MATH2121 Linear Algebra (Spring 2018)

Midterm Examination Name: Student I.D.:

9 April 2018 (Monday) 3:00pm–3:50pm Signature:

Directions:

• All mobile phones and electronic devices should be switched OFF during the examination.

• You must show the steps in order to receive full credits.

• Electronic calculators are NOT allowed.

• This is a closed book examination.

• Answer ALL questions.

Note:

1. Actual midterm exam is Monday 3pm-350pm, April 9, 2018, Room 1103.

2. Please bring your student ID for identification.

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.

4. What you might be tested in the midterm:

(a) Everything covered in lectures and homework assignments.

(b) Topic 1: Solving system of linear equations, elementary row operations, echelon form
and reduced echelon form, vectors and matrices, linear combination, homogeneous
linear systems, matrix operations, matrix inverse.
(c) Topic 2: Vector spaces, subspaces, null space of a matrix, span, spanning set, linearly
dependent and linearly independent, basis and dimension, coordinates, change of
basis, transition matrix.

5. What will NOT be asked in the midterm:

(a) Calculations with decimal places.

(b) Operations on matrix with size larger than 4-by-4.
(c) Eight axioms in the definition of the vector space.
(d) Wronskian.

6. The best way to study for the midterm is to review your homeworks, notes from lectures,
tutorials, and the textbook.

1
Problems:

1. Determine the value(s) of h such that the matrix

 
1 h 4
3 6 8

is the augmented matrix of a consistent linear system.

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 )?

4. Let {x1 , x2 , · · · , xk } be linearly independent vectors in a vector space V .

(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.