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What is the best approximation of the projection of (5, -1) onto (2, 6)

1 Answer

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Answer:

0.1(2, 6) = (0.2, 0.6)

Explanation:

The projection of B onto A will be ...

|B|·cos(θ)×uA

where uA = A/|A|, a unit vector in the A direction.

The dot product of A and B is ...

A•B = |A|·|B|·cos(θ), so the desired vector is ...

projection of B onto A = (A•B)/|A|·(A/|A|) = A·(A•B)/|A|²

For A = (2,6) and B = (5, -1), this is ...

projection of (5, -1) onto (2, 6) = (2, 6)·(2·5-6·1)/(2²+6²) = (2, 6)·4/40 = 0.1·(2, 6)

= (0.2, 0.6)

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