MATH 461

The exam will cover the material we have discussed in class and studied in homework, from Chapter 1 and Sections 2.1 to 2.3. The following list points out the most important definitions and theorems. Note that when a computation is required, you may be asked to justify the conclusion you draw from the computation (by mentioning a fact or theorem, for example).

Definitions

The definition of Ax in both words and symbols
Span{v}, Span {u,v} and geometric interpretation in R2 or R3
Span{v1, ..., vp}
Linearly independent, linearly dependent
Linear transformation
Standard matrix of a linear transformation
The definition of a matrix product AB
The definition of the inverse of a matrix
Theorems
Chapter 1:
Theorem 2 (Existence and Uniqueness Theorem)
Theorem 3 (Matrix equation, vector equation, system of linear equations)
Theorem 4 (When do the columns of A span Rn ?)
Theorem 5 (Properties of the Matrix-Vector Product Ax)
Theorems 7, 8, 9 (Properties of linearly dependent sets)
Theorems 11 and 12 (one-to-one and onto linear transformations).
 
Chapter 2:
Theorems 4, 5, 6, and 7
Know the proof of Theorem 5
Theorem 8 (the Invertible Matrix Theorem)
Important Skills

Remember, the exam may include material that is not on the sample exam, and the wording of questions may be somewhat different.