Step 1: Understanding the Question:
The problem requires us to find the structural negation of a compound mathematical statement joined by the logical connective "and".
Step 2: Key Formula or Approach:
Let the component simple statements be:
$p: 3 + 6 > 8$
$q: 2 + 3 < 6$
The given compound statement can be written symbolically as $p \land q$. According to De Morgan's Laws of logic, the negation of a conjunction is equivalent to the disjunction of the individual negations:
$$\sim(p \land q) \equiv \sim p \lor \sim q$$
Step 3: Detailed Explanation:
1. Find the negation of the first statement $p$:
$$\sim p: \text{Negation of } (3 + 6 > 8) \text{ is } (3 + 6 \le 8)$$
2. Find the negation of the second statement $q$:
$$\sim q: \text{Negation of } (2 + 3 < 6) \text{ is } (2 + 3 \ge 6)$$
3. Apply De Morgan's Law by combining the negated components with an "or" ($\lor$) logical operator:
$$\sim(p \land q) \equiv (3 + 6 \le 8) \text{ or } (2 + 3 \ge 6)$$
Step 4: Final Answer:
The negation of the statement corresponds to option (C).