Is ( 1.2, -3.9, 0.0 ) equal to ( 1.2, -3.9, 0.0 )^T

Answer:

No. The first matrix is a row matrix, and the second matrix is a column matrix (printed in a row, but the "T" means it is really a column matrix). Row matrices and column matrices are different types of objects, and cannot be equal.

Matrix Equality

Your previous courses may not have distinguished between row matrices and column matrices. They may not have made it clear that geometric vectors are different from the column matrices used to represent them. These differences may seem picky at the moment, but keep them straight to avoid future confusion.

Here is what it takes for two column matrices to be equal:

Both matrices must be column matrices.
Both must have the same dimension (number of elements).
Corresponding elements of the matrices must be equal

Here is what it takes for two row matrices to be equal:

Both matrices must be row matrices.
Both must have the same dimension (number of elements).
Corresponding elements of the matrices must be equal

QUESTION 9:

Are the following row matrices equal?

( 8.0, -1.63, 7.0, 0.0  )

( 8.0, -1.63, 7.0, 1.0  )