MATH2121 Linear Algebra (Spring 2018)
MATH2121 Linear Algebra (Spring 2018)
Directions:
• All mobile phones and electronic devices should be switched OFF during the examination.
Note:
3. This sample midterm is all about the format, the length and the depth of the midterm.
DO NOT memorize any solution. DO NOT expect to see the same problem in the exam.
6. The best way to study for the midterm is to review your homeworks, notes from lectures,
tutorials, and the textbook.
1
Problems:
2. Show that the union of the y-axis and the z-axis in R3 , i.e.
S = {(x, y, z)T ∈ R3 |y = 0 or z = 0} ,
is not a subspace of R3 .
3. Given x1 = (−1, 2, 3)T , x2 = (3, 4, 2)T and y = (−9, −2, 5). Is y ∈ Span(x1 , x2 )?
(a) If we add another vector, xk+1 , to the set, will we still have a linearly independent
collection of vectors? Explain.
(b) If we delete one of the vectors, say, xk from the set, will we still have a linearly
independent collection of vectors? Explain?
5. Consider the vector space R2×2 and the following sets of ordered basis
1 1 1 0 0 1 1 1
E = , , ,
0 1 0 1 0 1 1 0
1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
F = , , , .
0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1
(a) Write down the coordinate vector for each element in E with respect to the basis F .
(b) Find the transition matrix U from the basis E to the basis F .
6. Let A ∈ Rn×n . If dim(N (A)) = 0, are the column vectors of A linearly dependent or
linearly independent? Justify your answer.