Final answer:
To determine if the columns of a matrix are linearly independent, we need to check if any column vector can be expressed as a linear combination of the other column vectors.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question asks whether the columns of a matrix form a linearly independent set. To determine this, we can use the concept of linear independence. A set of vectors is said to be linearly independent if no vector in the set can be written as a linear combination of the other vectors. Therefore, to determine if the columns of a matrix are linearly independent, we need to check if any column vector can be expressed as a linear combination of the other column vectors.