MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

1 MATH 129 - Chapter One: Systems of Linear Equations

1.1 Intro to Systems of Linear Equations

Learning Objectives:

(a) Identify systems of linear equations in n variables.

(b) Determine whether a system of linear equations is consistent or inconsistent.

(c) Use back-substitution and Gaussian elimination to solve a system of linear equations - including
parametrized solutions.

(d) Determine for which values a parameterized system of linear equations has a unique solution, infinitely
many solutions, or no solution.

Definition: A x1 , x2 , · · · , xn has the form

The a1 , a2 , a3 , · · · , an are real numbers, and the b is a

real number. The number a1 is the , and x1 is the .

Examples: Determine if each equation is linear or nonlinear.

1. 3x = 9 is a linear equation.

2. −x1 + cos(x2 ) − x3 = −1 is nonlinear because of the term cos(x2 ).

3. ex − 5y + z = 7 is nonlinear because of the term ex .

4. 5x + πy = 0 is linear. Remember coefficients can be ANY real number!

Activity 1: Now you try! Determine if these two equations are linear or nonlinear.

1. sin(π)y − z = −10

2. 3x + yz = e4

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Definition: A of a linear equation in n variables is a sequence of n real numbers

s1 , s2 , · · · , sn arranged to satisfy the equation when you substitute the values

into the equation. Sometimes we will write our solution as an n-tuple written as (s1 , s2 , · · · , sn ).

Definition: The set of all solutions of a linear equation is called its , and
when you have found this set, you have solved the equation.

Definition: To describe the entire solution set of a linear equation, we will use what is called a
.

Example: Solve the linear equation 3x + 2y − z = 3.

Step 1: Choose a variable to solve for and then solve for that variable.

Step 2: The other variables in the equation are what are called free variables. Observe the above equation
has two free variables. Therefore, we will introduce two different parameters (one for each free variable).
Write the parametric equations based off your work in Step 1 using the parameters s and t.

Step 3: Give one example of a particular solution. That is, choose a value for s and a value for t, then
determine the values of x, y, and z for the chosen s and t.

Step 4: Write the entire solution set of the equation 3x + 2y − z = 3 using set notation.

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Example 1: Solve the linear equation x1 +2x2 = 4. Write your answer as a solution set using set notation.

Now we look into solving multiple linear equations at the same time.

Definition: A is a set of m equa-

tions, each of which is linear in the same n variables:

a11 x1 + a12 x2 + ... + a1n xn = b1

a21 x1 + a22 x2 + ... + a2n xn = b2
.. ..
. .
am1 x1 + am2 x2 + ... + amn xn = bn

Definition: A of a system of linear equations is a sequence of numbers s1 , s2 , · · · , sn

that is a solution to of the linear equations in the system.

Definition: A system of linear equations is when it has at least one solution

and when it has no solution.

Number of Solutions of a System of Linear Equations: For a system of linear equations, precisely
one of the statements is true.

1. The system has (consistent system).

2. The system has (consistent system).

3. The sytem has (inconsistent system).

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Example 2: Consider the two systems of linear equations.

x − 2y + 3z = 9 x − 2y + 3z = 9
−x + 3y = −4 y + 3z = 5
2x − 5y + 5z = 17 z=2

If we were to solve these two systems using algebraic methods, the second system would be easier to solve.
The second system is in which means that it has
a “stair-step” pattern with leading coefficients of 1. We can use a method called
to quickly solve such systems.

Example 3: Let’s solve the system on the right using back-substitution.

x − 2y + 3z = 9 (Equation 1)
y + 3z = 5 (Equation 2)
z = 2 (Equation 3)

Activity 3: Solve the system below using back-substitution.

x + 3y = 10
y=4

How many solutions does this system have?

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Definition: Two systems of linear equations are when they have the same
solution set.

If we are given a system of linear equations that is not in row-echelon form, we will use operations to
rewrite the system as an equivalent system that is in row-echelon form. What are these operations?

Operations that Produce Equivalent Systems: Each of these operations on a system of linear equa-
tions produces an equivalent system.
1. Interchange two equations.

