MAT220-Algebra

Sofia Tirabassi

University of Bergen

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Groups
Definition
A group G is given by a set G together with a binary operation

−∗−:G ×G →G

such that
1 ∗ is associative, that is for every a, b and c in G
(a ∗ b) ∗ c = a ∗ (b ∗ c).
2 there is an element e in G (called identity) such that for every a in G
a ∗ e = e ∗ a = a.
3 for every a in G there is an element a0 (called inverse) in G such that
a ∗ a0 = a0 ∗ a = e
We say that a group G is abelian, if the operation ∗ is also commutative.
That is, for every a and b i G
a∗b =b∗a
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
Notation

If not stated differntly we will denote the operation ∗ as the usual

multiplication between numbers. So a ∗ b will become ab or a · b and
the unity e will be denoted by 1 (or e or id).
If n is a postive integer an will stand for a| · .{z
. . · a}
n times
−1
If n is a negative integer an will stand for a| . . · a−1}
· .{z
n times
We set a0
= 1.
n m
a a =a n+m

(an )m = anm

If G is abelian...
...we might use the addittive notation where + stands for the operation, 0
for the identity, and an is denoted by na, and we have that
na + ma = (n + m)a and n(ma) = (nm)a
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
Order

The order of an element g of a

group G is the least positive
integer n such that g n = e .
The order of a group G is the
cardinality of the set G , that is the Example
number of its elements.
 
1 2 3
The order of in
Example 2 1 3
S3 is 2.
The order of S3 is 6.  
1 2 3
The order of Sn is n!. The order of in
2 3 1
The order of Z4 is 4 S3 is 3.
The order of Zn is... What is the order of

1 2 3
in
1 2 3
S3 ?

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Order of one element

Theorem
Let G be a group and g ∈ G
1 If |g | = +∞ then g k 6= g j if k 6= j.
2 If g k = g j for some k 6= j then g | < +∞

Proposition
Let G be a group and g ∈ G an element of finite order n.
1 If g k = e then n|k
2 ai = aj iff i ≡ j mod n
3 n = td, d > 1 then |g t | = d.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Subgroups

Definition
A subgroup H of a group G is a subset of G which is a group with the
restricted operation. We write H < G .

Theorem
A subset H of a group G is a subgroup iff
1 H is closed with respect of the operation. That is for every a and
b in H ab is in H.
2 The identity of G is an element of H.
3 H is closed with respect of taking inverses. That is for every a in
H the inverse a−1 is in H.
Notice as any group G is a subgroup of itself, we said that G is the
improper subgroup of G .
Also {1} ⊆ G is a subgroup, called the trivial subgroup of G .
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
Cyclic Subgroups

Given a group G and one of its elements a. Consider the set

< a >:= {an | n ∈ Z} ⊆ G

This is a subgroup of G , called the cyclic subgroup of G generated by a.

Remark
The order of < a > is the order of the element a in G . This is the reason
for the ambiguity of the name.

Definition
We say that a group G is cyclic if there is an a ∈ G such that < a >= G .
We call a a generator of G .

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Cyclic Groups

Every cyclic group is abelian.

Every subgroup of a cyclic group is cyclic.
Given G =< a > a cyclic group of finite order n, let b = as . Then b
generates a cyclic subgroup of G of order
n
.
gcd(n, s)

Furthermore < as >=< at > if and only if gcd(n, s) = gcd(n, t).

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Homomorphism (isomorphism)

Definition
Given two groups G1 and G2 with operations ∗1 , and ∗2 , a function
f : G1 → G2 is a group homomorphism or (homo)morphism of groups if,
for any a and b in G1 .

f (a ∗1 b) = f (a) ∗2 f (b).

A (group) isomorphism is a (group) homomorphism such that it is also a

bijective function. In that case we say that G1 and G2 are isomorphic.
The kernel of f , is the set

ker f := {a ∈ G1 | f (a) = e2 } < G1 .

The image or range of f is t the set

f [G1 ] := {y ∈ G2 | there is an a in G1 such that y = f (a)} < G2 .

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Homomorphism (isomorphism)

Theorem
A group homomorphism f : G1 → G2 is injective (1-1) if, and only if,
ker f = {e1 }.

That means that to check if f is an isomorphism you need to see that

1 f is surjective (onto)
2 ker f = {e1 }.

