Questions tagged [linear-algebra]

For questions related to linear mappings, matrices, basis, determinants, eigenvalues and other topics commonly done in a linear algebra course.

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5 answers
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Lowercase vs. uppercase letters for matrix entries

For a matrix $A$ in, say for instance, $\mathbb{R}^{m \times n}$, there are at least two different conventions to denote its entry at position $(j,k)$: Denote the entry as $a_{jk}$. Denote the entry ...
3 votes
5 answers
366 views

How do I teach the difference between Linear Equations and Equation of a Line

I am more of an Intuitive Learner and Teacher so while looking at Linear Equations chapter I see that they are teaching Equations of Line there, which in my opinion is wrong. See How I understand it ...
4 votes
2 answers
1k views

Is the Wronskian still assumed for graduate education?

About thirty years ago, in a practice GRE (Graduate Record Exam) math test in the US, a question assumed the student knew the definition of the Wronskian. I had never heard of this determinant before. ...
7 votes
7 answers
330 views

Creative problems in 2D vector geometry

What are some "interesting" and creative problems or exercises on specifically 2-dimensional vector geometry that a high school student might find compelling to solve? The class' current ...
16 votes
18 answers
3k views

Concrete vectors spaces without an obvious basis or many "obvious" bases?

I am teaching a class on linear algebra to sophomore and junior science majors, and am having some trouble illustrating the difference between $\mathbb{R}^n$ and an n-dimensional vector space. The ...
4 votes
1 answer
230 views

Tips for teaching mathematics with experiments?

I am teaching a first-linear-algebra course for mostly undergraduate Computer Science and Data Science students. Occasionally, I tried to do a bit computer experiments in class and ask students to ...
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10 votes
4 answers
451 views

Should students in a first university linear algebra class be taught to write simple proofs?

I am teaching an introductory linear algebra courses for undergraduate students in math, computer science, or data science at a liberal art university. Most of the students have not decided their ...
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3 votes
1 answer
101 views

Questions to help better understand the textbook

I am teaching a linear algebra class for math majors and non-majors out of the first 4 chapters of Lay's book. My plan is to have the students read a section prior to each class, have them answer a ...
6 votes
3 answers
352 views

Preparing to be a linear-algebra teacher: Any tips/suggestions?

I'm engineer and I love linear-algebra. I finished a couple of days the Linear-Algebra on OpenCourseMIT to refresh my memory and I have been doing ton of exercises. I would like to teach to engineer ...
0 votes
2 answers
156 views

Which context of the two contexts of the linear function concept should be taught first?

It appears in the current version of the Wikipedian article Linear function: In mathematics, the term linear function refers to two distinct but related notions:1 In calculus and related areas, a ...
4 votes
2 answers
493 views

Should I gave a make up lecture if some students found what I taught is a bit unclear?

This semester, I am teaching discrete math for computer science students. Today I taught solving linear recurrence equations. The way I did it was not rigors. Instead I used the method of advanced ...
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7 votes
1 answer
327 views

Vector geometry as a prelude to linear algebra

When I was in grade 11, I was fortunate enough to attend a high school that offered an optional course in vector geometry. The course was taught out of the book Analytic Geometry with an Introduction ...
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11 votes
2 answers
405 views

Teaching LU Factorization in a sophomore-level Linear Algebra course

I teach this course from David Lay's Linear Algebra and Its Applications, which on the whole is a great textbook and explains things well. It does not explain the steps of LU factorization well, so I ...
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9 votes
4 answers
2k views

Computing eigenvalues by hand without determinants

I'm teaching a linear algebra class and I'm considering presenting eigenvectors and eigenvalues without using determinants, as in Axler's book Linear Algebra Done Right. (See also Axler's paper "...
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4 votes
2 answers
345 views

Applications of the annihilator from linear algebra

I am currently assisting a course for future teachers at university level for a joint education in maths and physics in Germany and I have a question regarding the use and possible application of the ...
0 votes
3 answers
202 views

Highly intuitive yet comprehensive and easily readable (student friendly) book on linear algebra which do not focus much on applications, just basics

I came to know about Gilbert Strang's two books, "Introduction to Linear Algebra" and "Linear Algebra and its Applications". The first is the one used as the text in the 18.06 ...
3 votes
3 answers
363 views

What is the English word for the French "repère"?

