Uli Walther
Math 746
walther@math.purdue.edu
494-1959 (work)
teaching Math 598E Spring 2008
MWF: 12:30-1:20 Math 211

Textbook: Iyengar, Leuschke, Leykin, Miller, Miller, Singh and Walther: "24 h of local cohomology", Grad Studies in Math 87 (AMS).

Homework questions:

9.18, A4, A5, 1.6, A.11, 2.10, 2.15, 19.28, 21.18, 17.6, 20.8, 20.24,

Computer project:

Type "M2" into any math department computer, this will start the computer algebra system Macaulay2. See www.math.uiuc.edu/~Macaulay2 for stuff on the program, specifically look at the documentation
http://www.math.uiuc.edu/Macaulay2/doc/Macaulay2-1.1/share/doc/Macaulay2/Macaulay2Doc/html/
where I find particularly the index useful.

Here are some things you should try: Define a ring R over a field KK of your choice with 6 variables. Let I=(f1,f2,f3) be the ideal of the 2x2 minors discussed in class. Let J=(f1,f2,f3*f3). Compute minimal free resolutions for both, and also compute all non-vanishing Ext's of R/I and R/J into R. For the adventurous: determine the image of the map Ext^3(R/J,R) -> Ext^3(R/Frob(J),R) where KK is characteristic p and Frob is the Frobenius functor.
Now use Macaulay2 to to compute H^3_I(R) if KK=QQ. (Hint: "load "D-modules.m2" " and then "help localCohom"). Compute the characteristic variety "charVar" of this module and discuss what this module looks like.

Can you find an (interesting) ideal I in ZZ[x_1,...,x_n] such that its reduction mod p has a different projective dimension than its reduction mod p' ? (I am excluding the uninteresting case I=(p)...)

Reading material for the week after Spring break:

1. The attached article.
2. In THE BOOK, read section 22.1 on Segre products of graded rings and a particularly weird family of varieties related to number theory.
3. If I am not back on Friday, read sections 20.1, 20.2 and 20.3 on semigroup rings.

Comments to walther@math.purdue.edu