A linear transformation T : V → W can be represented by a matrix A, such that for vector x in V, T(x) is given by the matrix multiplication Ax. For example, consider the transformation T(x, y) = (2x + y, x − 3y). This can be represented by the matrix A = \(\begin{pmatrix} 2 & 1 \\ 1 & -3 \end{pmatrix}\). The action of T on a vector x can be calculated using this matrix .

To prove a set of vectors is linearly independent, consider the set (1, 0, 0), (0, 1, 0), and (0, 0, 1). Assume a linear combination equaling zero: c1(1, 0, 0) + c2(0, 1, 0) + c3(0, 0, 1) = (0, 0, 0). This results in the equations c1 = 0, c2 = 0, c3 = 0, showing only the trivial solution c1 = c2 = c3 = 0 exists, confirming linear independence .

To determine if vectors (1, 2, 1), (2, 4, 2), (3, 6, 3) in R3 are linearly dependent, observe if any are scalar multiples of others. Here, (2, 4, 2) = 2*(1, 2, 1) and (3, 6, 3) = 3*(1, 2, 1), indicating dependence as they express non-trivial linear combinations resulting in zero .

The defining axioms of a vector space over a field F include: closure under addition, closure under scalar multiplication, commutativity of addition (u + v = v + u), associativity of addition ((u + v) + w = u + (v + w)), existence of a zero vector, existence of additive inverses, and the distributive laws. These axioms are crucial because they ensure that vector spaces have a well-defined algebraic structure, allowing for consistent operations such as addition and scalar multiplication, which are foundational in linear algebra. For example, in R2, these axioms ensure the space behaves predictively and adheres to standard algebraic rules .

A set of vectors is linearly dependent if there exist scalars, not all zero, such that a linear combination of these vectors equals the zero vector. Otherwise, the set is linearly independent. For example, the vectors (1, 2) and (2, 4) in R2 are linearly dependent because (2, 4) can be expressed as 2 times (1, 2), so there are non-trivial scalars (2, -1) such that 2*(1, 2) - 1*(2, 4) = (0, 0).

Dimensionality directly influences the number of vectors in a basis and the degrees of freedom in a vector space, affecting properties like the rank of a matrix and the complexity of solving systems of linear equations. A higher dimension means more vectors in a basis are needed to span the space, as seen in a 2x2 matrix with dimension 4, requiring four basis vectors .

If a basis set does not span its vector space, it cannot represent all vectors in the space, meaning the space is effectively larger than what the basis covers. For example, if vectors (1, 0) and (0, 1) failed to span R2, vectors like (1, 1) could not be represented as linear combinations, which contradicts the definition of a basis as spanning and independent. This shows the necessity of a correctly spanned basis to define vector spaces fully .

The zero vector in a vector space is essential as it acts as the additive identity, ensuring that adding it to any vector does not change the vector (u + 0 = u). Its existence is one of the axioms of vector spaces, providing a reference point for linear combinations and ensuring closure under addition .

A basis of a vector space is a linearly independent set of vectors that spans the entire space. The dimension of a vector space is the number of vectors in its basis. This concept means that any vector in the space can be expressed uniquely as a linear combination of the basis vectors. For example, in R2, the vectors (1, 0) and (0, 1) form a basis, and thus the dimension of R2 is 2 .

A mapping T from vector space V to W is a linear transformation if it satisfies two conditions: T(u + v) = T(u) + T(v) (additivity) and T(cu) = cT(u) (homogeneity) for any vectors u, v in V and scalar c. These conditions ensure that the linear structure is maintained under the transformation .