The Dot Product: Angles and Projections · seed 1 · A4, ink-friendly. The answer key prints on its own page for grown-ups.
En anglais

One number that knows the angle

Mathematics · Geometry · ages 19-20
Name ______________________   Date ____________
  1. What is the angle between (1, 1) and (0, 3)?

    • 30 degrees
    • 45 degrees
    • 60 degrees
    • 90 degrees
  2. Compute the dot product (3, -2, 1) dot (2, 4, 5).

    Answer: ______________

  3. Compute the dot product (1, 2) dot (3, 4).

    Answer: ______________

  4. Compute the dot product (2, 3) dot (-1, 4).

    Answer: ______________

  5. For which value of k is (2, k) perpendicular to (3, 6)?

    Answer: ______________

  6. The dot product of two nonzero vectors is -6. What can you say about the angle between them?

    • It is under 90 degrees
    • It is exactly 90 degrees
    • It is over 90 degrees
  7. Let u = (2, -1, 3) and v = (1, 5, 1). Priya says u and v are perpendicular. Is she right?

    Circle one:   True   False

  8. What is the scalar component of (1, 2) along the direction (3, 4)?

    Answer: ______________

  9. What is the projection vector of (4, 0) onto the direction (1, 1)?

    • (2, 2)
    • (4, 4)
    • (2, 0)
  10. Mia says two nonzero vectors with dot product zero must be perpendicular. Is Mia right?

    Circle one:   True   False

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Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

One number that knows the angle W1-mt_yFBcyE4sFw-s1

  1. 45 degrees · The dot is 3 and the lengths are root 2 and 3, so the cosine is 1 over root 2, which gives 45 degrees.
  2. 3 · Multiply matching components and add: 6 - 8 + 5 = 3.
  3. 11 · Multiply matching parts and add: 3 + 8 = 11.
  4. 10 · 2 times -1 plus 3 times 4 is -2 + 12 = 10.
  5. -1 · The dot is 6 + 6k, which is 0 when k = -1.
  6. It is over 90 degrees · A negative dot means a negative cosine, and cosine is negative only for angles over 90 degrees.
  7. True · The dot is 2 - 5 + 3 = 0, and both vectors are nonzero, so they are perpendicular.
  8. 2.2 · Normalize (3, 4) to (3/5, 4/5), then dot: 3/5 + 8/5 = 11/5 = 2.2.
  9. (2, 2) · Dot with (1, 1) to get 4, divide by squared length 2, and scale (1, 1) by 2.
  10. True · Zero dot with nonzero lengths gives cosine 0, which is exactly 90 degrees.
Worksheet · LightMySky