Semester 1 MATH1902 Long Answer Solutions 2012

1. (a)
_
1 2 1
1 1 2
1
2
_

_
1 2 1
0 3 3
1
3
_

_
1 0 1
0 1 1
1
1
_
(2 marks)
Putting z = t yields y = 1 t, x = 1 + t, and the general solution is
(x, y, z) = (1 + t, 1 t, t)
as t ranges over the reals. (1 mark)
(b) In addition we have 2x + 3y + 2z = 5 , so, from the previous part,
2(1 + t) + 3(1 t) + 2t = 5 ,
giving t = 4, so that the solution is (x, y, z) = (3, 3, 4) . (2 marks)
(c)
_
_
1 2 1
1 1 2
2 3 2
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
_
_

_
_
1 2 1
0 3 3
0 1 0
1 0 0
1 1 0
2 0 1
_
_

_
_
1 0 1
0 1 0
0 1 1
3 0 2
2 0 1
1/3 1/3 0
_
_

_
_
1 0 1
0 1 0
0 0 1
3 0 2
2 0 1
5/3 1/3 1
_
_

_
_
1 0 0
0 1 0
0 0 1
4/3 1/3 1
2 0 1
5/3 1/3 1
_
_
so
A
1
=
1
3
_
_
4 1 3
6 0 3
5 1 3
_
_
.
(4 marks)
(d) We have A
_
_
x
y
z
_
_
=
_
_
a
b
c
_
_
, so
_
_
x
y
z
_
_
= A
1
_
_
a
b
c
_
_
=
1
3
_
_
4 1 3
6 0 3
5 1 3
_
_
_
_
a
b
c
_
_
=
_
_
1
3
(4a + b + 3c)
2a c
1
3
(5a b + 3c)
_
_
(2 marks)
1
(e) If x, y, and z are integers then certainly a, b and c are integers, being linear
combinations of integers with integer coecients, and also, from the rst two
equations,
a b = 3y + 3z = 3(y + 1) ,
which is a multiple of 3. (2 marks)
Suppose conversely that a b = 3 is a multiple of 3 where is some integer.
Note that y = 2a c is always an integer. Also
x =
1
3
(4a + b + 3c) =
1
3
(3a 3 + 3c) = a + c
and
z =
1
3
(5a b + 3c) =
1
3
(6a + 3 + 3c) = 2a + + c
also become integers. (2 marks)
2. (a) Position a, b and c in space so that the tip of a coincides with the tail-point Q
of b, and the tip of b coincides with the tail-point R of c. Let P now be the
tail-point of a and S the tip of c. Then
a + (b +c) =

PQ+ (

QR +

RS) =

PQ+

QS =

PS
=

PR+

RS = (

PQ+

QR) +

RS = (a +b) +c .
(4 marks)
(b) We have
|b c| = |b||c| sin ,
where is the angle between b and c measured from 0 to 180

. (1 mark)
(c) Suppose that b c = 0 . Then
|b c| = |b||c| sin = 0 ,
so that either |b| = 0, |c| = 0, = 0 or = 180

. Thus b or c is the zero vector,

or b and c point in the same or opposite directions. In all cases b and c are
parallel.
(2 marks)
(d) By expanding brackets, putting scalars at the front, observing that c c = 0,
and observing that a is perpendicular to a c, so that a (a c) = 0, we get
a
_
(
1
a +
2
b +
3
c) c
_
=
1
a (a c) +
2
a (b c) +
3
a (c c)
=
1
(0) +
2
a (b c) +
3
a (0)
=
2
a (b c) .
(2 marks)
2
(e) Suppose that a (b c) = 0 and let
1
,
2
,
3
be scalars such that

1
a +
2
b +
3
c = 0 .
By the previous part
0 = a (0 c) = a
_
(
1
a +
2
b +
3
c) c
_
=
2
a (b c) ,
so that
2
= 0, since a (b c) = 0 . Hence
1
a +
3
c = 0 .
(3 marks)
If
3
= 0 then c =

3
a , so that
a (b c) = a
_
b
_

3
a
_
_
=

3
a (b a) =

3
(0) = 0 ,
since a is perpendicular to b a, which is a contradiction. Hence
3
= 0 and so

1
a = 0.
(2 marks)
If
1
= 0 then a (b c) = 0 (b c) = 0, again a contradiction, so also
1
= 0.
This proves a, b, c are linearly independent.
(1 mark)
3.(a)(i) Observe that, by following points around to nish where we started,
0 =

