Computer Science I / Eigenvalues and Eigenvectors
Practice question · True or false

An eigenvector keeps its direction under the matrix but may be stretched, shrunk or flipped.

Hints
  1. Av=λvAv = \lambda v, what can λ\lambda be?
  2. Any scalar, including negative.
Show the answer

True

Why

True. Av=λvAv = \lambda v preserves the direction and scales by λ\lambda, so the vector may lengthen, shorten or reverse; only λ=1\lambda = 1 leaves it untouched. That preserved direction is what makes eigenvectors the axes along which repeated application behaves simply, the basis of PageRank and PCA.

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