I'm preparing a holiday class in computer graphics. The class will be held in English. I'm a French speaker and I'm fighting with some words which have lots of meanings to find the right one in the ...
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40 votes
11 answers
3k views

Big list of "interesting" abstract vector spaces

When introducing an abstraction it is important (in my opinion) to have a wide variety of examples of this abstraction. Since finite dimensional real vector spaces are classified up to isomorphism by ...
2 votes
3 answers
251 views

Why do we typically only teach high-school students affine transformations of elementary functions?

A standard pre-calculus curriculum consists of the study of elementary functions: Polynomials, rational functions, (circular and hyperbolic) trigonometric functions, exponential functions, their ...
1 vote
0 answers
68 views

History of business calculus/linear algebra curriculum

I will be teaching a combination of business calculus and business linear algebra, two classes that have been around awhile at my school. I’m assuming people are familiar with these types of classes. ...
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4 votes
4 answers
283 views

Can we define length and perpendicularity not via an inner product?

A natural way to reason about Euclidean geometry using modern mathematical language is to define Euclidean space as an affine space $A$ directed by a finite-dimensional real vector space $V$. However, ...
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3 votes
4 answers
688 views

What is an algebraic explanation of why the product of the slopes of perpendicular lines is $-1$? [duplicate]

Q: What is a succinct, clear and purely algebraic explanation of why the product of the slopes of perpendicular lines is $-1$? Here I am aiming for high-school students (in the U.S.). I have a purely ...
7 votes
1 answer
267 views

The dimension theorem and pedagogy

The dimension theorem (the rank-nullity theorem) can be explained in many ways. I consider it as a consequence of the first isomorphism theorem/splitting lemma. When I teach undergrad matrix-theoretic ...
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2 votes
0 answers
94 views

Teaching linear algebra, wacom tablet display of coordinate system, eigenvectors, markov chains

I am teaching linear algebra as part of an information retrieval course, which now occurs online. I have a Wacom tablet and free drawing software, sketchBook for artists, so can draw circles ellipses ...
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7 votes
2 answers
1k views

Why does a first course in linear algebra teach QR-decomposition?

I am teaching a "linear algebra for engineers" course, and am currently building my lectures on Gram-Schmidt, QR-decomposition and least squares equation solving. $\bullet$ I can motivate ...
1 vote
0 answers
74 views

Exercises for explaning homothety, homothetic center, similarity on line and plane, free vector and vector space

I need the collection of exercises for such topics as: maps and transformations, composition of maps homothety, rotation homothety, homothetic center similarities of the line and the plane free ...
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0 votes
0 answers
152 views

How can I introduce the idea of eigenvectors and matrix decompositions to a general audience in an engaging manner?

So I'm doing a freelance writing job, writing a script for a YouTube video about eigenvectors/values. It took me a while to decide what the focus was going to be, but I finally settled on focusing on ...
18 votes
8 answers
4k views

Why do some linear algebra courses focus on matrices rather than linear maps?

I hope the essence of the question is clear from the title. There are obvious advantages to making the linear map the central notion of a linear algebra course: the notion can be illustrated with ...
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-1 votes
1 answer
114 views

How to start tackling a 200 page big script? [closed]

I am really not sure how to tackle a 200 page huge script with a lot of information about the topic linear algebra. Writing down the definitions would not make sense in my opinion, because if I want ...
6 votes
1 answer
186 views

Notation in the definition of matrix multiplication

When matrix multiplication is introduced, it is usually introduced with an additional variable: Given two multiplicable matrices $A$, $B$, one defines the product $C=AB$ to be the matrix given by some ...
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10 votes
3 answers
363 views

Can anyone recommend good software for verifying row reduction steps?

I work as a tutor for linear algebra. Students will often have a problem that requires them to row reduce, and they'll make an arithmetic mistake somewhere. Often they'll ask for my help finding ...
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6 votes
2 answers
233 views

How to come up with a Leslie matrix with convenient eigenvalues?

A three by three Leslie matrix looks like $$ \begin{bmatrix} f_0 & f_1 & f_2 \\ s_0 & 0 & 0 \\ 0 & s_1 & 0 \end{bmatrix}, $$ where $f_0 \ge 0$ and everything else is ...
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3 votes
2 answers
490 views

Selected Exercise for Linear Algebra Done Right Edition 3 [closed]

I am self learning the book Linear Algebra Done Right. I tried to complete all exercises in each chapter. I am currently at Chapter 3 and found that it is not feasible to complete all of the exercises....
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10 votes
4 answers
2k views

Notation for change of basis matrix

As far as I can tell, it's only a slight exaggeration to say that every text has a different notation for a change of basis matrix from (say) $\mathcal{B}$ to $\mathcal{C}$. That's not even to talk ...
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0 votes
1 answer
412 views

