All Questions
6,260 questions
38
votes
6
answers
11k
views
Is there a version of inclusion/exclusion for vector spaces?
I am asking for a way to compute the rank of the 'join' of a bunch of subspaces whose pairwise intersections might be non-zero. So in the case n=2 this is just $\dim(A_1+A_2) = \dim(A_1) + \dim(A_2) - ...
- 549
38
votes
10
answers
18k
views
Fast matrix multiplication
Suppose we have two $n$ by $n$ matrices over particular ring. We want to multiply them as fast as possible. According to wikipedia there is an algorithm of Coppersmith and Winograd that can do it in $...
- 1,791
38
votes
2
answers
6k
views
Over which fields are symmetric matrices diagonalizable ?
The question is motivated by this one real symmetric matrix has real eigenvalues - elementary proof:
Are there other fields $F$ than $\mathbb{R}$ (maybe some valued fields or real closed fields) ...
- 567
38
votes
2
answers
1k
views
What are all the natural maps between iterated duals of vector spaces, and equations between these?
Fix a field. Given a vector space $V$ it has a dual $V^\ast$, which has its own dual $V^{\ast \ast}$, which has its own dual $V^{\ast \ast \ast}$, and so on ad infinitum.
There are lots of natural ...
- 22.3k
38
votes
1
answer
10k
views
Infinite tensor products
Let $A$ be a commutative ring and $M_i, i \in I$ be a infinite family of $A$-modules. Define their tensor product $\bigotimes_{i \in I} M_i$ to be a representing object of the functor of multilinear ...
- 63.1k
37
votes
17
answers
13k
views
Listing applications of the SVD
The SVD (singular value decomposition) is taught in many linear algebra courses. It's taken for granted that it's important. I have helped teach a linear algebra course before, and I feel like I need ...
37
votes
4
answers
12k
views
Finite extension of fields with no primitive element
What is an example of a finite field extension which is not generated by a single element?
Background: A finite field extension E of F is generated by a primitive element if and only if there are a ...
- 24.1k
37
votes
3
answers
5k
views
Is there a nice proof of the fact that there are (p-1)/24 supersingular elliptic curves in characteristic p?
If $k$ is a characteristic $p$ field containing a subfield with $p^2$ elements (e.g., an algebraic closure of $\mathbb{F}_p$), then the number of isomorphism classes of supersingular elliptic curves ...
- 45.7k
36
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Determinant of the random matrix $X^2+Y^2$
$\DeclareMathOperator\Prob{Prob}$Let $X,Y\in M_n(\mathbb{R})$ be $2$ random matrices. The entries of $X,Y$ are i.i.d. variables. They follow the standard normal law $N(0,1)$.
i) When $n=2,3,4$, one ...
- 3,741
36
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Are large powers of polynomials linearly independent?
Let $P_1,\dots,P_k$ be polynomials over $\mathbf{C}$, no two of them being proportional.
Does there exist an integer $N$ such that $P_1^N,\dots,P_k^N$ are linearly independent?
- 4,653
36
votes
2
answers
32k
views
Eigenvalues of the product of two symmetric matrices
This is mostly a reference request, as this must be well-known!
Let $A$ and $B$ be two real symmetric matrices, one of which is positive definite. Then it is easy to see that the product $AB$ (or $BA$...
- 2,600
36
votes
0
answers
2k
views
Correspondence between eigenvalue distributions of random unitary and random orthogonal matrices
In the course of a physics problem (arXiv:1206.6687), I stumbled on a curious correspondence between the eigenvalue distributions of the matrix product $U\bar{U}$, with $U$ a random unitary matrix and ...
- 188k
35
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Why there is a relation among the second-order minors of a symmetric $4\times 4$ matrix?
A $4\times 4$ symmetric matrix
$$
\left(
\begin{array}{cccc}
a_{11} & a_{12} & a_{13} & a_{14} \\
a_{12} & a_{22} & a_{23} & a_{24} \\
a_{13} & a_{23} & a_{33} & ...
- 2,527
35
votes
5
answers
13k
views
Linearity of the inner product using the parallelogram law
A norm on a vector space comes from an inner product if and only if it satisfies the parallelogram law. Given such a norm, one can reconstruct the inner product via the formula:
$2\langle u,v\rangle ...
- 26.8k
35
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Is it consistent with ZF that $V \to V^{\ast \ast}$ is always an isomorphism?
Let $k$ be a field and $V$ a $k$-vector space. Then there is a map $V \to V^{\ast \ast}$, where $V^{\ast}$ is the dual vector space. If we are in ZFC and $\dim V$ is infinite, then this map is not ...
- 156k
35
votes
3
answers
4k
views
A curious determinantal inequality
In my study, I come across the following curious inequality, which I do not know a proof yet (so I am asking it here).
Let $A, B$ be $n\times n$ (Hermitian) positive definite matrices. It is very ...