2. Multiply an equation by a nonzero constant.

3. Add a multiple of an equation to another equation.

Definition: Rewriting a system of linear equations in row-echelon form usually involves using a sequence of
allowable operations to provide a chain of equivalent systems. This process is called

Example 4: Solve the system below using Gaussian elimination.

x − 2y + 3z = 9 (1)
−x + 3y = −4 (2)
2x − 5y + 5z = 17 (3)

Solution: If we add equation 1 to equation 2, we get a new second equation.

x −2y +3z= 9
+ −x +3y = −4
y +3z= 5
This produces the equivalent system

x − 2y + 3z = 9 (1)
y + 3z = 5 (2)
2x − 5y + 5z = 17 (3)

Now if we add −2 times the first equation to the third equation, this produces a new third equation which
lacks the variable x.

−2( x −2y +3z= 9) −2x +4y −6z= −18

+ 2x −5y +5z= 17 =⇒ + 2x −5y +5z= 17
−y −z = −1

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

This produces the equivalent system

x − 2y + 3z = 9 (1)
y + 3z = 5 (2)
−y − z = −1 (3)

Notice we have elimiated the variable x from both equation 2 and equation 3. Now we focus on equation
2 and equation 3 to eliminate either y or z. If we add the equation 2 to equation 3, we get a new third
equation.

y +3z= 5
+ −y −z = −1
2z = 4
This produces the equivalent system

x − 2y + 3z = 9 (1)
y + 3z = 5 (2)
2z = 4 (3)

1
If we multiply equation 3 by , we get a new equation 3. This produces the equivalent system
2

x − 2y + 3z = 9 (1)
y + 3z = 5 (2)
z = 2 (3)

which is in row-echelon form. We can now use back-substitution to get ONE solution (x, y, z) = (1, −1, 2).

Check this on your own after class!

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Activity 4: Solve the system below using Gaussian elimination.

x+y =4
2x + 2y = −6

Solution: Let’s start by eliminating x. Taking −2 times the first equation and adding it to the second
equation, we get a new second equation. What is the new second equation?

−2x −2y= −8
+ 2x +2y= −6

What is the equivalent system of linear equations you obtain after doing the above operation?

You should notice that your new second equation has no variables and has two different numbers equal to
each other. Since 0 ̸= −14, we conclude that this system has NO SOLUTION.

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Activity 5: Solve the system below using Gaussian elimination.

x2 − x3 = 0 (1)
x1 − 3x3 = −1 (2)
−x1 + 3x2 = 1 (3)

Solution: Use any of the allowable operations to produce an equivalent system in row-echelon form.
[Hint: You should be able to do this using about 3 operations.]

At this point you should notice that one of your equations becomes 0 = 0 which is always true. This
equation is unnecessary, so we will ignore it and solve the system involving the other two equations. Note
you have more variables than equations now! This means you might have some free variables.

Using the parameter t, give the parametric equations for x1 , x2 , and x3 . Be sure to specify what values t
can be! Then write your solution set in set notation (also referred to as set-builder notation).

How many solutions does this system have?

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

1.2 Gauss-Jordan Elimination

Learning Objectives:

(a) Determine an augmented or coefficient matrix from a system of linear equations.

(b) Identify a row-echelon form and the reduced row-echelon form of a matrix.

(c) Use elementary row operations on matrices - including to perform Gaussian elimination and Gauss-
Jordan elimination.

(d) Use matrices to represent and solve systems of linear equations - using Gaussian elimination and
back-substitution or using Gauss-Jordan elimination.

(e) Determine when a homogeneous system of linear equations has infinitely many solutions.

Last Time: We solved systems of linear equations using back substitution and elimination. Today we
focus on a more efficient way to solve systems of any size.
Motivating Example: Solve the system below.

2x + y − z + 2w = −6
3x + 4y + w = 1
x + 5y + 2z + 6w = −3
5x + 2y − z − w = 3.

Note: We can use substitution or Gaussian elimination but this process may be tedious. What method
could we use instead to make solving a larger system of linear equations easy to solve?

Definition: If m and n are positive integers, an m × n is a rectangular array

 
a11 a12 · · · a1n
 a21 a22 · · · a2n 
 
 . .. .. 
 . ..
 . . . . 


am1 am2 · · · amn

in which each entry aij of the matrix is a number. An m × n matrix has m rows and n columns.

1. The entry aij is located in the row and the column. The index i is called the
and the index j is called the .

2. A matrix with m rows and n columns is of m × n.

3. When m = n, we say the matrix is of order n.

4. The entries a11 , a22 , . . . , ann are the .

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Quick Examples:

" √ #
3 π 2
1. is a 2 × 3 matrix.
7 −1 0

" #
1 −2
2. is a 2 × 2 matrix, i.e. a square matrix of order 2.
3 4

Definition: The matrix derived from the coefficients and constant terms of a system of linear equations is
called the matrix. The matrix containing only the coefficients of the system
is called the matrix.

