Using non-abelian cohomology we introduce new obstructions to the Hasse principle. In particular, we generalize the classical descent formalism to principal homogeneous spaces under noncommutative algebraic groups and give explicit examples of application.

We give an upper bound for the exponential sum [sum ]Mm=1 e2iπf(m) in terms of M and λ, where λ is a small positive number which denotes the size of the fourth derivative of the real valued function f. The classical van der Corput's exponent 1/14 is improved into 1/13 by reducing the problem to a mean square value theorem for triple exponential sums.

Bott–Samelson varieties are an important tool in geometric representation theory [1, 3, 10, 25]. They were originally defined as desingularizations of Schubert varieties and share many of the properties of Schubert varieties. They have an action of a Borel subgroup, and the projective coordinate ring of a Bott–Samelson variety splits into certain generalized Demazure modules (which also appear in other contexts [22, 23]). Standard Monomial Theory, developed by Seshadri and the first author [15, 16], and recently completed by the second author [20], gives explicit bases for the Demazure modules associated to Schubert varieties. In this paper, we extend the techniques of [20] to give explicit bases for the generalized Demazure modules associated to Bott–Samelson varieties, thus proving a strengthened form of the results announced by the first and third authors in [12] (see also [13]). We also obtain more elementary proofs of the cohomology vanishing theorems of Kumar [10] and Mathieu [25]; of the projective normality of Bott–Samelson varieties; and of the Demazure character formula.

Let A be a local ring, and let I1,…,Ir ⊂ A be ideals of positive height. In this article we compare the Cohen–Macaulay property of the multi–Rees algebra RA(I1,…,Ir) to that of the usual Rees algebra RA(I1 ··· Ir) of the product I1 ··· Ir. In particular, when the analytic spread of I1 ··· Ir is small, this leads to necessary and sufficient conditions for the Cohen–Macaulayness of RA(I1,…,Ir). We apply our results to the theory of joint reductions and mixed multiplicities.

We construct a natural branch divisor for equidimensional projective morphisms where the domain has lci singularities and the target is nonsingular. The method involves generalizing a divisor construction of Mumford from sheaves to complexes. The construction is valid in flat families. The generalized branch divisor of a stable map to a nonsingular curve X yields a canonical morphism from the space of stable maps to a symmetric product of X. This branch morphism (together with virtual localization) is used to compute the Hurwitz numbers of covers of the projective line for all genera and degrees in terms of Hodge integrals.