Another Look at

Systems of Linear
Equations

Topic Outline
1.Systems of Linear Equations
2. Matrices
3. Applications of systems of Linear
Equations

Linear Equations

Definition 1: A linear equation in two variables x and y has

the form a1x+a2y=
where ab,
constants a1 , a1 and a2 and2b are not both zero.

are

Definition 2: A linear equation in three variables x , y, and z

has the form

a1x+a2y+a3z=b

where

are constants.a1 . a2 , a3 andb

Definition 3: A linear equation in n variables x and
y has the form

a1x1 +a2x2 +a3x

where the coefficients
are real numbers. The number
and
is the leading variable.x1

+...+anxn =b

a1, a2, a3 ,...,anandb

is the leading coefficient a1

Systems of Linear Equations

Definition 4: A system of m linear equations in n
variables x1, x2, , xn is a set of m linear
equations in the same n variables.

a 11 x 1 + a 12 x 2 + ... a 1 n x n = b 1
a 21 x 1 + a 22 x 2 + ... a 2 n x n = b 2
...
...
a m 1 x 1 + a m 2 x 2 + ... a mn x n = b m

Types of Systems
Definition 5: A system of linear equations that
has a solution is called a consistent system
while a system of linear equations that has no
solution is called an inconsistent system.
Definition 6: An underdetermined system of
linear equations is one with more variables
than equations.
Example:

x1 +2x2 3x3 =4
2x1 x2 +4x3 =3

Definition 7: An overdetermined system of

linear equations is one with more equations
than variables.
x1 +3x2 =5
Example:

2x1 2x2 =3
x1 +7x2 =0
Elementary Linear Algebra by Ron Larson and David Falvo

Systems of Equations in Two Unknowns

Independent system
One solution

Inconsistent system
No solution

Dependent system
Infinite solution

Solving Systems of Linear

Equations in Two
Unknowns
1. Graphical
2. Substitution

3. Addition or Elimination
4. Cramers Rule
5. Gauss-Jordan Elimination
6. Use of Inverse of a Matrix
Solving Systems of Linear Equations

1.Graphical Method
Solve the system:

y = 3x 2
y = x 6

Solution:
(-1,-5)
Solving Systems of Linear Equations

2.Substitution Method

Solve the
system
x + y = 10
2x +y = 15

Solution:
Solving Systems of Linear Equations

3.Addition Method
Solve the
system
5x +3y = -19
8x +3y =-25

Solution:

Introduction : Cramers Rule

Matrices
Definition 8: If m and n are positive integers, then an mxn matrix is a
rectangular array of numbers where aij is the entry located in the ith
row and jth column

 a11 a12 a13

a
21 a22 a23
a31 a33 a33

.
.
.
am1 am2 am3

... a1n
... a2n
... a3n

.
.
... amn

m rows

n columns

Operations on Matrices
Addition of Matrices

Let A = [aij ] and B =[bij ] be of the same size.

Then A + B is the matrix obtained by adding
corresponding elements of A and B; that is
A + B = [aij ] + [bij ] = [aij + bij ]:

Example:

14 52+13 41=14++31

52+14=54 19

Scalar Multiple of a Matrix

Let A = [aij ] and t F (that is t is a scalar).
Then tA is the matrix obtained by multiplying
all elements of A by t; that is

tA = t[aij ] = [taij ]:
Example
1 2

3(1) 3(2)

34 2 = 3(4) 3(2)

Subtraction of matrices
Matrix subtraction is defined for two matrices
A = [aij ] and B = [bij ] of the same size; that is
A - B = [aij ] - [bij ] = [aij - bij ]
Example:

1 2 3 1 13 2+1 2 3
4 51 4=41 54=3 1

Multiplication of Matrices
If A is an mxn matrix and B is an nxp matrix, then their matrix
product AB is the mxp matrix whose entries are given by dot product of
the corresponding row of A and the corresponding column of B:

AB = A i 1 B 1 j + A i 2 B 2 j + ... + A in B nj = , A ir B rj
r =1

where 1 i m and 1 j p.

Example :
Let

A=0

2 andB= 2

1 1
5

Solution :

=
10 23 02 51 14 [[01 32]]0022 [[01
32]]5511 [[01 32]]1414=64 1410 138

Zero matrix

For each m; n the matrix in Mmxn(F), all of whose

elements are zero, is called the zero matrix
denoted by the symbol 0.
0 0
Example : The zero matrix of order
0 0
2:

Identity matrix of order n

Is a matrix whose diagonal entries are 1 and all
other entries zero is called the identity matrix of
order n denoted by In.

