Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2013 ia Paper 1 6A Solution Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-07
For a linear map , its kernel and image of a linear map areThe kernel is a subspace of the domain and the image a subspace of the codomain. Given the stated bases, define the matrix of a linear map byIts th column is the coordinate vector of ; if , the output coordinates are .
For the change of basis, write and . The matrices are invertible. Input coordinates change by and output coordinates by , soThe domain and codomain basis changes need not be the same matrix.
For , the two input vectors form a basis of , so its image is the span of and . The vector is orthogonal to both, since . Every possible output therefore satisfies , whereas the target itself is and . Hence there is no with the required output. This uses an image obstruction by an annihilating functional, rather than an inconsistent guessed input.