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Week 1 Problems

This document contains problems about vectors and linear combinations, lengths and dot products. Specifically: 1) It asks to describe geometrically different linear combinations of given vectors and to compute combinations of vectors. It also asks where vectors lie in a plane or line. 2) It involves calculating dot products and lengths of vectors, and checking Cauchy-Schwarz inequalities. It also asks to find angles between vectors using dot products. 3) It contains questions about perpendicular vectors, computing lengths of vectors in multiple dimensions, using properties of dot products to prove an equation, and finding vectors perpendicular to given vectors and each other. It also asks about the angle between two vectors defined in terms of variables.

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Joseph Gaspard
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97 views3 pages

Week 1 Problems

This document contains problems about vectors and linear combinations, lengths and dot products. Specifically: 1) It asks to describe geometrically different linear combinations of given vectors and to compute combinations of vectors. It also asks where vectors lie in a plane or line. 2) It involves calculating dot products and lengths of vectors, and checking Cauchy-Schwarz inequalities. It also asks to find angles between vectors using dot products. 3) It contains questions about perpendicular vectors, computing lengths of vectors in multiple dimensions, using properties of dot products to prove an equation, and finding vectors perpendicular to given vectors and each other. It also asks about the angle between two vectors defined in terms of variables.

Uploaded by

Joseph Gaspard
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Week 1 Problems

1.1 Vectors and Linear Combinations


1 Describe geometrically (line, plane, or all of 3 ) all linear combinations of:
1
a)

3
,

b)

0
,

,v =

c)

0
,

0
0

2
2

2
,

2
3

2
,w =

0
3

1
5 u=

Compute u + v + w and 2u + 2v + w. How do you know u, v, w lie in a plane?


7 In the xy plane mark all nine of these linear combinations:
c

2
1

17 Locate

+d
1
3

v+

with

1
1
3

w and

26 What combinations c

2
3

v+

2
3

c = 0, 1, 2 and d = 0, 1, 2
w. The combinations cv + cw fill out what line?

+d

produces

14

? Express this question as


2
1
8
two equations for the coefficients c and d in the linear combination.

27 In xyz space, where is the plane of all linear combinations of i = 1, 0, 0 and

i + j = 1, 1, 0?
28 Find vectors v and w so that v + w = 4, 5, 6 and v w = 2, 5, 8. This is a question
unknown numbers, and an equal number of equations to find those
with
numbers. This is a question with
unknown vectors and an equal number
of vector equations.

1.2 Lengths and Dot Products


1 Calculate the dot products u v, u w, u v + w and w v:
u=

. 6

.8

v=

w=

8
6

2 Compute the lengths u, v, w of those vectors. Check the Cauchy-Schwarz


inequalities:
|u v| uv and |v w| vw
7 Find the angle (from its cosine) between these pairs of vectors:

a) v =

1
3

v=

d) v =

,w =

,w =

,w =

1
0

2
b) v =

2
,w =

c)

1
3
1
2

8 True or false (give a reason if true or a counterexample if false):


a) If u is perpendicular (in three dimensions) to v and w, those vectors v and w are
parallel.
b) If u is perpendicular to v and w, then u is perpendicular to v + 2w.
c) If u and v are perpendicular unit vectors, then u v =

2.

16 How long is the vector v = 1, 1, , 1 in 9 dimensions? Find a unit vector u in the


same direction as v and a unit vector w that is perpendicular to v.
19 (Rules for dot products) These equations are simple but useful:
1) v w = w v

2) u v + w = u v + u w

3) cv w = cv w

Use 2) with u = v + w and 1) to prove v + w 2 = v v + 2v w + w w


13 Find two vectors v and w that are perpendicular to 1, 0, 1 and to each other.
29 Pick any numbers that add to x + y + z = 0. Find the angle between your vector
v = x, y, z and the vector w = z, x, y. Challenge question: explain why v w/vw

is always 1/2.

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