Chapter 20 Vector Spaces
In a physical system a quantity can often be described with a single number. For example, we need to know only a single number to describe temperature, mass, or volume. However, for some quantities, such as location, we need several numbers. To give the location of a point in space, we need \(x\text{,}\) \(y\text{,}\) and \(z\) coordinates. Temperature distribution over a solid object requires four numbers: three to identify each point within the object and a fourth to describe the temperature at that point. Often \(n\)-tuples of numbers, or vectors, also have certain algebraic properties, such as addition or scalar multiplication.
In this chapter we will examine mathematical structures called vector spaces. As with groups and rings, it is desirable to give a simple list of axioms that must be satisfied to make a set of vectors a structure worth studying.