Precalculus (6th Edition) Blitzer

Published by Pearson
ISBN 10: 0-13446-914-3
ISBN 13: 978-0-13446-914-0

Chapter 8 - Section 8.2 - Inconsistent and Dependent Systems and Their Applications - Exercise Set - Page 904: 42

Answer

The statement makes sense.

Work Step by Step

In an augmented matrix, any row can be deleted if every element of the row is zero. Consider the following augmented matrix: $\left[ \begin{matrix} 1 & -1 & -2 & 2 \\ 0 & 1 & -10 & -1 \\ 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 \\ \end{matrix} \right]$ The last row, that is, row 3 of the matrix, is expressed in the equation as: $0x+0y+0z=0$ Since $0=0$, the above equation is true and it implies that the variable z can take any value. Therefore, the system of linear equations has infinitely many solutions. Hence, row 3 of the above matrix can be deleted.
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