- 1,748
35
votes
0
answers
1k
views
Orthogonal vectors with entries from $\{-1,0,1\}$
Let $\mathbf{1}$ be the all-ones vector, and suppose $\mathbf{1}, \mathbf{v_1}, \mathbf{v_2}, \ldots, \mathbf{v_{n-1}} \in \{-1,0,1\}^n$ are mutually orthogonal non-zero vectors. Does it follow that $...
- 6,351
34
votes
3
answers
6k
views
Why is uncomputability of the spectral decomposition not a problem?
Below, we compute with exact real numbers using a realistic / conservative model of computability like Type Two Effectivity.
Assume that there is an algorithm that, given a symmetric real matrix $M$, ...
- 4,943
34
votes
13
answers
6k
views
Elementary applications of linear algebra over finite fields
I'm teaching axiomatic linear algebra again this semester. Although the textbooks I'm using do everything over the real or complex numbers, for various reasons I prefer to work over an arbitrary ...
34
votes
8
answers
4k
views
Uncountable counterexamples in algebra
In functional analysis, there are many examples of things that "go wrong" in the nonseparable setting. For instance, my favorite version of the spectral theorem only works for operators on a ...
34
votes
6
answers
3k
views
Does seeing beyond the course you teach matter? The case of linear algebra and matrices
This question is indeed very important for me. Thus I hope you bear with my subjective explanations for a few minutes. I am an "excellent" lecturer, at least according to course evaluation forms ...
34
votes
4
answers
2k
views
If $A,B$ are upper triangular matrices such that $AX=XA\implies BX=XB$ for upper triangular $X$, is $B$ a polynomial in $A$?
A professor of mine told me that this is true, but he doesn't remember what the proof was or where to find it, and I haven't been able to find a source for it yet. As such I am looking for one here.
...
- 343
34
votes
2
answers
3k
views
The work of E. Artin and F. K. Schmidt on (what are now called) the Weil conjectures.
I was reading Dieudonne's "On the history of the Weil conjectures" and found two things that surprised me. Dieudonne makes some assertions about the work of Artin and Schmidt which are no doubt ...
- 41.4k
34
votes
2
answers
4k
views
Symmetric powers and duals of vector bundles in char p
Suppose that $X$ is a smooth projective variety (eg $P^n$) and $E$ is a vector bundle (eg the tangent bundle). If the characteristic is zero, then taking symmetric powers "commutes" with taking duals:
...
- 798
34
votes
3
answers
22k
views
Singular values of matrix sums
This is a follow-up question to this one about eigenvalues of matrix sums. Suppose you have matrices $A$ and $B$, and know their singular values. What can you say about the singular values of $A+B$?
...
- 6,342
34
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What are the algebras for the double dualization monad?
Let $k$ be a field, and let $\mathbf{Vect}$ denote the category of vector spaces (possibly infinite-dimensional) over $k$. Taking duals gives a functor $(\ )^*\colon \mathbf{Vect}^{\mathrm{op}} \to \...
- 27.7k
34
votes
3
answers
3k
views
Quickly determining if a matrix has any PSD completion
Given $m$ entries of an $n \times n$ matrix, is it possible to determine in $O(m n)$ time whether there is any positive semidefinite completion?
Slightly more precisely: for simplicity let's assume ...
- 777
33
votes
5
answers
16k
views
Is a vector space naturally isomorphic to its dual? [closed]
This question may not be as easy to answer as you think! Some tangentially-related questions have appeared on math.stackexchange but I'm not really convinced by the answers.
In the sequel I will ...
- 2,895
33
votes
4
answers
10k
views
Definition of inner product for vector spaces over arbitrary fields
Is there a canonical definition of the concept of inner products for vector spaces over arbitrary fields, i.e. other fields than $\mathbb R$ or $\mathbb C$?
- 341
33
votes
2
answers
7k
views
Dimension of infinite product of vector spaces
This question is motivated by the question link text, which compares the infinite direct sum and the infinite direct product of a ring.
It is well-known that an infinite dimensional vector space is ...
- 20.8k
32
votes
3
answers
4k
views
Example for column rank $\neq$ row rank
The proof that column rank = row rank for matrices over a field relies on the fact that the elements of a field commute. I'm looking for an easy example of a matrix over a ring for which column rank $\...
- 4,014
32
votes
10
answers
3k
views
Which 'well-known' algebraic geometric results do not hold in characteristic 2?
A smooth curve $X$ in $\mathbb{P}^n$ is strange if there is a point $p$ which lies on all the tangent lines of $X$.
Examples are $\mathbb{P}^1$ is strange and so is $y=x^2$ in characteristic $2$. ...
- 2,215
32
votes
1
answer
17k
views
The gimbal lock shows up in my quaternions
I suspect this is a bit basic for mathoverflow, seeing I'm still just an undergraduate
I've been playing around with quaternions as means to eliminate the gimbal lock. From what I understand, one ...
