Lecture 19
Polynomial interpolation with the monomial
basis
Today we looked at polynomial
interpolation. The general idea of interpolation was discussed. We saw that one
could determine the coefficients of a polynomial by solving a system of linear
equations. This method uses the so called monomial basis. The matrix that is
evaluated has the form known as the Vandermonde matrix. Although the technique
is appealing because it is straightforward and easy to implement, it's major
shortcoming is that it tends to lead to calculations that may be prone to
numerical error. You can read about this method in Recktenwald Chapter 10 up to
the end of section 10.2.1. The Ellis notes Class 9 discusses interpolation but
does not describe the monomial basis
Posted: Tue - October 26, 2004 at 10:02 AM