∫Calc Practice

Jacobians and change of variables

Problem 11.299 · easy

Find the Jacobian \( \displaystyle \dfrac{\partial(x, y)}{\partial(u, v)} \) of the transformation \( \displaystyle x = - 4 u + 2 v \), \( \displaystyle y = 3 u + v \).
  1. \[ \left[\begin{matrix}\frac{\partial}{\partial u} \left(- 4 u + 2 v\right) & \frac{\partial}{\partial v} \left(- 4 u + 2 v\right)\\\frac{\partial}{\partial u} \left(3 u + v\right) & \frac{\partial}{\partial v} \left(3 u + v\right)\end{matrix}\right] = \left[\begin{matrix}-4 & 2\\3 & 1\end{matrix}\right] \]
    The matrix of partial derivatives.✓ Proved
  2. \[ -10 \]
    Its determinant: x_u·y_v − x_v·y_u.✓ Proved
  3. |J| is the factor by which the transformation stretches small areas: dA = |J| du dv.
Answer \( -10 \)

Lines: 2 proved, 1 not checked. The answer was also checked a second way, without looking at the solution. The reviewers disagree about how one step is explained; every verdict is in the receipt.

The full receipt
LineStatusChecked byDetail
1✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(lhs - rhs) reduced to 0
2✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(lhs - rhs) reduced to 0
3Not checked—a sentence; read, not computed
answer, a second way✓ Checked independentlysympy 1.14.0 + mpmath 1.3.0the image of a tiny square measured by the shoelace formula

Reviewers

  • gpt-oss:20b: pass
  • qwen3.6:27b-mlx: fail (misleading) — The problem asks for the Jacobian determinant, but line 3 incorrectly defines the area element using the absolute value of the Jacobian. While |J| is correct for area, the Jacobian itself (which can be negative) is the factor for oriented volume/area, and distinguishing between the two is a key concept in multivariable calculus.
Every verdict on record (4)
  • gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-10-07
  • qwen3.6:27b-mlx: fail (misleading) 2026-10-07 — The problem asks for the Jacobian determinant, but line 3 incorrectly defines the area element using the absolute value of the Jacobian. While |J| is correct for area, the Jacobian itself (which can be negative) is the factor for oriented volume/area, and distinguishing between the two is a key concept in multivariable calculus.
  • gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-10-07
  • qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass 2026-10-07 — The solution correctly calculates the Jacobian determinant as -10. The final sentence correctly identifies the absolute value of the Jacobian as the area scaling factor for change of variables, which is a standard and correct interpretation.

Proved: SymPy reduced the difference between the two sides to zero. Checked independently: a separate method, named above, confirmed it. Checked numerically: the two sides agree at every sampled point, which is evidence, not proof. Reviewed: a model or a person read it; that is all a sentence can have. Solution by generator:structured/jacobian, checked 2026-10-07 with SymPy 1.14.0.