Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
This glossary of linear algebra is a list of definitions and terms relevant to the field of linear algebra, the branch of mathematics concerned with linear equations and their representations as vector spaces. For a glossary related to the generalization of vector spaces through modules, see glossary of module theory
In mathematics, the term linear function refers to two distinct but related notions: [1] In calculus and related areas, a linear function is a function whose graph is a straight line, that is, a polynomial function of degree zero or one. [2] For distinguishing such a linear function from the other concept, the term affine function is often used ...
For example, 2+2 is a ground term and hence also a linear term, x⋅(n+1) is a linear term, n⋅(n+1) is a non-linear term. These properties are important in, for example, term rewriting. Given a signature for the function symbols, the set of all terms forms the free term algebra. The set of all ground terms forms the initial term algebra.
Cramer's rule is a closed-form expression, in terms of determinants, of the solution of a system of n linear equations in n unknowns. Cramer's rule is useful for reasoning about the solution, but, except for n = 2 or 3 , it is rarely used for computing a solution, since Gaussian elimination is a faster algorithm.
The solutions of a linear equation form a line in the Euclidean plane, and, conversely, every line can be viewed as the set of all solutions of a linear equation in two variables. This is the origin of the term linear for describing this type of equation.
In mathematics, the term linear is used in two distinct senses for two different properties: . linearity of a function (or mapping);; linearity of a polynomial.; An example of a linear function is the function defined by () = (,) that maps the real line to a line in the Euclidean plane R 2 that passes through the origin.
The names for the degrees may be applied to the polynomial or to its terms. For example, the term 2x in x 2 + 2x + 1 is a linear term in a quadratic polynomial. The polynomial 0, which may be considered to have no terms at all, is called the zero polynomial. Unlike other constant polynomials, its degree is not zero.
Linear operators refer to linear maps whose domain and range are the same space, for example from to . [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ a ] Such operators often preserve properties, such as continuity . For example, differentiation and indefinite integration are linear operators; operators that are built from them are called differential operators , integral ...