Content and Subject Matter: This research monograph deals with two main subjects, namely the notion of equimultiplicity and the algebraic study of various graded rings in relation to blowing ups. Both subjects are clearly motivated by their use in resolving singularities of algebraic varieties, for which one of the main tools consists in blowing up the variety along an equimultiple subvariety. For equimultiplicity a unified and self-contained treatment of earlier results of two of the authors is given, establishing a notion of equimultiplicity for situations other than the classical ones. For blowing up, new results are presented on the connection with generalized Cohen-Macaulay rings. To keep this part self-contained too, a section on local cohomology and local duality for graded rings and modules is included with detailed proofs. Finally, in an appendix, the notion of equimultiplicity for complex analytic spaces is given a geometric interpretation and its equivalence to the algebraic notion is explained. The book is primarily addressed to specialists in the subject but the self-contained and unified presentation of numerous earlier results make it accessible to graduate students with basic knowledge in commutative algebra.

This volume brings together recent, original research and survey articles by leading experts in several fields that include singularity theory, algebraic geometry and commutative algebra. The motivation for this collection comes from the wide-ranging research of the distinguished mathematician, Antonio Campillo, in these and related fields. Besides his influence in the mathematical community stemming from his research, Campillo has also endeavored to promote mathematics and mathematicians' networking everywhere, especially in Spain, Latin America and Europe. Because of his impressive achievements throughout his career, we dedicate this book to Campillo in honor of his 65th birthday. Researchers and students from the world-wide, and in particular Latin American and European, communities in singularities, algebraic geometry, commutative algebra, coding theory, and other fields covered in the volume, will have interest in this book.

Resolution of Singularities has long been considered as being a difficult to access area of mathematics. The more systematic and simpler proofs that have appeared in the last few years in zero characteristic now give us a much better understanding of singularities. They reveal the aesthetics of both the logical structure of the proof and the various methods used in it. The present volume is intended for readers who are not yet experts but always wondered about the intricacies of resolution. As such, it provides a gentle and quite comprehensive introduction to this amazing field. The book may tempt the reader to enter more deeply into a topic where many mysteries--especially the positive characteristic case--await to be disclosed. Titles in this series are co-published with the Clay Mathematics Institute (Cambridge, MA).

This book gives an account of theoretical and algorithmic developments on the integral closure of algebraic structures. It gives a comprehensive treatment of Rees algebras and multiplicity theory while pointing to applications in many other problem areas. Its main goal is to provide complexity estimates by tracking numerically invariants of the structures that may occur.

In the last two decades Cohen-Macaulay rings and modules have been central topics in commutative algebra. This book meets the need for a thorough, self-contained introduction to the homological and combinatorial aspects of the theory of Cohen-Macaulay rings, Gorenstein rings, local cohomology, and canonical modules. A separate chapter is devoted to Hilbert functions (including Macaulay's theorem) and numerical invariants derived from them. The authors emphasize the study of explicit, specific rings, making the presentation as concrete as possible. So the general theory is applied to Stanley-Reisner rings, semigroup rings, determinantal rings, and rings of invariants. Their connections with combinatorics are highlighted, e.g. Stanley's upper bound theorem or Ehrhart's reciprocity law for rational polytopes. The final chapters are devoted to Hochster's theorem on big Cohen-Macaulay modules and its applications, including Peskine-Szpiro's intersection theorem, the Evans-Griffith syzygy theorem, bounds for Bass numbers, and tight closure. Throughout each chapter the authors have supplied many examples and exercises which, combined with the expository style, will make the book very useful for graduate courses in algebra. As the only modern, broad account of the subject it will be essential reading for researchers in commutative algebra.

The primary audience for this book is students and the young researchers interested in the core of the discipline. Commutative algebra is by and large a self-contained discipline, which makes it quite dry for the beginner with a basic training in elementary algebra and calculus. A stable mathematical discipline such as this enshrines a vital number of topics to be learned at an early stage, more or less universally accepted and practiced. Naturally, authors tend to turn these topics into an increasingly short and elegant list of basic facts of the theory. So, the shorter the better. However, there is a subtle watershed between elegance and usefulness, especially if the target is the beginner. From my experience throughout years of teaching, elegance and terseness do not do it, except much later in the carrier. To become useful, the material ought to carry quite a bit of motivation through justification and usefulness pointers. On the other hand, it is difficult to contemplate these teaching devices in the writing of a short book. I have divided the material in three parts. starting with more elementary sections, then carrying an intermezzo on more difficult themes to make up for a smooth crescendo with additional tools and, finally, the more advanced part, versing on a reasonable chunk of present-day steering of commutative algebra. Historic notes at the end of each chapter provide insight into the original sources and background information on a particular subject or theorem. Exercises are provided and propose problems that apply the theory to solve concrete questions (yes, with concrete polynomials, and so forth).