Gil Strang or Peter Lax? Which linear algebra book to use? [closed]

I have heard that Peter Lax's linear algebra book is the hardest you can find on the subject, but that it is the greatest linear algebra text in the world. But I also hear great things about Gil ...
6 votes
1 answer
164 views

Difficulty in teaching the coordinates of a vector with respect to a basis $\{v_1,v_2,\ldots,v_n\}$

Let $V$ be a finite dimensional vector space and let $B=\{v_1,v_2,\cdots,v_n\}$ be a basis of $V$. If a vector $v$ can be written as $$v=a_1v_1+a_2v_2+\cdots+a_nv_n,$$ we call $(a_1,a_2,\cdots,a_n)$...
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8 votes
5 answers
5k views

Is Linear Algebra Done Right too much for a beginner?

I have asked in Mathematics stackexchange, but I think asking here is more appropriate. I am self studying the book Linear Algebra Done Right by Axler. That's how I started using the great Stack ...
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2 votes
3 answers
306 views

Word for the dimension of the vector space in which a vector lives?

The following issue comes up whenever I teach linear algebra: I want to have a quick way to say that a vector $(x,y,z)$ is in $\mathbb{R}^3$. I am tempted to say that it has "length $3$". But then ...
3 votes
0 answers
512 views

A proof based Multivariable Calculus and Linear Algebra

May I know how can I teach a proof-based Multivariable Calculus and linear algebra as a single course? While there are quite a few known books in the field such as: 1) Vector Calculus, Linear Algebra ...
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9 votes
2 answers
193 views

How to create educational linear algebra animations?

I'm looking to create animations for a linear algebra course. I need things like writing and changing equations, including matrices, plotting of 2- and 3-dimensional axes with points, vectors, lines ...
5 votes
3 answers
193 views

CoTeaching Elementary Linear Algebra

I and my colleague will teach an elementary linear algebra next few weeks, but the way our course is planned mostly is by turn teaching. By that I mean, my partner will teach the first 8 weeks of the ...
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2 votes
1 answer
479 views

Downloadable MCQs on Mathematics

I am looking for multiple choice question (MCQ) based tests on some Mathematics' topics (details below), which could be downloaded in most preferably tex (LaTex) format or doc/docx format. Kindly ...
10 votes
1 answer
325 views

Analogies or explanations for duality, at the college sophomore level

This semester I taught the third semester of my college's freshman physics sequence. Nearly all the students are engineering majors. Compared to previous semesters when I've taught this course, I went ...
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7 votes
2 answers
212 views

Timing of when Cayley-Hamilton theorem is taught in Linear Algebra

I teach at a primarily undergraduate 4-year college in the US and we don't cover the proof of Cayley-Hamilton theorem in our linear algebra courses. I did however see both the computational and the ...
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8 votes
4 answers
329 views

Make a matrix algebra course (1st university year) more "project-based"

Among other courses, I'm teaching a (basic) matrix algebra course for 1st year university students (they are studying Economics, and the cursus leads them to management, finance, or econometrics in ...
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6 votes
4 answers
662 views

Who actually uses $\mathbf i$, $\mathbf j$, $\mathbf k$ for the standard unit vectors?

I am wondering which research communities use the notation $\mathbf i$, $\mathbf j$, $\mathbf k$ for the three-dimensional unit vectors. The calculus textbook I have to use (Stewart) uses that ...
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32 votes
12 answers
7k views

Should college mathematics always be taught in such a way that real world applications are always included?

I am teaching Linear Algebra this semester with the textbook Introduction to Linear Algebra by Serge Lang and most (perhaps all?) my students are not majoring in mathematics. As I was carefully ...
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11 votes
1 answer
1k views

Is Lax's Linear Algebra and its Applications comprehensive or idiosyncratic?

I'm looking for a good abstract linear algebra text (i.e., not matrix crunching) for students who have completed a Strang-level linear algebra course plus exposure to a proof writing (e.g., induction ...
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11 votes
1 answer
521 views

Helping a student exasperated by abstract concepts in linear algebra

I am currently tutoring a student in linear algebra. She is a very hard worker and does well on computational problems, but struggles to build mathematical intuition. This struggle is compounded by ...
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3 votes
1 answer
99 views

Resources on 3D transforms, vectors, coordinate systems

Background: I'm helping engineers use software to create 3D geometry in a programmatic way (similar to OpenSCAD). The functions they need to call have inputs which are low-level geometry concepts: 3D ...
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