Linear Algebra : Matrices

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for Linear Algebra

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Example Questions

Example Question #23 : Vector Vector Product

.

 is equal to the fifth-degree Maclaurin series for  for:

Possible Answers:

None of the other choices gives the correct response.

Correct answer:

Explanation:

The th-degree Maclaurin series for a function  is the polynomial

If ,

then

.

Therefore, we want  to be the vector of Maclaurin coefficients by ascending order of degree.

The fifth-degree Maclaurin series for  is

The Maclaurin series for  can be derived from this by replacing  with :

Therefore, 

Example Question #24 : Vector Vector Product

Which of the following is undefined,  or ?

Possible Answers:

Neither

Both 

Correct answer:

Explanation:

, the dot product of the vectors,  is a defined quantity if and only if both vectors are elements of the same vector space. Each has four entries, so both are in . Consequently,  is defined.

, the cross product of the vectors, is a defined vector if and only if both vectors are elements in . As previously mentioned, they are in , so  is undefined.

Example Question #25 : Vector Vector Product

 

Which of the following is undefined,  or ?

Possible Answers:

Neither

Both 

Correct answer:

Both 

Explanation:

, the dot product of the vectors,  is a defined quantity if and only if both vectors are elements of the same vector space.  has three entries, so  has two entries, so . The two are in different vector spaces, so  is undefined.

, the cross product of the vectors, is a defined vector if and only if both vectors are elements in . As previously mentioned, , so  is undefined.

Example Question #21 : Vector Vector Product

 

Evaluate 

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

One way to determine the cross-product of two vectors is to set up a matrix with the first row , where these are the unit vectors , respectively, and with the entries of the vectors as the other two rows:

We can evaluate this as we would evaluate a determinant of a matrix with real entries. Take the products of the upper-left-to-lower-right diagonals, and subtract the products of the lower-left-to-upper-right diagonals:

Cross product

Example Question #27 : Vector Vector Product

If , then evaluate .

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

The dot product  is equal to the sum of the products of the numbers in corresponding positions, so 

Applying the properties of logarithms:

Therefore, .

Example Question #28 : Vector Vector Product

The expression  yields a polynomial of what degree?

Possible Answers:

None of the other choices gives a correct response.

Correct answer:

Explanation:

The dot product  is the sum of the products of entries in corresponding positions, so

The degree of a term of a polynomial is the sum of the exponents of its variables; the individual terms have degrees 5, 4, 3, 7, 4, and 7, in that order. the degree of the polynomial is the highest of these, which is 7.

Example Question #29 : Vector Vector Product

A triangle has two sides of length  and ; their included angle has measure . The measure of the third side can be obtained from the expression

,

where  and:

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Given the lengths  and  of two sides of a triangle, and the measure of their included angle, , the length  of the third side of a triangle can be calculated using the Law of Cosines, which states that 

.

The dot product  is equal to the sum of the products of their corresponding entries, and since , we can substitute  for  :

 ; it follows that .

Example Question #30 : Vector Vector Product

 and  are differentiable functions.

Which value of  makes this statement true?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Recall the quotient rule of differentiation:

This can be rewritten as

If  and 

then multiply corresponding elements and add the products to get the sole element in :

Since we want 

,

It follows that, of the given choices,   and , and

.

 

Example Question #841 : Linear Algebra

Calculate the angle (nearest degree) between  and .

Possible Answers:

The angle is undefined, since the vectors are in .

Correct answer:

Explanation:

The angle  between vectors   and  can be calculated using the formula

.

, the dot product, is the sum of the products of corresponding entries:

, the norm of , is the square root of the sum of the squares of its entries;  is defined similarly:

Example Question #32 : Vector Vector Product

, and  give the length, width, and height of a rectangular prism.

 and .

True or false:  gives the surface area of the prism.

Possible Answers:

True

False

Correct answer:

False

Explanation:

The dot product  can be calculated by adding the products of the elements in corresponding locations, so

.

The surface area of the prism, , can be found by using the formula:

Equivalently,  gives half the surface area of the prism. The statement is false.

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