Vectors in three dimensions
Problem 9.288 · medium
Find the vector \( \displaystyle \mathbf u \) with \( \displaystyle \|\mathbf u\| = 9 \) pointing in the same direction as \( \displaystyle \mathbf v = \left\langle 0, 0, -5 \right\rangle \).
- \[ 5 \]‖v‖.✓ Proved
- \[ \left[\begin{matrix}0\\0\\-9\end{matrix}\right] \]9·v/‖v‖.✓ Proved
Answer \( \left\langle 0, 0, -9 \right\rangle \)
✓ Nihil obstat Every line of this solution was proved by the computer algebra system SymPy. The answer was also checked a second way, without looking at the solution. Reviewers found nothing wrong with the explanation.
The full receipt
| Line | Status | Checked by | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | simplify(lhs - rhs) reduced to 0 |
| 2 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | simplify(lhs - rhs) reduced to 0 |
| answer, a second way | ✓ Checked independently | sympy 1.14.0 + mpmath 1.3.0 | length checked, and parallel by the equality case of Cauchy–Schwarz |
Reviewers
gpt-oss:20b: passqwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass — The solution correctly calculates the magnitude of v and scales the unit vector in the direction of v to have length 9. The steps are logically sound and the final answer is correct.
Every verdict on record (4)
qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass 2026-10-05 — The solution correctly calculates the magnitude of v and scales the unit vector in the direction of v to have length 9. The steps are logically sound and the final answer is correct.gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-10-05qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass 2026-10-05 — The solution correctly identifies the magnitude of v and computes the scaled vector. The algebraic steps are correct and lead to the right answer.gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-10-05
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/vectors_space, checked 2026-10-05 with SymPy 1.14.0.