Example 1: " #
x+y =2 1 1 2
has augmented matrix .
x + 2y = 7 1 2 7

However, it can be helpful to indicate where the equal sign is for the two equations.
" Therefore,
# we often
1 1 2
use a line to separate the constant terms and the variable coefficients like so: . This may be
1 2 7
helpful, but it is a personal choice and NOT something that will be required of you.

" #
1 1
The coefficient matrix for the system is .
1 2

Activity 1: Write the system of linear equations that corresponds to the augmented matrix.
 
3 0 1 4
 0 6 −4 −3
 

−4 1 −2 e

Recall: We used operations for Gaussian elimination in order to solve systems in section 1.1. These
same operations can be applied to rows of an augmented matrix to produce an equivalent matrix that
corresponds to a system that is easier to solve. This process is called Gauss-Jordan elimination. The
operations we will use during Gauss-Jordan elimination are called elementary row operations.

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Review What are the three operations we used in section 1.1 to solve systems of linear equations?

1.

2.

3.

Now we see how these operations get translated into matrix terminology.

Elementary Row Operations:

1. Interchange two rows.

Example: R1 ↔ R2 which is read as “interchange row 1 and row 2.”

2. Multiply a row by a nonzero constant.

1 1
Example: R1 → R1 which is read as “ times row 1 produces a new row 1.”
5 5

3. Add a multiple of a row to another row.

Example: −3R1 + R2 → R2 which is read as “-3 times row 1 plus row 2 produces a new row 2.”

Definition: Two matrices are when one can be obtained from

the other by a finite sequence of elementary row operations.

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Example 2: Solve the system

x − 2y + 3z = 9
−x + 3y = −4 .
2x − 5y + 5z = 17

Solution: Let’s start by writing out the augmented matrix that corresponds to this system. State the
augmented matrix below.

Now, if we were using Gaussian elimination on the system, we would want to eliminate the variable x from
equations 2 and 3. What two operations would we have performed to do this?

1.

2.

We can translate these operations into elementary row operations as follows:

1.

2.

Write a sequence of row-equivalent matrices (performing only one elementary row operation at each tran-
sition) such that the last matrix produced corresponds to a system in row-echelon form.

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

The last matrix we produced corresponds to what system?

Now use back substitution on the above system, in order to find a solution.

How many solutions does this system have?

Observe: The system of linear equations that corresponded to the last matrix in our sequence was in
row-echelon form. There is a version of row-echelon form for matrices as well.

Definition: A matrix in (REF) has the proper-

ties below.

1. Any rows consisting of entirely zeros occur at the of the matrix.

2. For each row that does not consist entirely of zeros, the first nonzero entry is a 1
(We call these ).

3. For two successive nonzero rows, the leading 1 in the higher row is farther to the left than the leading
1 in the lower row.

A matrix is in (RREF) when every column that

has a leading 1 has zeros in every position above and below its leading 1.

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Example 3: Determine if each matrix is in REF, RREF, or neither.

 
1 2 −1 4
1. 0 1 0 3  is in .
 

0 0 1 −2

 
1 2 −1 7
2. 0 0 0 0  is in .
 

0 1 1 −3

 
1 0 0 2
 
0 1 0 3
3.   is in .
0
 0 1 −5

0 0 0 0

Activity 2: Determine if each matrix is in REF, RREF, or neither.

 
1 0 −1 5 0
 
0 2 0 3 −1
1.  
0
 0 1 0 −2
0 0 0 1 10

" #
1 2 4
2.
0 1 0

One General Method for Putting a Matrix in Row-Echelon Form: The following method is just a
guide that may be useful to decide which elementary row operations you might want to use. However, you
do not need to perform this step-by-step process! After some practice, you will find that in some scenarios
a more clever sequence of steps might get you to a row-echelon form faster. The goal is to obtain ones on
the main diagonal (if possible) and zeros below those ones. (example 2)
1. Put a one in entry a11 spot using elementary row operations if necessary.
2. Zero out all other entries in column one using elementary row operations.
3. Put a one in the a22 spot using elementary row operations if necessary.
4. Zero out all other entries below the 1 in column two using elementary row operations.
5. Move down main diagonal making the aii entries 1’s with zeros below it.

