How are these two lemmas about simple algebraic extensions and polynomials restatements of each other?

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Lemma 5.14. says

Let $K(\alpha) : K$ be a simple algebraic extension, let the minimal polynomial of $\alpha$ over $K$ be $m$, and let $\partial m = n$. Then $\{1,\alpha,\ldots,\alpha^{n-1}\}$ is a basis for $K(\alpha)$ over $K$.

Here $K$ is a field and $\{1,\alpha,\ldots,\alpha^{n-1}\}$ is a basis for $K(\alpha)$ over $K$ as a vector space. $\partial m$ is the degree of $m$. The proof given for lemma 5.14. is just

The theorem is a restatement of Lemma 5.9.

Lemma 5.9. says

Every polynomial $a \in K[t]$ is congruent modulo $m$ to a unique polynomial of degree $< \partial m$.

Here $K[t]$ is a polynomial ring over the field $K$.

I understand the statements in both lemmas, but I can't figure out their connections. Lemma 5.9. is just about properties of polynomials and lemma 5.14. is about properties of simple algebraic extensions and their minimal polynomials.

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Let us show Lemma 5.14, just see to what it amounts. We consider the system $S$ with the elements $1,\alpha,\dots,\alpha^{n-1}$, and have to show two properties of this system, seen as a subset in the (underlying) vector space of the given field $K(\alpha)$ over the field $K$.

  • the system $S$ is generating the vector space. For this let us pick some element in $K(\alpha)$. By its definition it is a finite linear combination of powers of $\alpha$, possibly some of them having powers bigger then $n$. At any rate, this element is of the shape $p(\alpha)$ for an appropriate polynomial $p\in K[X]$. By the Lemma 5.9 we know that we can write $p\cong r$ modulo $m$ with the rest $r$ having degree $<n$. Just as a remark, we use the existence part from Lemma 5.9, where "is congruent to" may be better replaced by "there exists a polynomial $r$ (congruent with the given one modulo $m$)"... Then we have a relation of the shape $p=q\cdot m+r$, so $$p(\alpha)=q(\alpha)\cdot m(\alpha)+r(\alpha)=q(\alpha)\cdot0+r(\alpha)=r(\alpha)\ .$$ Writing $r(\alpha)$ explicitly, we see that it is a $K$-linear combination of the elements in $S$. So $S$ is a generating system.

  • the system $S$ is linearly independent. Let us assume that we have a $K$-linear combination of the elements of $S$ equal to zero. We rewrite this as $r(\alpha)=0$, $r\in K[X]$ being of degree $<n$. Since $m$ is a monic polynomial of minimal degree with $m(\alpha)=0$, we obtain $r=0$, i.e. $r$ is the zero polynomial. (Else it has a principal coefficient $\ne 0$, and we can renorm $r$ by dividing by it, getting a monic polynomial of strictly smaller degree which annihilates $\alpha$. Contradiction.) Alternatively, we can put this in an other shape to look like Lemma 5.9. Let us write $r(\alpha)=0=0(\alpha)$. Here, the $0$ in $0(\alpha)$ is the zero polynomial, which also has degree $<n$. We use now the uniqueness in the Lemma 5.9, getting $r=0$ in $K[X]$.


So the essence of Lemma 5.14 means that

  • $S$ is generating $K(\alpha)$ over $K$, by using the tacitly involved existence from Lemma 5.9,
  • and $S$ is linearly independent by using the uniqueness part in the Lemma 5.9.