Lec 11

Basic Linear Algebra
Prof. Inder K. Rana

Department of Mathematics
Indian Institute of Technology- Bombay
Lecture – 11
Solvability of a Linear System, Linear Span, Basis II
Can you think of some other subspace in ℝ2 , only every line through the origin is the sub space,
this was one of them, I fix 𝑋0, 𝑋0 could be anything, right, so there is another possibility that
means ℝ lines passing through the origin in ℝ2 are vector spaces in ℝ2 , right, some other
example; so I am just looking at ℝ2 , simple one, you can visualise.
(Refer Slide Time: 01:02)
So, let us look at another example, let us look at the zero vector alone, so that is 𝑉, is that a
vector space? Only one element is there, what all you multiply, it will always be 0 and it will
be staying inside, so is a subspace, so oh sorry is a vector space.
Let us look at the whole space plane or so let us look at third example, 𝑉 = ℝ2 , 𝑉 is the
subspace of ℝ2 , right.
For example, let us look at this; this is an interesting example to consider, so look at a line not
passing through origin, so 𝐿 is the proper subset of ℝ2 , a line not through origin, so question
is; is it a vector space, so that is the question, so is it a vector space, so how do you describe a
line as a set of vectors, so I can write this line 𝐿 as; I want to write set of vectors in ℝ2 , so how
were been writing the vectors?
Normally, points in ℝ2 are written as ordered pair; (𝑥, 𝑦) you can write also has matrices, if
they have to lie on a line, right, so 𝑦 = 𝑚𝑥 + 𝑐, right for some 𝑚, 𝑐 and if you want not so
origin, then 𝑐 should not be equal to 0, right, so that is all points in the plane which lie on the
line are given by these 2 constants 𝑚, 𝑐.
So, I want to check, right, so whether if I take 2 points here, whether the combination, right, so
as vectors what you will write; (𝑥1 , 𝑦1 ), other vector would be (𝑥2 , 𝑦2 ) on the line, so let belong
to L and let us take 𝛼, 𝛽 ∈ ℝ, then 𝛼(𝑥1 , 𝑦1 ) + 𝛽(𝑥2 , 𝑦2 ), I want to check whether it belongs to
𝐿 or not, what is that equal to; by our vector addition that is 𝛼 𝑥1 + 𝛽 𝑥2 and here it will be
𝛼 𝑦1 + 𝛽 𝑦2 , right, vector addition.
The 𝑦 component should be 𝑚𝑥 + 𝑐, right.

So, what does that mean? That means what is the conclusion; so the conclusion is that if I take
𝐿 = {(𝑥, 𝑦) | 𝑦 = 𝑚𝑥 + 𝑐}, 𝑐 ≠ 0, okay then 𝐿 is not vector space, then it is not a vector space
because if I take 2 elements and take scalar multiples of them and add that is not again in the
same right, so that means in the plane every line through a origin is a vector space, every line
which is not through a origin is not a vector space, right.
So, the question still remains, can you say these are the only subspaces or these are the only
vector spaces in ℝ2 , I cannot answer that question at present but that it is a true statement, so
we will show later, right these are the only vector spaces in ℝ2 either it should be a trivial that
is 0 or it should be the whole space ℝ2 or it should be a line passing through the origin, at
present we have only shown these are vector spaces and no line not through a origin is a vector
space.
But we will say these are the only ones evict later, okay, right, okay, so the line passing through
the origin of slope and;
Now, this is an observation we said if a line does not pass through origin that is not a vector
space in fact that is a property of every vector space that means if 𝑉 is a vector space in ℝ𝑛 ,
then the 0 vector should be inside it, why, why should 0 vector be inside every vector space,
so what is the definition of a vector space? It says 𝛼 𝑣1 + 𝛽 𝑣2 should belong to 𝑉 for every
𝑣1 , 𝑣2 ∈ 𝑉 and 𝛼, 𝛽 ∈ ℝ.
But who stops we are taking 𝛼 = 0 and 𝛽 = 0, that means the 0 vector should be in 𝑉, so
that means, it is a necessary condition for a subset 𝑉 in ℝ𝑛 to be a vector space that 0 must
belong to it.
Otherwise, it cannot be a vector space, so that is what happened in the plane, no line which is
passing through the origin, that means if a line is not passing through a origin, then zero vector
is not part of it so, it cannot be a vector space and that is what we proved, checking actually,
right, okay.
So, let us start with the some finite number of vectors in ℝ𝑛 , 𝑐1 𝑣1 + 𝑐2 𝑣2 + ⋯ + 𝑐𝑘 𝑣𝑘 , so
such a vector will call as a finite linear combination of 𝑣1 , 𝑣2 , … , 𝑣𝑘 , just a name.
Why finite? Because the number of vectors is finite, you can just call it as a linear combination,
okay, but to stress that we are taking only finite number of them; we will get a finite linear
combination of these vectors. So, now comes a general definition, okay, so let us look at a set;
the symbol has not come out 𝑆 as a subset of ℝ𝑛 , look at a subset 𝑆 of ℝ𝑛 , now what I can do?
I can pick up any finite number of vectors from 𝑆 and form a linear combination of those
vectors, right, so I choose any vectors 𝑣1 , 𝑣2 , … , 𝑣𝑘 ∈ 𝑆 and look at scalars 𝑐1 , 𝑐2 , … , 𝑐𝑘 ∈ ℝ
and form a linear combination. The set consisting of all these linear combinations called that
as 𝐿(𝑆).
So, what is 𝐿(𝑆)? 𝐿(𝑆) is a set of all finite linear combinations of vectors taken from 𝑆, right,
is it clear, this 𝑘 is not fixed, you can pick up only one vector, you can pick any 2, any 3, any
4, any finite number of them, form a linear combination by picking vectors finite number of
them picking finite number of scalars making a linear combination. For all such possible linear
combinations, right and call it 𝐿(𝑆).
The theorem is 𝐿(𝑆) is always a vector space as 𝑆 may be any set but 𝐿(𝑆) is always a vector
space, so let us check that why it is always a vector space, it is a simple proof but let us check
it, okay, right.
Hence 𝐿(𝑆) is a vector space.

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Basic Linear Algebra

Prof. Inder K. Rana

(Refer Slide Time: 04:20)

The 𝑦 component should be 𝑚𝑥 + 𝑐, right.

(Refer Slide Time: 10:20)

Hence 𝐿(𝑆) is a vector space.

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