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How does matrix-vector multiplication in 3D correspond to scaling and adding transformed basis vectors?

Multiplying a 3x3 matrix by a vector (x,y,z)(x, y, z) scales each column of the matrix (which represents a transformed basis vector) by the corresponding input coordinate and sums the results. This works because linear transformations preserve addition and scalar multiplication.

Conditions

  • Matrix is 3x3 representing a linear transformation
  • Input vector has coordinates (x,y,z)(x, y, z)
  • Transformation is linear

Reasoning, step by step

  1. Take the first column of the matrix, which is the image of i^\hat{i}, and multiply it by scalar xx.
  2. Take the second column of the matrix, which is the image of j^\hat{j}, and multiply it by scalar yy.
  3. Take the third column of the matrix, which is the image of k^\hat{k}, and multiply it by scalar zz.
  4. Add these three scaled vectors together component-wise to get the final transformed vector.

Example

For a vector v⃗=[xyz]\vec{v} = \begin{bmatrix} x \\ y \\ z \end{bmatrix} and matrix M=[c1∣c2∣c3]M = [c_1 | c_2 | c_3], the product Mv⃗M\vec{v} equals xc1+yc2+zc3x c_1 + y c_2 + z c_3.

Common misconceptions

  • Thinking that matrix multiplication involves dot products of rows with the vector in a way that ignores the geometric interpretation of basis vectors.
  • Assuming the order of addition matters for the final result (it does not, due to commutativity of vector addition).

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