Remark
Let f : G1 → G2 an injective (1-1) group homomorphism. Notice that G1
is isomorphic to the subgroup f [G1 ] < G2

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Isomorphism

The general strategy to show that two groups G1 and G2 are isomorphic is
1 Construct a function f : G1 → G2 .
2 Show that f is a group homomorphism.
3 Show that f is surjective (onto).
4 Show that ker f = {e1 } (or equivalently that f is injective (1-1))

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Groups of permutations

Let A be a non-empty set. Define

SA := {f : A → A | f is bijective}.

It is a group with the operation of composition.

If A = {1, . . . n} then we denote SA simply by Sn and we call it symmetric
group on n letters.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Equivalence Relations

Definition
An equivalence relation ∼ on a set S is a relation such that it is
1 Reflexive (a ∼ a)
2 Symmetric (if a ∼ b then b ∼ a)
3 Transitive (if a ∼ b and b ∼ c then a ∼ b)

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Partitions
If S is a set with an equivalence relation ∼ and s ∈ S we define the
equivalence class of s to be
[s]∼ := {t ∈ S | t ∼ s} ⊆ S.

Definition
A partion on a set S is a collection of non-empty subset such that every
element in S lies in exactly one set of the partion.

This means that

1 For every A and B in the partition A ∩ B = ∅

2 The union of all the elements of the partition is S.

If S is a set sith an equivalence relation ∼ then the distinct equivalence

classes [s]∼ yield a partition. Conversely if {Ai } is a partition of S we can
define an equivalence relation ∼ by say that s ∼ if and only if s and t
belong to the same element of the partition. The equivalence calsses of
this relations are exactly the A0i s.
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
Cycles
Given a nonempty set A and a permutation σ ∈ SA we can define an
equivalence relation on A:
a∼b ⇔ ∃ n ∈ Z : b = σ n (a).
The equivalence classes are called Orbits. Think of σ as the Earth
gravitational force and of the element of A as different positions in the
space...
Definition
A cycle σ ∈ Sn is a permutation with at most one orbit containing more
than one element. The length of a cycle is the cardinality (number of
elements) of its largest orbit.

We write cycle in the single row cyclic notation: (1, 2, 6) ∈ S6 means the
permutation that
1 7→ 2 7→ 6 7→ 1 
1 2 3 4 5 6
and leaves all the other unchanged. So it is
2 6 3 4 5 1
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
Disjoint Cycles
We say that two permutation σ and τ in Sn are disjoint if every
j ∈ {1, . . . , n} is “moved” by at most one of them.
Proposition
If σ and τ are disjoint permutations in Sn then they commute, that is

στ = τ σ.

Theorem
Every permutation in Sn can be written as a product of disjoint cycles

1 Find the orbits.

2 Each orbit {a1 , . . . ak } corresponds to the cycle (a1 , . . . , ak ).
(Attention here the order in whcih you write the ai ’s matters).
3 All this cycles are disjoint because the orbits give you a partition.
4 Multiply the cylces (in whatever order... they commute!!!).
5 You can omit the orbit with just one element.
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
Even and odd permutations
A transpositon is a cycle of length 2.
Every cycle (a1 , . . . , ak ) can be written as a product of (not disjoint)
transpositions:
(a1 , an )(a1 , an−1 ), . . . (a1 , a3 )(a1 , a2 ).
We deduce that every permutation can be written as a product of
transpositions. This can be done in many ways but one thing is constant:
Theorem
No permutation can be written both as a product of an even number and
a odd number of transpositions.

We say that a permutation σ ∈ Sn is even if it can be written as a

product of an even number of transpositions. Otherwise we say it is odd.

An := {σ ∈ Sn | σ is even}
it is the Alternating (sub)gruop on n letters.
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
Classification of finite abelian groups

Theorem
Every finite abelian group G is isomorphic to the product of finite cyclic
groups. More precisely

G ' Zpr1 × Zpr2 × · · · × Zpsrs ,

1 2

where the pi ’s are prime numbers not necessarily distinct.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Cosets
Let H < G . We can define the following equivalence relation on G :

g1 ∼L g2 ⇔ g1−1 g2 ∈ H.

The equivalence classes are called left cosets of H in G .

We can also define the right cosets of H in G , Bby using the
relation g1 ∼R g2 ⇔ g1 g2−1 ∈ H.
Given g ∈ G the left coset of H containing g is

gH = {gh | h ∈ H}

(or g + H := {g + h | h ∈ H}, if we use the addittive notation).

