More from my site

• Successful Probability of a Communication Network Diagram Consider the network diagram in the figure. The diagram consists of five links and each of them fails to communicate with probability $p$. Answer the following questions about this network. (1) Determine the probability that there exists at least one path from A to B where every […]
• Rings $2\Z$ and $3\Z$ are Not Isomorphic Prove that the rings $2\Z$ and $3\Z$ are not isomorphic.   Definition of a ring homomorphism. Let $R$ and $S$ be rings. A homomorphism is a map $f:R\to S$ satisfying $f(a+b)=f(a)+f(b)$ for all $a, b \in R$, and $f(ab)=f(a)f(b)$ for all $a, b \in R$. A […]
• If At Least One of Two Coins Lands Heads, What is the Conditional Probability that the First Coin Lands Heads? Two fair coins are tossed. Given that at least one of them lands heads, what is the conditional probability that the first coin lands heads? We give two proofs. The first one uses Bays' theorem and the second one simply uses the definition of the conditional […]
• Abelian Group and Direct Product of Its Subgroups Let $G$ be a finite abelian group of order $mn$, where $m$ and $n$ are relatively prime positive integers. Then show that there exists unique subgroups $G_1$ of order $m$ and $G_2$ of order $n$ such that $G\cong G_1 \times G_2$.   Hint. Consider […]
• Irreducible Polynomial $x^3+9x+6$ and Inverse Element in Field Extension Prove that the polynomial \[f(x)=x^3+9x+6\] is irreducible over the field of rational numbers $\Q$. Let $\theta$ be a root of $f(x)$. Then find the inverse of $1+\theta$ in the field $\Q(\theta)$.   Proof. Note that $f(x)$ is a monic polynomial and the prime […]
• Trace, Determinant, and Eigenvalue (Harvard University Exam Problem) (a) A $2 \times 2$ matrix $A$ satisfies $\tr(A^2)=5$ and $\tr(A)=3$. Find $\det(A)$. (b) A $2 \times 2$ matrix has two parallel columns and $\tr(A)=5$. Find $\tr(A^2)$. (c) A $2\times 2$ matrix $A$ has $\det(A)=5$ and positive integer eigenvalues. What is the trace of […]
• Finite Order Matrix and its Trace Let $A$ be an $n\times n$ matrix and suppose that $A^r=I_n$ for some positive integer $r$. Then show that (a) $|\tr(A)|\leq n$. (b) If $|\tr(A)|=n$, then $A=\zeta I_n$ for an $r$-th root of unity $\zeta$. (c) $\tr(A)=n$ if and only if $A=I_n$. Proof. (a) […]
• Group Homomorphisms From Group of Order 21 to Group of Order 49 Let $G$ be a finite group of order $21$ and let $K$ be a finite group of order $49$. Suppose that $G$ does not have a normal subgroup of order $3$. Then determine all group homomorphisms from $G$ to $K$.   Proof. Let $e$ be the identity element of the group […]