Symmetric difference #
The symmetric difference or disjunctive union of sets A and B is the set of elements that are
in either A or B but not both. Translated into propositions, the symmetric difference is xor.
The symmetric difference operator (symm_diff) is defined in this file for any type with ⊔ and
\ via the formula (A \ B) ⊔ (B \ A), however the theorems proved about it only hold for
generalized_boolean_algebras and boolean_algebras.
The symmetric difference is the addition operator in the Boolean ring structure on Boolean algebras.
Main declarations #
symm_diff: the symmetric difference operator, defined as(A \ B) ⊔ (B \ A)
In generalized Boolean algebras, the symmetric difference operator is:
symm_diff_comm: commutative, andsymm_diff_assoc: associative.
Notations #
a ∆ b:symm_diff a b
References #
The proof of associativity follows the note "Associativity of the Symmetric Difference of Sets: A Proof from the Book" by John McCuan:
Tags #
boolean ring, generalized boolean algebra, boolean algebra, symmetric differences