32
votes
2
answers
1k
views
A question about subspace in ${\bigwedge}^2({\mathbb R}^n)$
Let $E$ be a linear subspace of ${\bigwedge}^2({\mathbb R}^n)$. What is the minimal dimension of $E$ that guarantees $E$ contains a nonzero element of the form $X\wedge Y$, with $X, Y\in{\mathbb R}^n$?...
- 637
32
votes
3
answers
3k
views
How much linear algebra can be done with graphs?
Let G be a finite directed acyclic graph, with sources $A=\{a_1,\ldots,a_n\}$ and sinks $B=\{b_1,\ldots,b_n\}$, with edge weights $w_{ij}$. The weight of a directed path P is the product of weights of ...
- 22.2k
31
votes
10
answers
9k
views
When to pick a basis?
Picking a specific basis is often looked upon with disdain when making statements that are about basis independent quantities. For example, one might define the trace of a matrix to be the sum of the ...
- 2,649
31
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Probability of zero in a random matrix
Let $M(n,k)$ be the set of $n\times n$ matrices of nonnegative integers such that every row and every column sums to $k$. Let $P(n,k)$ be the fraction of such matrices which have no zero entries, ...
- 37.7k
31
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Can you partition the sphere into orthonormal bases?
I've been writing some linear algebra problems with colleagues, and the following question occurred to us:
Let $S^2$ denote the unit sphere in $\mathbb{R}^3$. Does there exist a
partition $S^2=\...
- 7,633
31
votes
4
answers
5k
views
The Frobenius morphism
I found the following list on the "Frobenius Page" by David Ben-Zvi, described by the author as "an outdated collection of intuitive ways to think about raising to the p-th power".
Generates a ...
31
votes
1
answer
4k
views
Determinants of binary matrices
I was surprised to find that most $3\times 3$ matrices with entries in $\{0,1\}$ have determinant $0$ or $\pm 1$. There are only six out of 512 matrices with a different determinant (three with $2$ ...
- 12.7k
31
votes
1
answer
2k
views
solving linear equations made difficult
(Note: This is a what's-in-the-literature question, not a what's-mathematically-true question, but I believe both are considered valid kinds of MathOverflow question.)
I saw this amusing derivation ...
- 19.7k
30
votes
12
answers
14k
views
Why are tensors a generalization of scalars, vectors, and matrices?
Take two vector spaces $V$ and $W$ over a field $F$. One may form the tensor product $V\otimes W$ and it fulfills an universal property. Elements of $V\otimes W$ are called tensors and they are linear ...
30
votes
14
answers
13k
views
Geometrical meaning of Grassmann algebra
I don't understand wedge product and Grassmann algebra. However, I heard that these concepts are obvious when you understand the geometrical intuition behind them. Can you give this geometrical ...
- 303
30
votes
2
answers
2k
views
When is $SL(n,R) \rightarrow SL(n,R/q)$ surjective?
Let $R$ be a commutative ring with unit and let $q$ be an ideal of $R$. There is thus a natural map $SL(n,R) \rightarrow SL(n,R/q)$ for all $n$. This map is surjective if $SL(n,R/q)$ is generated by ...
- 418
30
votes
7
answers
4k
views
When is a monic integer polynomial the characteristic polynomial of a non-negative integer matrix?
Suppose $P(x)$ is a monic integer polynomial with roots $r_1, ... r_n$ such that $p_k = r_1^k + ... + r_n^k$ is a non-negative integer for all positive integers $k$. Is $P(x)$ necessarily the ...
- 118k
30
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Gaussian elimination is just Gram-Schmidt with a change to the inner product symbol?
I noticed at some point that if you take the Gram-Schmidt algorithm for taking the QR decomposition of a matrix, and you change the meaning of the inner product symbol $\langle \mathbf u, \mathbf v \...
- 4,943
29
votes
6
answers
10k
views
how to find/define eigenvectors as a continuous function of matrix?
I asked this (with background) here
https://stats.stackexchange.com/questions/38494/principal-component-analysis-bootstrap-and-probability-of-eigenvalue-collision
but did not really get any answers. ...
- 2,600
29
votes
2
answers
5k
views
Consequences of eigenvector-eigenvalue formula found by studying neutrinos
This article describes the discovery by three physicists, Stephen Parke of Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Xining Zhang of the University of Chicago, and Peter Denton of Brookhaven National ...
- 4,862
29
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Categorification of determinant
The notion of trace of a matrix can be generalized to trace of an endomorphism of a dualizable objects in a symmetric monoidal category. (See Ponto & Shulman for a nice description.)
Is there a ...
- 290
29
votes
3
answers
3k
views
Perron-Frobenius "inverse eigenvalue problem"
The Perron-Frobenius theorem says that the largest eigenvalue of a positive real matrix (all entries positive) is real. Moreover, that eigenvalue has a positive eigenvector, and it is the only ...
- 2,210