2.4

Polynomials

2.5

Graphs

2.6

Functions

2.7

Transformation of Graphs

2.8

Partial Fractions (A2 Only)

3

Coordinate Geometry

4

Sequences & Series

5

Trigonometry

6

Exponentials & Logarithms

7

Differentiation

8

Integration

9

Numerical Methods

10

Vectors

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