- #1
JBrandonS
- 21
- 0
Homework Statement
This is question 1.1 from section 2-1 of New Foundations of Classical Mechanics:
Establish the following "vector identities":
[itex] (a\wedge b) \cdot (c \wedge d) = b\cdot ca \cdot d - b\cdot da \cdot c = b\cdot(c\wedge d)\cdot a[/itex]
Homework Equations
The Attempt at a Solution
My attempts at this solution make me believe that there is a typo in this problem. The quickest way is by using the third equation:
[itex]b\cdot(c\wedge d)\cdot a = b \cdot \frac{1}{2}(cd-dc)\cdot a = \frac{1}{2}(b\cdot cd \cdot a - b \cdot dc \cdot a)[/itex]
This is equal to half the second equation since [itex]a \cdot b = b \cdot a[/itex]. So am I doing something wrong?