Submitted by Hypatia on Wed, 10/17/2018 - 11:34
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Hi all - there is now a STEP 3 matrices module available!
Since there are very few old STEP matrix questions we have used (very) old A-level and other questions which have some "STEP-like" qualities, but these questions tend to be shorter, longer, easier or considerably harder than STEP questions.
Eigenvalues/eigenvectors
Hi there does not seem to be any mention of eigen values or eigenvectors in the new step spec. I was wondering if I should assume that this is not going to be tested. Is there any possible advantage in learning this or should I ignore practicing these style of questions as it won’t be assumed knowledge?
Eigenvalues and eigenvectors
Eigenvalues and eigenvectors are not on the STEP specification (and are not assumed knowledge!) STEP 1990 S3 Q6 is a question which technically involves eigenvectors, but no knowledge of eigenvectors is needed or assumed. This would be fine with the current spec (I think - I have not worked through it!)
If they are on your A-level (or other) specifications then practising these sorts of questions will not hurt, but there is no need to learn the content if they do not include it.