Examples :

1 0
I2 =

0
1

1 0 0
I 3 = 0 1 0
0 0 1

Square matrices
A square matrix is a matrix with the same number of
rows and columns. An nxn matrix is known as a square
matrix of order n.
A square matrix A is called invertible or non-singular if
there exists a matrix B such that
AB = BA =In.
Moreover, if B exists, it is unique and is called the
inverse of matrix A, denoted A1.

Example: Show that B is the inverse of A.

1 2

1 2

Let A = 1 1 and B = 1 1


Solution:
1 2 1 2

1 0

AB = 1 1 1 1 = 0 1 and

1 21 2

1 0

BA = 1 11 1 = 0 1

Since AB=BA=In, then B is the inverse of A.

Determinants

Definition 9:
The determinant of a matrix is the real
number associated to a given matrix A.

Determinant: Matrix of order 2

The area of the parallelogram is the absolute value of the determinant

of the matrix formed by the vectors representing the parallelogram's
sides.

Determinant: Matrix of
order 3

The volume of this Parallelepiped is the

absolute value of the determinant of the
matrix formed by r1, r2, and r3.

Rule of Sarrus or the Diagonal Method

The rule of Sarrus is a

mnemonic for this formula: the
sum of the products of three
diagonal north-west to southeast
lines of matrix elements, minus
the sum of the products of three
diagonal south-west to north-east
lines of elements when the copies
of the first two columns of the
matrix are written beside it as in
the illustration at the right.
can be calculated by its diagonals.
The determinant of a 3x3 matrix

Example: Find the determinant of the matrix A

using the rule of Sarrus.

0 2 1

Solution:

0 2 10 2

A = 34 01 21
A= 3 1 23
4 0 14 0

A= 0(1)(1)+2(2)(4)+1(0)(3)4(1)(1)0(2)(0)1(3)(2) =14

Cofactor Expansion
Let A be a square matrix of order n. Then the
determinant of A is given by
n

det(A) = A =

aijCij = ai1Ci1 + ai2Ci2 + ai3Ci3 + ... + ainCin

j=1

Where the cofactor Cij is given by

i+j

Cij =(1)

Mij

and where the minor Mij is the of the element aij is the
determinant matrix obtained by deleting the ith row
and the jth column of A.

Example: Find the determinant of the matrix A

using cofactor expansion of the 1st row.

0 2 1

A = 3 1 2 4
0 1
Solution: Using the cofactor expansion of the
1st row:

1+11 2

Recall:

0 2 1

C11 = (1)0

= 1,
1

C
2
A = 34 01 21 12 = (1)1+ 34

= 5, and
1
1

C13 = (1)1+334

Thus we have

0 = 4

A =a11C11+ a12C12 +
a13C13
A =0(1)+2(5)+1(4)=14

Gabriel Cramer (1704-1752)

A Swiss mathematician who was a professor
of mathematics at Geneva. When Cramer
published his rule in 1750 he did not use
determinants as they are now shown, and he
gave no explanation for how he achieved the
result. It seems that Colin Maclaurin probably
discovered the same rule as early as 1729, but
it was not published until after his death. Although Cramer is
primarily remembered for the rule of determinants he also
worked in problems related to physics and general geometry
and algebraic curves.
Solving Systems of Linear Equations

4.Cramers Rule

Solve the
system
2x + 9y = 8 x +
5y =4
Solution:
(4,0)
Introduction : GaussJordan Elimination

Elementary Row Operations

1.Interchange two rows.

Ri Rj
2. Multiply a row by a nonzero constant.

cRi Ri
3. Add a multiple of a row to another row.

Rj+cRi Rj

Reduced Row-Echelon Form

Definition 9: A matrix is in reduced row-echelon form (RREF) if:
1.Any rows consisting entirely of zeros are grouped at the
bottom of the matrix.
2.The first nonzero element of each other row is 1. This
element is called the leading 1.
3.The leading 1 of each row after the first is positioned to the
right of the leading 1 of the previous row.
4.All other elements in a column that contains a leading 1 are
zero.

Examples:

0 1 0 5

A=0 0 1 3

Matrix A is in RREF.