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Activity 2: Solve if possible using Gauss-Jordan elimination. State how many solutions the system has,
if any. (Example 6 in textbook)
x1 − x2 + 2x3 = 4
x1 + x3 = 6
2x1 − 3x2 + 5x3 = 4
3x1 + 2x2 − x3 = 1

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Definition: Systems of linear equations in which each of the constant terms is zero are called
.

Definition: If a system of linear equations has the solution where all variables are zero, then this system
is said to have the .

Theorem 1.1: Every homogeneous system of linear equations is . Moreover,

if the system has fewer equations than variables, then it must have solutions.

Activity 3: Solve the system, if possible, below using Gauss-Jordan elimination. State how many solutions
this system has, if any.
x1 − x2 + 3x3 = 0
2x1 + x2 + 3x3 = 0

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

1.3 Applications of Systems of Linear Equations

Learning Objectives:
(a) Set up and solve a system of linear equations to fit a polynomial function to a set of data points.

(b) Set up and solve a system of linear equations to represent a network - including electrical and traffic
flow networks.

(c) Set up and solve a system of linear equations in order to perform partial fraction decomposition.

Example 1: The Table below shows the U.S. population figures for years 1940, 1950, 1960, and 1970.
Find a polynomial that fits the data and use it to estimate the population in 1980.
Year 1940 1950 1960 1970
Population (in millions) 132 151 179 203
Question: How do we go about finding a polynomial model that best fits the given data?
Answer: We will use a process called .

Polynomial Curve Fitting Process:

1. Suppose n points in the xy-plane are (x1 , y1 ), (x2 , y2 ), · · · , (xn , yn ). Note the polynomial p(x) you are
looking for will have a degree of i.e.
p(x) = a0 + a1 x + a2 x2 + · · · + an−1 xn−1 .

2. Form the system of linear equations by plugging in the given points to the general form of p(x).

3. Use any method from section 1.1 and 1.2 to solve the system.
Note that the numbers 1940, 1950, 1960, and 1970 are quite large. If we suppose x represents these
quantities, and p(x) represents the population, we obtain a complicated system of equations:

a0 + a1 (1940) + a2 (1940)2 + a3 (1940)3 = p(1940) = 132

a0 + a1 (1950) + a2 (1950)2 + a3 (1950)3 = p(1950) = 151
a0 + a1 (1960) + a2 (1960)2 + a3 (1960)3 = p(1960) = 179
a0 + a1 (1970) + a2 (1970)2 + a3 (1970)3 = p(1970) = 203

However, 1940 is already a large number. When we consider that we’ll have to work with (1970)3 =
7, 645, 373, 000 in our calculations this way, the task seems rather daunting!
Thus, it may be easier to let x be the number of decades after 1940. That is, if the years 1940, 1950,
etc. are instead called y, then y = 1940 + 10x. This gives us the following table:
Year y 1940 1950 1960 1970
Decades since 1940 x
Population (in millions) p(x) 132 151 179 203

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Year y 1940 1950 1960 1970

Decades since 1940 x 0 1 2 3
Population (in millions) p(x) 132 151 179 203

Solution: The given points are:

The polynomial p(x) has at most degree i.e. p(x) = .

The system we need to solve is the following:

What does this solution actually give us?

Estimation: How could we use this polynomial to estimate the population in a given year?

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

π π



Example 2: Use sin(0) = 0, sin 2
= 1, and sin(π) = 0 to estimate sin 3
.

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Network Analysis: Networks composed of branches and junctions are used as models in such fields as
economics, traffic analysis, electrical engineering, and irrigation systems. In a network model, you assume
that the total flow into a junction is equal to the total flow out of the junction. We can also analyze
electrical networks but we need to assume two properties.

Kirchoff ’s Law: For electrical networks, the system uses two properties:

1. All the current flowing into a junction must flow out of it.

2. The sum of the products IR (I is current and R is resistance) around a closed path is equal to the
total voltage in the path.

Note: In an electrical network, current is measured in amperes, or amps (A), resistance is measured in
ohms (Ω), and the product of current and resistance is measured in volts (V ).

Example 3: Determine the currents Ij for j = 1, 2, 3 for the electrical network shown in the figure below,
assuming V1 = 10 V and V2 = 7 V.

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MATH 129 Lecture Notes Chapter One

Example 4: Intersections in England are often constructed as one-way “roundabouts,” such as the one
show in the figure below. Assume that traffic must flow in the directions shown. Find the general solution
of the network flow (in vehicles per hour). If the third quadrant (represented by x3 ) is traversed by 10
vehicles per hour, what is x2 ?

x2 B x1

50 C A 30

x3 D x4

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