Whole Numbers

Natural Numbers are the numbers that we use to count: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, …

We represent all of them by    N= {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, …}

 

When we add the zero and the negative numbers to the Natural Numbers, we obtain the Whole Numbers and we represent all of them by:

Z= {…, -4, -3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3, …}

and we represent these numbers in a straight line

The absolute value of a whole number is the natural number which results when we remove its sign:

   |-5| = 5              |11| = 11                  |0| = 0

 

The opposite of a whole number is another whole number with the same absolute value and the opposite sign:

   Op(-3) = 3           Op(0) = 0               Op(7) = -7

 

 

Exercise: calculate:

a) |-21| =

b) |16| =

c) |15-18|=

d) Op(-13) =

e) Op(179) =

f) Op(12-17) =

 

 

 

Solutions: a) 21; b) 16; c) 3; d) 13; e) -179; f) 5