0 0 0 0

1 2 3 4 Matrix B is not in B= 0 2 1

1 RREF.
0 0

Solving Systems of Linear Equations

5. Gauss-Jordan Elimination
1.Write down the augmented matrix of the
system of linear equations.
2.Derive the reduced echelon form of the
augmented matrix using elementary row
operations.
3.Write down the system of equations
corresponding to the reduced echelon form.
This system gives the solution of the system
of equations.

Example:

Solve the system

x + y = 10
2x +y = 15
1 1
2R1
2 1

101 1 101 1 10
+R2 R21R2
150 1 50 1
105
1R2 +R1 R1
015

R2
5

The system is reduced to x=5

y=5.

The solution is (5,5).

Introduction :Use of Inverse

Inverse of a matrix
When det(A)0, the inverse of a 2x2
matrix A is obtained using

1
A =
A
1

d
c

Solving Systems of Linear Equations

5. Using the Inverse of a Matrix

THEOREM: Let AX=Y be a system of n linear equations in n variables. If A1 exists, the solution is unique and is given by X=A-1Y.
Proof: First prove that X=A-1Y is a solution by substituting it into the matrix
equation. Using the properties of matrices we get
AX=A(A-1Y)=(AA-1)Y=InY=Y.
X=A-1Y satisfies the equation, thus it is a solution.
Now we prove the uniqueness of the solution. Let X1 be any solution. Thus
AX1=Y. Multiplying both sides of this equation by A-1 gives
A-1AX1=A-1Y
InX1=A-1Y
X1=A-1Y
Thus there is a unique solution X1=A-1Y.

Linear Algebra w/Applications by Gareth

Williams

Example:

x1 + x2 = 10
2x1 +x2 = 15

The system can be written in the following matrix form:

AX=Y 1 1x1 10 2

1x2=15
1 1

The inverse of the coefficient matrix is

Applying the theorem

A-1: 2 1

x1 1 110 5

X=A-1Y

x2=2 115=5

Thus the solution is x1 =5

andx2 =5

Lets make
equations alive!

Some Applications

Curve Fitting
Networks
Cryptography

Application of Systems
of Equations to
Geometry
Curve Fitting
1. Find a polynomial whose graph passes
through the points. The points are often
measurements in an experiment.
2. The x-coordinates are called base points. It
can be shown that if the base points are all

distinct, then a unique polynomial of degree

n-1 (or less) can be fitted to the points.

Example 1 : Determine the equation

of the polynomial of degree two
whose graph passes through the
points (1,6),(2,3) and (3,2).
We want to find an equation of degree two.
(one less than the number of data points)
Let the polynomial be

y= a0 +a1x+a2x2
Now we solve for the values of

a0 , a1 , and a2

Substituting the points in the polynomial leads to

Recall: The pts.
the following system of linear equations

a 0 + a1 + a 2 = 6 a 0 + 2a 2 +

are (1,6),(2,3)
and (3,2).

4a 3 = 3 a 0 + 3a 2 + 9a 2 =
2
and using Gauss Jordan Elimination gives

y=116x+x2

Example 2 : Given three points

A1 =(x1, y1), A2 =(x2, y2) and A3 =(x3, y3) in the

plane (and not on the same line), find the
equation of the circle going through these points.

If M =(x, y) is an arbitrary point on the

circle, then we can write

where a, b, c and d are constants, a 0

Find the equation of the circle through the

points A (1, 0), A (-1, 2) and A (3, 1). we
1

which gives after simplification

The circle has (7/6, 13/6) as center

and 37/18 as radius.

What is a NETWORK?
a network is a series of points or nodes
interconnected by communication paths.

Examples:
1.Street (Traffic) network
2.Circuit network

STREET
(TRAFFIC)
NETWORK

Assumptions:
1.Assume that the streets are one way.
2. By Kirchhoffs first Law, the flow into
an intersection is equal to the flow out.
The following diagram shows part of the central section of a
campus. Find the amount of the traffic between each of four
intersection .

70

120

For each intersection, this fact can be shown by an

equation.
70

A:
B:
C:

x4+120 = x1 + 250
x3 + 115 = x4 + 175
x2 + 630 = x3 + 390

120

D:

x1 + 70 = x2 + 120

Rewriting this system of linear

equations:

The augmented matrix of this system is

RREF

as a linear system :

A free variable exists, this problem has many possible

solutions, but x4 > 180.