(G : H) denotes the number of (left or right) cosets of H in G and it
is called the index of H in G . If G is finite we have that
(G : H) = |G |/|H|.
If K < H < G and (G : H) and (H : K ) are finite, then
(G : K ) = (H : K )(G : H).
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
Lagrange Theorem

Lagrange Theorem
If G is a finite group, then the order of any subgroup H divides the order
of G .

Corollary
Every group of prime order is cyclic
The order of an element a of a group G divides the order of G .

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Some Remarks

Remark
H is normal in G iff right coset and left coset coincide.

Every subgroup of an abelian group is normal.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Quotient (Factor) Group

Let G a group and H a subgroup of G . Consider

G /H := {gH | g ∈ G }

the set of left cosets of H in G . We want to define an operation on G /H.

We try the obvious thing:

(aH)(bH) = abH

Observe that you are defining a function that takes sets (equivalence
classes) as input by using only one of their elements (so you are making a
choice). If we make a different choice our output could be different. In a
few words:
Problem
What insures that, if a0 H = aH and b 0 H = bH, then abH = a0 b 0 H?

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Quotient (Factor) Group

Definition
A subgroup H of G is said to be normal if for every g ∈ G

gH = Hg

Theorem
The multiplication in G /H defined in the previous slide is well defined
(independent from the choice made) if, and only if H is normal in G . If
this happens than G /H with this operation is a group.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

First Isomorphism Theorem

Proposition
Given a group G and a normal subgroup H < G then the map
π : G → G /H defined by π(g ) = gH is a group homomorphism.

Theorem
Given a group homomorphism ϕ : G → G 0 with kernel H, then there is a
(unique) injective group morphism µ : G /H → G 0 such that ϕ = µ ◦ π.
The morphism µ induces an isomorphism of G /H with ϕ[G ], the image of
ϕ.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Group actions

Let X be a set and G a group. A group action of G on X is a mapsto

∗:G ×X →X

such that
1 e ∗ x = x for every x ∈ X .
2 (gh) ∗ x = g ∗ (h ∗ x) for every g and h in G and every x ∈ X .
We say that G acts on X and that X is a G -set.
if g ∈ G then Xg := {x ∈ X | gx = x}
Given x ∈ X the orbit of x under G is

Gx := {g ∗ x : | g ∈ G }

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Group Actions - Examples

Let X = {1, . . . , n} and G = Sn . Define the action as σ ∗ i = σ(i).

If σ = id then Xσ = X .
If σ = (1, 2, . . . , n) then Xσ = ∅
If σ = (1, 2) then Xσ = {3, . . . , n}.
The orbit of any j under the action is the whole X . What is the orbit of i?
Remark
If σ ∈ Sn , then also < σ > acts on X by setting σ ∗ i = σ(i). The orbit of
i under this action is the usual orbit of i wrt σ.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Burnside Fromula

X
]Orbits · |G | = ]Xg
g ∈G

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Rings

A ring is a set R together with two binary operations + and · such that
1 (R, +) is an abelian group. We denote by 0R its identity element.
2 · is associative
3 · is distributive wrt +, that is

a(b + c) = ab + ac

(b + c)a = ba + ca
for every a, b, c ∈ R.
We say that the ring R is commutative if · is commutative.
We say that R has a unity if · has an identity element, that is extist 1R in
R such that a · 1R = 1R · a = a. For every a ∈ R.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Arithmetics in Rings

1 0R a = a0R = 0R for every a ∈ R.

2 a(−b) = (−a)b = −ab for every a, b, in R.
3 (−a)(−b) = ab for every a, b, in R.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Subrings and ideals

A subset R1 ⊆ R is a subring if it is a ring with the induced operation.

That is iff
1 R1 is closed with respect +
2 R1 is closed with respect taking inverses wrt +.
3 0R is in R1
4 R1 is closed with respect to ·
If R is a ring with unity and R1 is a subring with unity if it is a subring
and 1R is in R1 .
Definition
A subset I of a ring R is an (two-sided) ideal if I is a subgroup of (R, +)
and for every a ∈ R and i ∈ I , ai ∈ I and ia ∈ I .

Note: If the ring R is commutative you need to check just one of the two
conditions.
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
Homomorphism

Given two rings R1 and R2 a function ϕ : R1 → R2 is a ring homomorphism

(or homomorphism of rings) if it is a group homomorphism and
ϕ(ab) = ϕ(a)ϕ(b). If R1 and R2 are rings with unity then we say that ϕ is
a morphism of rings with unity if it is a morphism of rings and furthermore

ϕ(1R1 ) = 1R2 .

