Linear algebra orthogonal vectors

The Linear Algebraic Problem.—Familiarity with the basic theory of finite vectors and matrices—the notions of rank and linear dependence, the Cayley-Hamilton theorem, the Jordan normal form, orthogonality, and related principles—will be presupposed. In this section and the next, matrices will generally be represented by capital letters, column vectors by lower case English letters, scalars, except for indices and dimensions, by lower case Greek letters. The vectors a,b,x,y,..., will have elements au f it gt, r) . .. the matrices A, B,...,... 

The purpose of this Chapter is not to present an exhaustive theory of linear algebra that would take more than a volume by itself to be presented adequately. It is rather to introduce some fundamental aspects of vectors, matrices and orthogonal functions together with the most common difficulties that the reader most probably has encountered in scientific readings, and to provide some simple definitions and examples with geochemical connotations. Many excellent textbooks exist which can complement this introductory chapter, in particular that of Strang (1976). 

---