Electric
Circuit
A simple Electric
Circuit is a closed
connection
of
batteries, resistors,
and Wires. It consists
of voltage, loops and
current nodes.
The following physical
quantities are measured in an
electrical circuit; Current,: Denoted by I measured in Amperes (A).
Resistance ,: Denoted by R measured in Ohms ( W ) .

Electrical Potential Difference ,: Denoted by V measured in volts. (v)

Three basic laws governing the flow of current in an electrical circuit

1. Ohm's Law The voltage across the conductor is equal to the
product of the resistance and the current flowing through it (at
constant temperature) : V=IR
2. Kirchhoff's Voltage Law The algebraic sum of the voltage drops
around a closed loop is equal to the total voltage in the loop.
3. Kirchhoff's Current Law The sum of all currents entering a node
is equal to the sum of all currents leaving the node.

Example Determine the currents I1, I2, and I3

for the following electrical network:
A

I1

I1
8 volts

2 ohms

2 ohms
I3

I3

D
1 ohm

I2

I2
C
4 ohms

16 volts

Applying Kirchhoffs first Law to either of the nodes B

or D,

I2 +I1 =I3 or

I1 +I2 I3 =0
Applying Kirchhoffs second Law to the loops ABDA and
CBDC, we obtain the equations
A
I1

I1
8 volts

2 ohms

2 ohms

B
1 ohm

I3
D

I3

I2

I2
C
4 ohms

16 volts

2I1
4I2 +1I3 =16

+1I3 +2I1 = 8

This gives the linear system:

I1 + I2 I3 = 0
4I1

+ I3 = 8
4I2 + I3 = 16

Whose augmented matrix is

1 1 1 0

4 0 1 8

0 4 1 16
RREF

1 0 0 1

0103

0 0 1 4
Therefore, the currents are:

I1 =1 , I2 = 3, andI3 =4

Cryptography

Cryptography is the study of encoding

and decoding secret messages.
Codes are called ciphers
plaintext - uncoded messages
ciphertext -coded messages

Encoding- converting a plaintext to a ciphertext

Decoding- converting a ciphertext to a
plaintext

Different ways of coding:

1. Substitution replace each letter of alphabet by a
different letter or a number.
For example, replace a with m, and b with k.
2. Polygraphic System
divide plain text into sets of n-letters, and
replace them with n code letters. In this case

invertible matrices can be used to provide a better

coding, than substitution.
For example, we may assign an integer to each of
the letters of the English alphabet.

Example1:

Encode the message

MATH IS MAGICAL
using the encoding matrix

4 3

A=3 2

Using the conversion table below:

M A T H
I S
M A GI C A L
13 1 20 8 27 9 19 27 13 1 7 9 3 1 12
We assign 27 for every space between words.
RECALL:

M A T H
I S
M A G I C A L
13 1 20 8 27 9 19 27 13 1 7 9 3 1 12

divide the number into groups of 2x1 matrices

13 20 27 19 13 7 3 12
1 , 8 , 9 ,27, 1 ,9,1,27
Use these columns as the columns of the matrix:

13202719137 312

1 8 9 271 9 1 27

We multiply the matrix obtained to the encoding

matrix to obtain the encoded message(ciphertext).

4 31320 2719137 3 12

=
3 2 1 8 9 27 1 9 1 27
Thus the encoded message is:

Example2:
Decode the message
__________________
which was encoded using the
matrix

4 3 A=3
2

Solution:

First we have to find the decoding matrix ,

or the inverse of

4 3 A=3
2

RECALL:

A
Thus,

= A1 dc ab

A1 = 81+9 23 34=23 34
This matrix will serve as the decoding matrix.

23 34[ ]=

The message is

Try this!
Decode the message
Which was encoded using the matrix

Workshop!
11:00-11:20
11:20-11:30

Group discussions
Group reports

1. What are the important concepts students should be equipped

with before studying systems of linear algebra.
2. How can we motivate students to study systems of linear
equations?
3. What strategies have you used that you found effective in
teaching systems of equations?

References:
Linear Algebra with Applications by Gareth Williams

Elementary Linear Algebra by Ron Larson and David C. Falvo

http://aix1.uottawa.ca/~jkhoury/networks.htm
http://www.math.ucdavis.edu/~daddel/linear_algebra_appl/Application
s/applications.html

Thank you for listening!