12-1 Organizing Data Using Matrices

Objectives

To organize data in a matrix

To add and subtract matrices and multiply a matrix by a scalar

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A matrix is a rectangular arrangement of numbers in rows and columns. The plural of matrix is matrices (pronounced MAY truh seez). The matrix below shows the hours Jeff, Tina, and Eric worked on Saturday.

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You identify the size of a matrix by the number of rows and the number of columns. The matrix above has 3 rows and 2 columns, so it is a 3 × 2 3 times 2  matrix.

Each number in a matrix is an element. Matrices are equal if they are the same size and the elements in corresponding positions are equal.

[ − 1 2 4 0 ] = [ − 1 4 2 ( 5 − 1 ) 0 ] . matrix with 2 rows and 2 columns , row1 column 1 , negative 1 , column 2 2 , row2 column 1 , 4 , column 2 0 , end matrix . equals . matrix with 2 rows and 2 columns , row1 column 1 , negative 1 , column 2 4 halves , row2 column 1 , open , 5 minus 1 , close , column 2 0 , end matrix

Essential Understanding You can use matrices to organize data. This may make it easier to perform calculations on the data.

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