Practical Linear Algebra, 3rd Edition

Chapter 2

Here and There: Points and Vectors in 2D

In 2005 Hurricane Katrina caused flooding and deaths as it made its way from the Bahamas to south Florida as a category 1 hurricane. Over the warm waters of the Gulf, it grew into a category 5 hurricane, and even though at landfall in southeast Louisiana it had weakened to a category 3 hurricane, the storm surges and destruction it created rates it as the most expensive hurricane to date, causing more than $45 billion of damage. Sadly it was also one of the deadliest, particularly for residents of New Orleans. In the hurricane image (Figure 2.1), air is moving rapidly, spiraling in a counterclockwise fashion. What isn’t so clear from this image is that the air moves faster as it approaches the ...