Solution to Linear Transformation Problem

Problem Statement:
Let T: R^3 -> P_1 be the function defined as T((a, b, c)) = 2a + (b + c)x.
a) Show that T is a linear transformation.
b) Is (2, 1, -1) ∈ Ker(T)?
c) Find a basis of Ker(T).
d) Find the rank and the nullity of T.

Solution:

a) Show that T is a linear transformation.

To show that T is a linear transformation, we need to verify that T satisfies the following
two properties of linearity:
1. T(u + v) = T(u) + T(v) for all vectors u and v in R^3.
2. T(cu) = cT(u) for all vectors u in R^3 and all scalars c.
Let u = (a1, b1, c1) and v = (a2, b2, c2).
T(u + v) = T((a1 + a2, b1 + b2, c1 + c2)) = 2(a1 + a2) + ((b1 + b2) + (c1 + c2))x
= (2a1 + (b1 + c1)x) + (2a2 + (b2 + c2)x) = T(u) + T(v).
For scalar c,
T(cu) = T((ca1, cb1, cc1)) = 2(ca1) + (cb1 + cc1)x = c(2a1 + (b1 + c1)x) = cT(u).
Since T satisfies both properties of linearity, T is a linear transformation.

b) Is (2, 1, -1) ∈ Ker(T)?

To determine if (2, 1, -1) is in Ker(T), we need to check if T((2, 1, -1)) = 0.
T((2, 1, -1)) = 2*2 + (1 - 1)x = 4 + 0x = 4.
Since T((2, 1, -1)) ≠ 0, (2, 1, -1) is not in Ker(T).

c) Find a basis of Ker(T).

Ker(T) is the set of all vectors (a, b, c) in R^3 such that T((a, b, c)) = 0.
T((a, b, c)) = 2a + (b + c)x = 0.
For T((a, b, c)) to be 0, both the constant term and the coefficient of x must be 0.
This gives us the system of equations:
1. 2a = 0
2. b + c = 0
From 1, a = 0. From 2, b = -c. So, any vector in Ker(T) can be written as (0, -c, c).
A basis for Ker(T) is {(0, -1, 1)}.

d) Find the rank and the nullity of T.

The rank of T is the dimension of the image of T. Since T maps R^3 to P_1 and P_1 has
dimension 2, we need to find a basis for the image of T.
T((a, b, c)) = 2a + (b + c)x.
The image of T is spanned by {2, x}.
Thus, the rank of T is 2.
The nullity of T is the dimension of Ker(T). Since Ker(T) is spanned by {(0, -1, 1)}, its
dimension is 1.
Therefore, the rank of T is 2 and the nullity of T is 1.