I do not know enough about matrices, maybe only enough to be able to create question like this one, but I would like to see an answer.
Let $a_{ij}$ be some element of invertible $n\times n$ matrix $M$ which has real numbers as entries.
Let us now define the addition of the real number $\alpha$ with matrix $M$ in such a way that $\alpha+M$ gives matrix $N$ which has entries $a_{ij}+\alpha$.
The question is:
Can we for every real invertible matrix $M$ find real number $\alpha \neq 0$ such that $M+\alpha$ is invertible?
I created this question because it seems to me that the set of real invertible matrices is connected in such a way that if we have some real invertible matrix that we could alter coefficients at least a little bit by the same amount and still arrive at another real invertible matrix.
As I know almost nothing about this area of mathematics, I could be wrong, but because some of you surely know how to answer this question I will probably find out was my intuition right?
Also, I would like to have a proof or counterexample that is as elementary as possible.
Yes. A matrix $A$ is invertible if and only if the determinant $\det A$ is non-zero. Since the determinant is a polynomial in the entries of $A$ (as can be seen, e.g. by cofactor expansion), the determinant is continuous in the entries of $A$.
Hence if $\det(M) \ne 0$, then for all sufficiently small $\alpha$, $\det(M + \alpha) \ne 0$.