PSB-BBA:

LINEAR MATHEMATICS
& MATRICES (1+2/12)

Harold Schellinx
Example 1 (*)
• Some years ago Peter won a prize in the lottery. He
decided to invest his prize in bonds: part of it, Peter
invested in a 10% return bond (Acredit); the other part in a
15% return bond (Betteroff). In the first year his interest
was 4000 €. The next year, Peter invested 20% more in
Acredit, and 10% more in Betteroff. That year his interest
increased by 500 €.

• How much money did Peter win in the lottery?

Example 2 (*)
• A company that produces large custom steel parts for industrial
constructions has to fulfill, on very short notice, an order for three
types of steel beams (b1, b2 and b3), each composed of three
different types of steel (s1, s2 and s3). These are the steel the
amounts of steel that are required for each of the types of beam:

BEAM 1 BEAM 2 BEAM 3

STEEL 1 2 ton 3 ton 4 ton
STEEL 2 1 ton 1 ton 2 ton
STEEL3 3 ton 2 ton 1 ton

• The company has 29, 13 and 16 tons of the three types of steel
in stock. What is the number of beams of each type they can
produce with that stock?
Example 3 (**)
• You are manager at a food-packaging plant responsible
for the production of Trail Mix, a healthy snack containing
raisins, peanuts and hard-shelled chocolate pieces. Trail
Mix comes in 3 varieties, that differ in the mix of the 3
ingredients:
• Super TM has more chocolate and fewer raisins. It’s the
most expensive mix, and comes in 500g packages.
• Mean TM has equal amounts of the ingredients. It comes
in 1kg packages, and is somewhat cheaper.
• Bulky TM can be bought by the costumer in the quantity
she needs. It has more raisins and less chocolate, and is
the cheapest available Trail Mix.
Example 3 (cont.)
• Early each morning the Trail Mix production facility has
380 kg of raisins, 500 kg of peanuts and 620 kg of
chocolate pieces delivered.
• One of your duties as production manager, is to decide
how much of each Trail Mix will be made every day.
• With these 1500 kg of ingredients you of course will try to
make 1500 kg of Trail Mix every day. In order for Trail
Mix to be always fresh, you do not want to have any left-
overs.
• How should you allocate the ingredients to the mixing of
Super, Mean and Bulky TM?
Example 3 (cont.)
• Here is the detailed information on the different TM’s, that
are mixed on a daily basis by workers in 15 kg batches:

Raisins Peanuts Chocolate COST/kg SALE/kg

Bulky 7 kg 6 kg 2 kg € 3,69 € 4,99

Mean 6 kg 4 kg 5 kg € 3,86 € 5,50
Super 2 kg 5 kg 8 kg € 4,45 € 6,50
Storage 380 kg 500 kg 620 kg
Cost/kg € 2,55 € 4,65 € 4,80

• How much of Bulky, Mean and Super TM are you going

to have made each day?
Solving a system of linear equations
7b + 6m + 2s = 380
6b + 4m + 5s = 500
2b + 5m + 8s = 620

7b + 6m + 2s = 380
0 – 8/7m + 23/7s = 1220/7
2b + 5m + 8s = 620

7b + 6m + 2s = 380
8m – 23s = - 1220
2b + 5m + 8s = 620
Solving a system of linear equations
7b + 6m + 2s = 380
8m – 23s = - 1220
0 + 23/7m + 52/7s = 3580/7

7b + 6m + 2s = 380
8m – 23s = - 1220
23m + 52s = 3580

7b + 6m + 2s = 380
23m + 52s = 3580
8m – 23s = - 1220
Solving a system of linear equations
7b + 6m + 2s = 380
23m + 52s = 3580
0 – 945/23s = - 56700/23

7b + 6m + 2s = 380
23m + 52s = 3580
s = 60

7b + 6m + 2s = 380
23m + 0 = 460
s = 60
Solving a system of linear equations
7b + 6m = 260
23m = 460
s = 60

7b = 140
23m = 460
s = 60

b = 20
23m = 460
s = 60

b = 20
m = 20
s = 60
System of linear equations: general form
A system of m linear equations with n unknowns:

a11 x1 + a12 x2 +... + a1nxn =b1

a21 x1 + a22 x2 +... + a2nxn =b2
.....
am1 x1 + am2 x2 +... + amnxn =bm
 Coefficient Matrix of the system
Is the rectangular array of size m x n that contains only the coefficients:

