How can you tell if somethign is a subspace with abstract info?

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To determine if a set is a subspace, it must contain the zero vector, be closed under addition, and closed under scalar multiplication. The discussion highlights confusion regarding the condition sin(u1) = 1, which implies specific values for u1, but does not provide enough information to verify closure properties. The zero vector must be checked against the given condition to see if it belongs to the set. To confirm closure under scalar multiplication, one should test an arbitrary vector from the set and see if multiplying it by a scalar yields another vector in the set. The thread emphasizes the need for thorough checks of all vectors and operations to establish subspace criteria.
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I know there are three problems in one here, but they are all of the same nature. I don't understand how this is enough information to find out if they are subspaces. It's all really abstract to me. I know that you need three aspects to be a subspace:

1. Must contain zero vector
2. Closed under addition
3. Closed under scalar multiplication.

So how can I use this info to solve these problems? For example, in question 40 it tells you that the vector U inside of r4 has the condition that sin(u1) = 1. That means u1 = 90 or pi/2. So if I put in 2u, does that indicate i don't get the zero vector? I'm assuming M contains vector U as well right? But how can I tell if its closed under multiplication and addition if I only know that sin(u1) =1 and nothing else...

There are 6 problems of this nature in my textbook that I am unable to solve and they do not give ample explanations for them.
 
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Arnoldjavs3 said:
So how can I use this info to solve these problems? For example, in question 40 it tells you that the vector U inside of r4 has the condition that sin(u1) = 1. That means u1 = 90 or pi/2. So if I put in 2u, does that indicate i don't get the zero vector? I'm assuming M contains vector U as well right? But how can I tell if its closed under multiplication and addition if I only know that sin(u1) =1 and nothing else...

There are 6 problems of this nature in my textbook that I am unable to solve and they do not give ample explanations for them.

To take the first one. For a vector to be in the set ##M## it must have ##\sin(u_1) = 1##. Is the zero vector in ##M##?
 
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Arnoldjavs3 said:
I don't understand how this is enough information to find out if they are subspaces.
Which other information do you expect? You have a full definition of the set M. The addition and scalar multiplication follow the usual operations in R4.
Arnoldjavs3 said:
That means u1 = 90 or pi/2
Not 90 - don't work in degrees. pi/2 is not the only option, there are more.
Arnoldjavs3 said:
So if I put in 2u
What do you mean by that?
To check if the zero vector is in M, just check if it satisfies the condition given there.
Arnoldjavs3 said:
I'm assuming M contains vector U as well right?
What is U?
Arnoldjavs3 said:
But how can I tell if its closed under multiplication and addition if I only know that sin(u1) =1 and nothing else...
Take an arbitrary vector v in your set M, calculate the vector 1/3 v, check if 1/3 v is in M. If it is not, the set is not closed under scalar multiplication. If it is, you have to check other factors or other vectors. To prove that it is closed, you have to check all vectors and all prefactors.
 
Question: A clock's minute hand has length 4 and its hour hand has length 3. What is the distance between the tips at the moment when it is increasing most rapidly?(Putnam Exam Question) Answer: Making assumption that both the hands moves at constant angular velocities, the answer is ## \sqrt{7} .## But don't you think this assumption is somewhat doubtful and wrong?

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