True or false: expanding a determinant

Exercise and reference answers

Questions

1. Statement is true

   Yes

   Statement

   Expanding along the row with the most zeros saves work.

2. Statement is true

   No

   Statement

   The value of |A| depends on which row you expand along.

3. Statement is true

   Yes

   Statement

   A 3 × 3 determinant may be expanded along R₁.

4. Statement is true

   No

   Statement

   Determinants are defined for non-square matrices too.

5. Statement is true

   Yes

   Statement

   The determinant of a 1 × 1 matrix [a₁₁] is a₁₁.

Explanation