If ϕ is bijective we call it isomorphism and we say that R1 and R2 are

isomorphic.
1 The range of a morphism is a subring (with unity)
2 The kernel of a morphism, that is {a ∈ R1 | ϕ(a) = 0R2 } is an ideal.
3 ϕ is injective iff ϕ is an injective group homomorphism
(R1 +1 ) → (R2 , +2 ) and so iff Kerϕ = {0R1 }.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Units, zero divisors

A unit in a ring with unity is an element which has a multiplicative

inverse. A field is a commutative ring with unity in which every non-zero
element is a unit. Any examples?
A zero divisor in a ring R is an element a ∈ R such that there is b 6= 0R
such that ab or ba is zero. A integrity domain (or simply domain) is a
ring with no non-zero zero divisors. Examples?
In a domain ab = 0 implies that either a or b is 0.

Field ⇒ Domain

This is true because units cannot be zero divisors, what happens if they
are?
Theorem
m is a zero-divisor in Zn iff gcd(m, n) > 1

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Characteristic

Definition
The characteristic of a ring (with unity) R, is the order of 1R in the group
(R, +R ). If 1R has inifinte order, then we say that R has characteristic 0.

Z has characteristic 0, as well as Q, R...

Zn has characteristic n

Proposition
An integrity domain has either characteristic 0 or a prime number.

Remark
In a ring of characterisitc n we have that (a + b)n = an + b n .

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Fermat and Euler
Proposition
The set Un of non-zero elements in Zn which are NOT zero divisors forms a
group wrt ·n .

Euler phi
Let n be a positive integer, ϕ(n) dentoes the numbers of integers SMALLER than
n which are NOT divisors of n. (That is it is the order of Un ).

Euler’s Theorem
If a is an integer relatively prime to n, then aϕ(n) − 1 is divisible by n. Or
equivalently aϕ(n) ≡ 1 (modn) or rn (aϕ(n) ) = 1.

Corollary
Given n a positive integer and a, b two integers, let d = gcd(n, a). Then ax = b
has solution in Zn if, and only if d|b. In this case the equation has exactly d
solutions.
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
How to solve congruences

Corollary
Given n a positive integer and a, b two integers, let d = gcd(n, a). Then
ax = b has solution in Zn if, and only if d|b. In this case the equation has
exactly d solutions.

a/d is relatively prime with n/d, so it has an inverse mod n0 := n/d.

That is there is a0 = rn0 (a)−1 such that a0 a − 1 is divisible by n0 .
Consider the equation (a/d)x = (b/d) in Zn0 , it has a solution
s = rn0 (a0 (b/d)).
s is a solution of the original equation in Zn
also s + n0 , s + 2n0 , . . . s = (d − 1)n0 are solutions of the equation in
Zn .

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Polynomials
Definition
Let x be a symbol. A polynomial f = f (x) in the indeterminate x with
coefficients in a ring R is a formal sum
∞
X
ai x i
i=0

such that ai ∈ R and all but FINITELY MANY ai ’s are non-zero.

The degree of a non-zero polynomial f is the maximum m such that
an 6= 0. If d is the degree of f we can write
d
X
f (x) = ai x i
i=0

Theorem
The set R[x] of polynomials in the indeterminate x and coefficients in R,
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
Roots and zeroes

Let E and F two fields, with E ⊇ F . Take an element α ∈ E and consider

φα : F [x] → E

defined by φα (f ) = f (α). More precisely if

f = f (x) = a0 + a1 x + · · · + an x n then φα (f ) = a0 + a1 α + · · · + an αn .
This is a ring morhpism with φα (1) = 1.
The α ∈ E such that φα (f ) = 0 are called zeroes or roots of f .

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Division algorithm for polynomials

Theorem
Given two polynomials f and g in F [x] with F a field. Then there are
UNIQUES polynomials q and r , with r either 0 or of degree LESS than the
degree of g .

Idea of the proof:

1 By (strong) induction on the degree of f . If deg f < deg g then
f = 0g + f .
2 If deg f ≥ deg g , find (by eliminating the leading terms) q1 such that
deg(f − q1 g ) < deg f . So f − q1 g = q2 g + r1 with deg r1 < deg g .
We find that

f = q1 g + q2 g + r = (q1 + q2 )g + r

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Consequences

1 a ∈ F is a root of a polynoial f ∈ F [x] if, and only if (x − a)|f .