P
1
P
1
=

P
1
Q
1
+

Q
1
P
2
+

P
2
Q
2
+

Q
2
P
3
+

P
3
Q
3
+

Q
3
P
1
so that

P
1
Q
1
+

P
2
Q
2
+

P
3
Q
3
=

Q
1
P
2

Q
2
P
3

Q
3
P
1
=

P
2
Q
1
+

P
3
Q
2
+

P
1
Q
3
.
(3 marks)
(ii) Because of the parallelograms, the vector equation

P
1
Q
1
+

P
2
Q
2
+

P
3
Q
3
=

AB +

BC +

CA =

AA = 0
holds, so that, from the previous part

P
2
Q
1
+

P
3
Q
2
+

P
1
Q
3
= 0 ,
so that the line segments Q
1
P
2
, Q
2
P
3
and Q
3
P
1
can be moved parallel to them-
selves to assemble a triangle, proving ().
(3 marks)
3
Applying the result from the rst part, substituting P
2
, P
3
, P
1
for P
1
, P
2
, P
3
respectively, we get the vector equation

P
2
Q
1
+

P
3
Q
2
+

P
1
Q
3
=

P
3
Q
1
+

P
1
Q
2
+

P
2
Q
3
so that, by the previous calculation,

P
3
Q
1
+

P
1
Q
2
+

P
2
Q
3
= 0 ,
so that the line segments P
1
Q
2
, P
2
Q
3
and P
3
Q
1
can be moved parallel to them-
selves to assemble a triangle, proving ().
(3 marks)
(b)(i) The characteristic polynomial of M is () = det(M I). (1 mark)
(ii) The Cayley-Hamilton Theorem asserts that (M) = 0, the zero matrix of the
same size as M. (1 mark)
(iii) Let M be a square n n matrix with nonzero determinant, and write
() = det(M I) = a
0
+ a
1
+ . . . a
n1

n1
+ (1)
n

n
,
for some constants a
0
, . . . , a
n1
. If a
0
= 0 then
det M = det(M 0I) = (0) = a
0
= 0 ,
contradicting that the determinant of M is nonzero. Hence a
0
= 0.
(2 marks)
By the Cayley-Hamilton Theorem,
a
0
I + a
1
M + . . . a
n1
M
n1
+ (1)
n
M
n
= 0
so that
M
_

a
1
a
0
I . . .
a
n1
a
0
M
n2

(1)
n
a
0
M
n1
_
= I ,
so that M
1
exists and given by the formula
M
1
=
a
1
a
0
I . . .
a
n1
a
0
M
n2

(1)
n
a
0
M
n1
.
(2 marks)
4. (a) Observe that
det(M I) =

1 1
1 1

= (1 )
2
+ 1 =
2
2 + 2 ,
with roots
=
2

4 8
2
= 1 i .
(2 marks)
4
(b) Let M be a square n n real matrix. Form the characteristic polynomial (),
which is a nonconstant polynomial in (being plus or minus one times a monic
of degree n). By the Fundamental Theorem of Algebra, () has a root in C.
But the roots of the characteristic equation are the eigenvalues. Hence is an
eigenvalue of M.
(2 marks)
(c)(i) Suppose that v
1
, v
2
are eigenvectors for M for eigenvalues
1
,
2
respectively,
and that
1
=
2
. Without any loss of generality, we can suppose
1
= 0. Then
Mv
1
=
1
v
1
and Mv
2
=
2
v
2
,
so that
v
1
T
v
2
=
_
1

1
v
1
_
T
v
2
=
1

1
_
Mv
1
_
T
v
2
=
1

1
v
1
T
M
T
v
2
=
1

1
v
1
T
Mv
2
=
1

1
v
1
T

2
v
2
=

2

1
v
1
T
v
2
,
giving
_
1

2

1
_
v
1
T
v
2
= [0] = 0 .
If v
1
T
v
2
= 0 then 1

2

1
= 0, so that
1
=
2
, which is a contradiction, since

1
=
2
. Hence v
1
T
v
2
= 0.
(5 marks)
(ii) Let = + i be any complex eigenvalue of M where and are real. There
must be a corresponding eigenvector v = a+ib where a and b are column vectors
with real entries only. On the one hand, Mv = Ma + iMb, whilst, on the other
hand,
Mv = v = a b + i(a + b) .
All element of M are real, so
Ma = a b and Mb = a + b .
Now put v = a ib and observe that
Mv = Ma iMb = a b i(a + b) = ( i)(a ib) = v .
Hence v is an eigenvector for M corresponding to eigenvalue . (3 marks)
Now suppose that = . By the previous part v
T
v = 0. But, if we write
v
T
= [z
1
. . . z
n
] for complex numbers z
1
, . . . z
n
, then
0 = v
T
v = z
1
z
1
+ . . . + z
n
z
n
= |z
1
|
2
+ . . . +|z
n
|
2
.
This means all of z
1
, . . . , z
n
are complex numbers of length zero, so equal to zero,
so v = 0, contradicting that v is an eigenvector. Hence = , so is real.
This proves all eigenvalues of M are real. (3 marks)
5