Fields Besides the Real Numbers Math 130 Linear Algebra
manner, which are both commutative and asso- ciative, both have identity elements (the additive identity denoted 0 and the multiplicative identity denoted 1), addition has inverse elements (the ad- ditive inverse of x denoted −x as usual), multipli- cation has inverses of nonzero elements (the multi- Fields besides the Real Numbers 1 −1 plicative inverse of x denoted x or x ), multipli- Math 130 Linear Algebra cation distributes over addition, and 0 6= 1. D Joyce, Fall 2015 Of course, one example of a field is the field of Most of the time in linear algebra, our vectors real numbers R. What are some others? will have coordinates that are real numbers, that is to say, our scalar field is R, the real numbers. Example 2 (The field of rational numbers, Q). Another example is the field of rational numbers. But linear algebra works over other fields, too, A rational number is the quotient of two integers like C, the complex numbers. In fact, when we a=b where the denominator is not 0. The set of discuss eigenvalues and eigenvectors, we'll need to all rational numbers is denoted Q. We're familiar do linear algebra over C. Some of the applications with the fact that the sum, difference, product, and of linear algebra such as solving linear differential quotient (when the denominator is not zero) of ra- equations require C as as well. tional numbers is another rational number, so Q Some applications in computer science use linear has all the operations it needs to be a field, and algebra over a two-element field Z (described be- 2 since it's part of the field of the real numbers R, its low).
[Show full text]