GraphMath

Linear Transformations

How matrices act on geometry, coordinates and dimension

What does a matrix actually do to space?

A linear transformation moves every vector by moving the basis directions first, then extending that action linearly to the whole space. This chapter begins with grid deformation, develops standard examples such as scaling, shear, rotation and reflection, then connects them to change of basis, matrix-vector multiplication and one-to-one and onto conditions.

Key ideas

A matrix is best understood as a rule that sends basis vectors to new directions and then sends every other vector by the same linear recipe.

  • The columns of a matrix show where the standard basis vectors go under the transformation
  • Scaling, shear, rotation and reflection are concrete examples of how a linear map changes a grid while preserving straight lines and the origin
  • Change of basis uses the same matrix data differently: instead of moving the vector, we keep the vector and change the coordinate system
  • Injective and surjective behavior can be read from rank, independence and spanning of the columns or rows

The chapter ends by comparing maps from ℝ² to ℝ³ and from ℝ³ to ℝ², showing how rank controls embedding, collapse and coverage of the codomain.

Why do the columns of a matrix determine the whole transformation?

Because every vector is built from the basis vectors. Once we know where the basis vectors go, linearity forces the image of every combination. That is why the columns of M encode the full action of the transformation.

Related chapters

Chapter contents

Why can a map from ℝ² to ℝ³ be one-to-one but not onto?

Because two independent input directions can remain independent after the map, so no dimension collapses. But two directions are still not enough to fill a three-dimensional codomain. The image becomes a plane in ℝ³, not all of ℝ³.

Was this chapter helpful?

Quick feedback helps us improve the site.