Is a subspace the direct sum of all its intersections with a partition of the basis?

In summary, The question is whether a subspace S of a vector space V is equal to the direct sum of its intersections with a partition of V's basis. The answer is yes, because V is equal to the direct sum of its basis, and therefore S is equal to the direct sum of its intersections with each basis element. This is still true even when S has nontrivial intersections with all basis elements.
  • #1
imurme8
46
0
I've been working on this Linear Algebra problem for a while: Let [itex]F[/itex] be a field, [itex]V[/itex] a vector space over [itex]F[/itex] with basis [itex]\mathcal{B}=\{b_i\mid i\in I\}[/itex]. Let [itex]S[/itex] be a subspace of [itex]V[/itex], and let [itex]\{B_1, \dotsc, B_k\}[/itex] be a partition of [itex]\mathcal{B}[/itex]. Suppose that [itex]S\cap \langle B_i\rangle\neq \{0\}[/itex] for all [itex]i[/itex]. Is it true that [itex]S=\bigoplus\limits_{i=1}^{k}(S\cap \langle B_i \rangle)[/itex]?

Haven't been able to get this one, thanks for your help.
 
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  • #2


Notice that [itex]V = \bigoplus_{i=1}^k \langle B_i \rangle[/itex], so [itex]S = S \cap V = \bigoplus_{i=1}^k S \cap \langle B_i \rangle[/itex].
 
  • #3


jgens said:
Notice that [itex]V = \bigoplus_{i=1}^k \langle B_i \rangle[/itex], so [itex]S = S \cap V = \bigoplus_{i=1}^k S \cap \langle B_i \rangle[/itex].
Where have you used that [itex]S\cap \langle B_i\rangle \neq \{0\}[/itex] for all [itex]i[/itex]? I can come up with the following counterexample if we do not assume this hypothesis:

In [itex]\mathbb{R}^2[/itex], the subspace [itex]y=x[/itex] is certainly not the direct sum of its intersections with [itex]\langle e_1 \rangle[/itex] and [itex]\langle e_2 \rangle[/itex] (both zero).
 

1. What is a subspace?

A subspace is a subset of a vector space that is closed under addition and scalar multiplication, meaning that if you add two vectors or multiply a vector by a scalar within the subspace, the result will also be within the subspace.

2. What is the direct sum of a subspace?

The direct sum of a subspace is the sum of all the vectors within the subspace. It is a way of combining multiple subspaces into one larger subspace.

3. What is a partition of the basis?

A partition of the basis is a way of dividing the basis (a set of linearly independent vectors that span the vector space) into smaller subsets that together make up the entire basis. Each subset is called a block.

4. How are intersections related to subspaces and partitions?

Intersections are related to subspaces and partitions in that the intersection of a subspace with each block in a partition of the basis will give us the direct sum of the subspace.

5. Why is the direct sum of all intersections with a partition of the basis important?

The direct sum of all intersections with a partition of the basis is important because it allows us to understand how subspaces can be combined and related to each other. It also helps us to better understand the structure of a vector space and how different subspaces can interact with each other.

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