PlanetMath (more info)
 Math for the people, by the people. Sponsor PlanetMath
Encyclopedia | Requests | Forums | Docs | Wiki | Random | RSS  
Login
create new user
name:
pass:
forget your password?
Main Menu
Viewing Version 12 of 'Euclidean space'
[ view 'Euclidean space' | back to history ]

Title of object: Euclidean space
Canonical Name: EuclideanVectorSpace
Type: Definition

Created on: 2004-04-08 12:22:57
Modified on: 2006-01-22 12:03:58

Creator: rmilson
Modifier: rmilson
Author: rmilson

Classification: msc:15A03
Defines: Euclidean plane

Preamble:

\usepackage{amsmath}
\usepackage{amsfonts}
\usepackage{amssymb}

\usepackage{bbm}

\newcommand{\En}{\mathbbmss{E}^n}
\newcommand{\V}{\mathbbmss{V}}
\newcommand{\R}{\mathbbmss{R}}
\newcommand{\T}{\operatorname{T}}
Content:

\paragraph{Definition}
We call a metric space $(\En, d)$ Euclidean $n$-space if the group of
translation isometries of $\En$ is transitive on $\En$ and is
isomorphic to an $n$-dimensional, real inner product space compatible
with the metric $d$. To be more precise, we are saying that there
exists an $n$-dimensional inner product space $(\V,\langle \cdot,\cdot\rangle)$ and a mapping
\[ +: \En\times\V\to\En \]
such that
\begin{enumerate}
\item for all $x,y\in \En$ there exists a unique $u\in \V$ satisfying
\[ y=x+u,\quad d(x,y)^2=\langle u,u\rangle,\]
\item such that for all $x,y\in\En$ and all $u\in \V$ we have
\[ d(x+u,y+u)=d(x,y),\]
\item and such that
\[ (x+u)+v=x+(u+v),\quad x\in \En,\; u,v\in \V.\]
\end{enumerate}

\paragraph{Remarks.}
\begin{itemize}
\item
Alternatively, we can consider Euclidean space as an inner product
space that has forgotten which point is its origin.

\item
It is common to refer to 2-dimensional Euclidean space as the
\emph{Euclidean plane}.
\end{itemize}