Mathematics 4242: solutions to Midterm Exam 2

(1) det(C) = det(A

1
B
t
) = det(A
1
) det(B
t
) =
1
det(A)
det(B) =
1
5
10 = 2;
det(D) = 2
4
det(B) = 160 (since B has four rows, and multiplying a sin-
gle row by 2 has the eect of multiplying the determinant by 2); det(E) =
det(A) + 2 det(B) = 5 + 20 = 25 since det is a linear function of a single row
holding the others xed, and the row vector (3, 5, 7, 9) is equal to the linear com-
bination (1, 1, 1, 1)+2(1, 2, 3, 4) of the third rows of A and B respectively; and F
is obtained from A by performing the sequence of row operations swap rows 1
and 2, then swap rows 3 and 4, then scale row 2 by 3, then add twice row 1 to row
4 which has the eect of multiplying the determinant by (1) (1) 3 1 = 3,
so det(F) = 3 det(A) = 15.
(2) Let = {1, x, x
2
} be the standard ordered basis for P
2
(R). We will
use the representing matrix [T]

of T with respect to this basis to nd the

characteristic polynomial of T. We rst evaluate T on the standard basis vectors.
We have T(1) = x, T(x) = x
2
and T(x
2
) = 1 x + x
2
. Displaying the -
coordinates of these vectors as the columns of a 3 3 matrix, we obtain
[T]

0 0 1
1 0 1
0 1 1

.
The characteristic polynomial
T
of T is the characteristic polynomial of the
matrix [T]

(all choices of ordered basis give the same polynomial):

T
(t) = det([T]

tI)
= det

t 0 1
1 t 1
0 1 1 t

= t det

t 1
1 1 t

+ det

1 t
0 1

= t(t(1 t) + 1) + 1
= t
3
+t
2
t + 1
= (t 1)(t
2
+ 1)
Since the characteristic polynomial of T does not split over R (t
2
+ 1 does not
factor into linear factors with real coecients), T is not diagonalizable over R.
(3) We rst nd eigenvalues and eigenvectors for the matrix A. The char-
acteristic polynomial of A is

A
(t) = det

t 2
1 3 t

= t(3 t) + 2 = t
2
3t + 2 = (t 1)(t 2),
1
whose roots are t = 1 and t = 2. These are the eigenvalues of A. (Since
the 2 2 matrix A has two distinct eigenvalues, we know already that A is
diagonalizable.) To nd an eigenvector corresponding to the eigenvalue 1, we
look for nonzero solutions to the equation

1 2
1 2

x
y

0
0

,
one of which is

x
y

2
1

; to nd an eigenvector corresponding to the

eigenvalue 2, we look for nonzero solutions to the equation

2 2
1 1

x
y

0
0

,
one of which is

x
y

1
1

. If we form the matrix Q whose columns are

these two eigenvectors, then we know (see p. 251 of the text) that Q
1
AQ is
the diagonal matrix D whose diagonal entries are 1 and 2. Thus
A = QDQ
1
=

2 1
1 1

1 0
0 2

1 1
1 2

and so
A
100
= (QDQ
1
)
100
= QD
100
Q
1
=

2 1
1 1

1 0
0 2
100

1 1
1 2

2 2
100
1 2
100

1 1
1 2

2 2
100
2 2
101
2
100
1 2
101
1

.
(4) Let f(x) W. Then f(x) = ax +bx
2
for some a, b R. We need to see
whether T(f(x)) must belong to W as well. We calculate: f

(0) = a and f

(x) =
2b, so T(f(x)) = (xx
2
)a+(x+5x
2
)b +ax+bx
2
= (2a+b)x+(6b a)x
2
W,
and W is T-invariant. (The point is that if f(x) has no constant term, neither
does T(f(x)).)
(5) Since A has integer entries, its determinant is an integer. Under the
hypothesis on A
1
, the determinant of A
1
is also an integer. We have 1 =
det(I) = det(AA
1
) = det(A) det(A
1
); the only ways to write 1 as a product
of two integers are 1 = 11 and 1 = (1)(1), so det(A) must be either 1 or 1.
2
(6) If A = A
t
(A is symmetric) then T(A) = A A
t
= A A = 0,
so any nonzero symmetric matrix is an eigenvector for T with eigenvalue 0.
Furthermore, if A = A
t
(A is antisymmetric) then T(A) = AA
t
= A+A =
2A, so any nonzero antisymmetric matrix is an eigenvector for T with eigenvalue
2. Any 3 3 symmetric matrix S (resp. antisymmetric matrix A) takes the
form
S =

a b c
b d e
c e f

, A =

0
0
0

where a, b, c, d, e, f, , , are any real numbers. From this description, count-

ing free parameters, we see that the subspace of 3 3 symmetric matrices has
dimension 6 and the subspace of 3 3 antisymmetric matrices has dimension
3. Choosing bases for these two eigenspaces (with distinct eigenvalues 0 and
2), we obtain by concatenation a set of 9 linearly independent eigenvectors for
T, that is, a basis (since dim(M
33
(R)) = 9) of eigenvectors, proving that T is
diagonalizable.
(7) We recall from the homework that, since U is invertible, is nonzero and
v is an eigenvector for U
1
with eigenvalue
1

. (To see this, apply U

1
to both
sides of the equation Uv = v and then divide by .) Therefore U
1
(v) =
1

v.
Now we calculate, using the given information and the linearity of T and U:
(3T
2
+UT +U
1
)(v) = 3T
2
(v) +UT(v) +U
1
(v) = 3T(T(v)) +U(T(v)) +
1

v
= 3T(v) +U(v) +
1

v
= 3T(v) +U(v) +
1

v
= 3v +v +
1

v
= (3
2
+ +
1

)v,
showing that v is an eigenvector for 3T
2
+UT+U
1
with eigenvalue 3
2
++
1

.
3