2 a non-zero polynomial of degree d has at most d zeros.
3 a finite subgroup F ∗ of non-zero elements of a field with
multiplication is cyclic.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Irriducible polynomials

Definition
A non-constant polynomial f ∈ F [x] is reducible over F if there are two
polynomials h and g in F [x], both of degree LESS than the degree of f
such that f = gh. Otherwise we say the f is irrudcible.

Note: It is important to know in which field we are working! x 2 + 1 is not

reducible over R but it is reducible over C, over Z2 , Zp where p is a prime
congruent to 1 mod 4...
Proposition
A polynomial of degree 2 or 3 is irreducible over F if, and only if it has a
root in F .

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Eseinstein Criterion

Theorem
Let p be a prime. Suppose that f (x) = an x n + · · · + a1 x + a0 in Z[x] such
that p does not divide an , p|ai for i 6= n but p 2 does not divide 0. Then f
is irreducible over Q.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

irreducible polynomials are quite like primes

Theorem
If an irreducible polynomial p ∈ F [x] divides a product rs, then it divides
one of the two factors.
The proof of this statement depends on the fact that it makes sense to
define the greatest common divisor of two polynomials.
Theorem
Any non constant polynomial with coefficients in a field F can be factored
as a product of irreducible polynomials in a unique way up to the order or
multiplication by a constant.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Quotient (Factor) Ring
Definition
An ideal I of a ring R is a subset of R such that
1 I is a subgroup of (R, +).
2 for every i ∈ I and a in R both ai and ia are in I .

Observe that, since (R, +) is abelian then I is normal in R (as a subgroup) and we can
endow the sets
R/I := {a + I | a ∈ R}
with the well defined operation
(a + I ) +R/I (b + I ) = (a +R b) + I .
We also define a multiplication on R/I by
(a + I ) ·R/I (b + I ) := (a ·R b) + I .

Theorem
Given I a subgroup of (R, +) the multiplication in R/I is well defined (independent from
the choice made) if, and only if I is an ideal of R. If this happens than R/I with this
operation is a ring.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

First Isomorphism Theorem

Proposition
Given a ring R and one of its ideals I then the map π : R → R/I defined
by π(a) = a + I is a group homomorphism.

Theorem
Given a ring homomorphism ϕ : R → R 0 with kernel I , then there is a
(unique) injective group morphism µ : R/I → R 0 such that ϕ = µ ◦ π. The
morphism µ induces an isomorphism of R/I with ϕ[R], the image of ϕ.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Generating set of an ideal

Given an element a ∈ R then the ideal generated by a is

(a) := {ra | r ∈ R}

Observe that (m)subsetZ is just mZ, but (x) ⊆ Z[x] is not simply the
cyclcic subgroup of (R, +) generated by x. In fact x 2 ∈ (x) but the cyclic
group generated by x contains only element of the form mx with m an
integer.
Given an ideal I of a ring R we say that a1 , . . . , an generate I if every
element i of I can be written as
n
X
i= r i ai
i=1

with ri in R.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Prime Ideals

Definition
An ideal P of a ring R is prime if it is not the whole R and for every a and
b in R, ab is in I implies that either a or b is in I . Equivalently if a and b
are NOT in I , then ab is NOT in I .

Example
The ideals of Z6 are
{0}, Z6 , {0, 2, 4}, {0, 3}

{0} is not prime: 2 and 3 are not elements but their product is.
Z6 is not prime because it is not proper
all the other are primes.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Maximal Ideals

Definition
An ideal M of a ring R is maximal if it is not the whole R and if I is an
ideal I properly contains M then I =R.

Theorem
Let R a commutative ring
An ideal I of R is prime if, and only if, R/I is a domain.
If R has a unity, then an ideal I of R is maximal, if and only if R/I is
a field.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Field Extensions

Given a field F an extension E of F is a field E which has a sub-field isomorphic

to F .
Definition
Given a field extension of F ⊆ E and element α ∈ E is algebraic over F if an
only if there is a nonzero polynomial f ∈ F [x] such that φα (f ) = 0. We say that
α is trascendent if it is not algebraic, or, equivalently, if φα : F [x] → E is injective.

Note: F is important: π · i in C is trascendent over Q but not over R.

Theorem
Given a field extension E /F and α ∈ E algebraic over F . Then there is a unique
monic irreducible polynomial p in F [x] such that φα (p) = 0 this is called the
irriducible polynomial of α over F (or minimal polynomial of α over F ).