æ a11 a12 ... a1n ö

ç ÷
ç a21 a22 ... a2 n ÷
ç ÷
ç . . . . ÷
ç . . . . ÷
ç am1 am2 ... amn ÷
ç ÷
è ø
Extended Matrix of the system
Is the rectangular array of size m x (n+1) that contains only
the coefficients and the constants:

æ a11 a12 ... a1n b1 ö

ç ÷
ç a21 a22 ... a2n b2 ÷
ç ÷
ç . . . . . ÷
ç . . . . . ÷
ç am1 am2 ... amn bm ÷
ç ÷
è ø
Solving a system of linear equations = row reducing
its (extended) matrix

7b + 6m + 2s = 380 æ 7 6 2 380 ö
ç ÷
6b + 4m + 5s = 500 ç 6 4 5 500 ÷
2b + 5m + 8s = 620 ç 2 5 8 620 ÷
è ø
æ 7 6 2 380 ö
7b + 6m + 2s = 380 ç ÷
ç 0 -8 23 1220 ÷
0 – 8/7m + 23/7s = 1220/7 ç 7 7 7 ÷
2b + 5m + 8s = 620 ç ÷
è 2 5 8 620 ø

7b + 6m + 2s = 380 æ7 6 2 380 ö
ç ÷
8m – 23s = - 1220 ç 0 8 - 23 - 1220 ÷
2b + 5m + 8s = 620 ç2 5 8 620 ÷
è ø
Solving a system of linear equations = row
reducing its (extended) matrix
æ ö
ç ÷
7b + 6m + 2s = 380 ç7 6 2 380 ÷
8m – 23s = - 1220 ç 0 8 - 23 - 1220 ÷
ç 23 52 3580 ÷
0 + 23/7m + 52/7s = 3580/7 ç 0 ÷
è 7 7 7 ø

7b + 6m + 2s = 380 æ 7 6 2 380 ö
ç ÷
8m – 23s = - 1220 ç 0 8 - 23 - 1220 ÷
23m + 52s = 3580 ç 0 23 52 3580 ÷
è ø

7b + 6m + 2s = 380
æ7 6 2 380 ö
ç ÷
23m + 52s = 3580 ç 0 23 52 3580 ÷
ç 0 8 - 23 - 1220 ÷
8m – 23s = - 1220 è ø
 Solving a system of linear equations = row
reducing its (extended) matrix
æ ö
7b + 6m + 2s = 380 ç ÷
ç7 6 2 380 ÷
23m + 52s = 3580 ç 0 23 52 3580 ÷
0 – 945/23s = - 56700/23 ç - 945 - 56700 ÷
ç 0 0 ÷
è 23 23 ø

7b + 6m + 2s = 380 æ 7 6 2 380 ö
ç ÷
23m + 52s = 3580 ç 0 23 52 3580 ÷
s = 60 ç0 0 1 60 ÷
è ø

7b + 6m + 2s = 380 æ 7 6 2 380 ö
ç ÷
23m + 0 = 460 ç 0 23 0 460 ÷
ç 0 0 1 60 ÷
s = 60 è ø
 Solving a system of linear equations = row
reducing its (extended) matrix
7b + 6m = 260 æ 7 6 0 260 ö
ç ÷
23m = 460 ç 0 23 0 460 ÷
s = 60 ç 0 0 1 60 ÷
è ø

7b = 140 æ 7 0 0 140 ö
ç ÷
23m = 460 ç 0 23 0 460 ÷
s = 60 ç 0 0 1 60 ÷
è ø

b = 20 æ1 0 0 20 ö
ç ÷
23m = 460 ç0 23 0 460 ÷
s = 60 ç0 0 1 60 ÷
è ø
b = 20 æ1 0 0 20 ö
ç ÷
m = 20 ç0 1 0 20 ÷
ç0 0 1 60 ÷
s = 60 è ø
• (*) Example 1 and 2 were adapted from ‘Project on
Applications of Matrices to Business and Economics’, by
Akash Gupta

• (**) Example 3 was adapted from ‘A First Course in Linear

Algebra’, by Robert A. Beezer