more halp (N vs N0 vs N* vs Z+ vs Z*+ vs Z>0 vs Z>=0 vs P)
by math_explorer, May 9, 2013, 12:58 PM
What do you think is the best way to denote the sets of nonnegative integers and of positive integers? I'll be using both a couple times in an article (not really olympiad-related), with the former slightly more. I won't be using the set of integers.
Note that
can definitely mean either one: please read "The Battle of N" thread and some of JBL's links there. I've always learned it as 
but now I always add a star superscript or a 0 subscript in olympiad proofs, just in case, and this article is going to be combinatorial.
Of course, whatever notation I'll use will be defined, so ambiguity isn't really an issue, but still.
Reasonable possibilities include:
(feels redundant in the same article)
(meh hard to distinguish)
Note that
can definitely mean either one: please read "The Battle of N" thread and some of JBL's links there. I've always learned it as 
but now I always add a star superscript or a 0 subscript in olympiad proofs, just in case, and this article is going to be combinatorial.Of course, whatever notation I'll use will be defined, so ambiguity isn't really an issue, but still.
Reasonable possibilities include:
(feels redundant in the same article)
(meh hard to distinguish)
for the nonnegative integers. We already have 
for the positive ones. All the stars, zeros, and subscripts are just obnoxious in my opinion.
and 
May 2020
January 2020