The degree of this polynomial is called degree of α over F .

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Simple Extensions
Given a field extension E /F and α in E algebraic over F , let us denote F (α) the
smallest subfield of E containing both F and α.

Proposition
F (α) is isomorphic to the image og φα : F [x] → E

Why:
1 Every field that contains F and α must contain finite sums of elements of the form
aαk with k a positive integer and a in F . And so it contain the image of φα .
2 By the fundamental isomorphism theorem φα [F [x]] is isomsomorphic to
F [x]/(p(x)) where p is the irreducible polynomial of α. Therefore it is a field.
Note: We see also that the map µ : F [x]/(p(x)) → F (α) given by
f (x) + (p(x)) 7→ f (α) is an isomorphism. Since every element of F [x]/(p(x)) can be
represented in a unique way by a polynomial of degree less than the degree of p, we
have that every element β of F (α) can be written in a unique way has

β = b0 + b1 α + · · · + bn2 αn−2 + bn−1 αn−1

Does this remind you of something?

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Review on Vector Spaces
Let K be a field. A vector space V over K is a set V with one operation
+ and a function
·:K×V →V
such that
1 (V , +) is an abelian group

2 (ab) · v = a · (b · v ) for every a and b in K and every v ∈ V .

3 (a +
K b) · v = a · v + b · v for every a and b in K and every v ∈ V .
4 a · (v + v ) = a · v + a · v for every a ∈ K and every v , v in V .
1 2 1 2 1 2
Every vector space has a basis, i. e. e minimal system of generators. The
dimension of V is the cardinality of one of its bases.
If {v1 , . . . , vn } is a basis for V then every element v in V can be written in
a unique way as
Xn
v= ai · vi
i=1
with ai in K.
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
Extesnions as vector spaces

Observe that any field extestion E /F can be seen as a F -vector space. We

say that E is finite over F if it is a finite dimenisonal vector space (we
denote the dimension as [E : F ] (called also degree of the extension. We
say that E is algebraic over F if every element of E is algebraic over F .
We say that an extension is simple over F if E = F (α) with α algebraic
over F .
Theorem
Given an extension E /F and α ∈ E algebraic over F of degree n. Then
F (α) is an n-dimensional F -vector space with basis {1, α, . . . , αn−1 }.
Furthermore any element β of F (α) is algebraic over F of degree less than
n.

Theorem
A finite extension is algebraic.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

More on the degree of an extension

Theorem
If K ⊇ E ⊆ F is a sequence of field extensions then

[K : F ] = [K : E ][E : F ]

In particular the degree of E over F divides the degree of K over F

Corollary
If Fr ⊇ Fr −1 ⊇ · · · ⊇ F1 is a sequnce of field extensions, then
−1
rY
[Fr : F1 ] = [Fi+1 : Fi ]
i=1

Corollary
If β ∈ F (α) then the degree of β over F divides the degree of α over F .
Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56
Isometries

Consider the real plane R2 . The (Euclidean) distance of two points

P = (x1 , y1 ) and Q = (x2 , y2 ) is given by
q
d(P, Q) = (x1 − x2 )2 + (y1 − y2 )2

Definition
An isometry of R2 is a permutation ϕ of R2 such that

d(P, Q) = d(ϕ(P), ϕ(Q)).

Proposition
Isometries with the composition are a group

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Isometries

If P is a point in the plane we define the Isotropy group of P as

GP := {g isometry |g (P) = P}

Any examples? At the same way as we did for actions, if g is an isometry

we can define the fixed locus of g :

R2g := {P ∈ R2 |g (P) = P}.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Isometries

There are 4 types of different isometries:

Isometry Formula Fixed locus Orientation
Identity (x, y ) 7→ (x, y ) R2 Equal
Translation (x, y ) 7→ (x + a, y + b) ∅ Equal
Rotation ... center Equal
Reflection ... the line Changes
Glide ... ∅ Changes
Question: If I know that I have a fixed point, then what is my isometry?
What about 3 fixed points? 2?

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56

Symmetries

Let S ⊆ R2 the symmetry group of S are the isometries ϕ such that

ϕ(S) = S. There are 4 possible types
1 Translation
2 Rotation
3 Reflection
4 Non trivial Glide: composition of a translation and a reflection that
are not already in the symmetry group.
Tipical Question: You are given S, you have to say what symmetries it
has and if the group of symmetries is abelian.

Sofia Tirabassi MAT220-Algebra / 56