Strongly stable ideals and Hilbert polynomials

The \texttt{StronglyStableIdeals} package for \textit{Macaulay2} provides a method to compute all saturated strongly stable ideals in a given polynomial ring with a fixed Hilbert polynomial. A description of the main method and auxiliary tools is given.Comment: Source code available as an ancillary file. Final versio

A Borel open cover of the Hilbert scheme

Let $p(t)$ be an admissible Hilbert polynomial in \PP^n of degree $d$. The Hilbert scheme \hilb^n_p(t) can be realized as a closed subscheme of a suitable Grassmannian $\mathbb G$, hence it could be globally defined by homogeneous equations in the Plucker coordinates of $\mathbb G$ and covered by open subsets given by the non-vanishing of a Plucker coordinate, each embedded as a closed subscheme of the affine space $A^D$, $D=\dim(\mathbb G)$. However, the number $E$ of Plucker coordinates is so large that effective computations in this setting are practically impossible. In this paper, taking advantage of the symmetries of \hilb^n_p(t), we exhibit a new open cover, consisting of marked schemes over Borel-fixed ideals, whose number is significantly smaller than $E$. Exploiting the properties of marked schemes, we prove that these open subsets are defined by equations of degree $\leq d+2$ in their natural embedding in \Af^D. Furthermore we find new embeddings in affine spaces of far lower dimension than $D$, and characterize those that are still defined by equations of degree $\leq d+2$. The proofs are constructive and use a polynomial reduction process, similar to the one for Grobner bases, but are term order free. In this new setting, we can achieve explicit computations in many non-trivial cases.Comment: 17 pages. This version contains and extends the first part of version 2 (arXiv:0909.2184v2[math.AG]). A new extended version of the second part, with some new results, is posed at arxiv:1110.0698v3[math.AC]. The title is slightly changed. Final version accepted for publicatio

Computable Hilbert Schemes

In this PhD thesis we propose an algorithmic approach to the study of the Hilbert scheme. Developing algorithmic methods, we also obtain general results about Hilbert schemes. In Chapter 1 we discuss the equations defining the Hilbert scheme as subscheme of a suitable Grassmannian and in Chapter 5 we determine a new set of equations of degree lower than the degree of equations known so far. In Chapter 2 we study the most important objects used to project algorithmic techniques, namely Borel-fixed ideals. We determine an algorithm computing all the saturated Borel-fixed ideals with Hilbert polynomial assigned and we investigate their combinatorial properties. In Chapter 3 we show a new type of flat deformations of Borel-fixed ideals which lead us to give a new proof of the connectedness of the Hilbert scheme. In Chapter 4 we construct families of ideals that generalize the notion of family of ideals sharing the same initial ideal with respect to a fixed term ordering. Some of these families correspond to open subsets of the Hilbert scheme and can be used to a local study of the Hilbert scheme. In Chapter 6 we deal with the problem of the connectedness of the Hilbert scheme of locally Cohen-Macaulay curves in the projective 3-space. We show that one of the Hilbert scheme considered a "good" candidate to be non-connected, is instead connected. Moreover there are three appendices that present and explain how to use the implementations of the algorithms proposed.Comment: This is the PhD thesis of the author. Most of the results appeared or are going to appear in some paper. However the thesis contains more detailed explanations, proofs and remarks and it can be used also as handbook for all algorithms proposed and available at http://www.personalweb.unito.it/paolo.lella/HSC/index.html . arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1101.2866 by other author

A combinatorial description of finite O-sequences and aCM genera

The goal of this paper is to explicitly detect all the arithmetic genera of arithmetically Cohen-Macaulay projective curves with a given degree $d$. It is well-known that the arithmetic genus $g$ of a curve $C$ can be easily deduced from the $h$-vector of the curve; in the case where $C$ is arithmetically Cohen-Macaulay of degree $d$, $g$ must belong to the range of integers $\big\{0,\ldots,\binom{d-1}{2}\big\}$. We develop an algorithmic procedure that allows one to avoid constructing most of the possible $h$-vectors of $C$. The essential tools are a combinatorial description of the finite O-sequences of multiplicity $d$, and a sort of continuity result regarding the generation of the genera. The efficiency of our method is supported by computational evidence. As a consequence, we single out the minimal possible Castelnuovo-Mumford regularity of a curve with Cohen-Macaulay postulation and given degree and genus.Comment: Final versio

The maximum likelihood degree of Fermat hypersurfaces

We study the critical points of the likelihood function over the Fermat hypersurface. This problem is related to one of the main problems in statistical optimization: maximum likelihood estimation. The number of critical points over a projective variety is a topological invariant of the variety and is called maximum likelihood degree. We provide closed formulas for the maximum likelihood degree of any Fermat curve in the projective plane and of Fermat hypersurfaces of degree 2 in any projective space. Algorithmic methods to compute the ML degree of a generic Fermat hypersurface are developed throughout the paper. Such algorithms heavily exploit the symmetries of the varieties we are considering. A computational comparison of the different methods and a list of the maximum likelihood degrees of several Fermat hypersurfaces are available in the last section.Comment: Final version. Accepted for publication on Journal of Algebraic Statistic

Upgraded methods for the effective computation of marked schemes on a strongly stable ideal

Let $J\subset S=K[x_0,...,x_n]$ be a monomial strongly stable ideal. The collection \Mf(J) of the homogeneous polynomial ideals $I$, such that the monomials outside $J$ form a $K$-vector basis of $S/I$, is called a {\em $J$-marked family}. It can be endowed with a structure of affine scheme, called a {\em $J$-marked scheme}. For special ideals $J$, $J$-marked schemes provide an open cover of the Hilbert scheme \hilbp, where $p(t)$ is the Hilbert polynomial of $S/J$. Those ideals more suitable to this aim are the $m$-truncation ideals $\underline{J}_{\geq m}$ generated by the monomials of degree $\geq m$ in a saturated strongly stable monomial ideal $\underline{J}$. Exploiting a characterization of the ideals in \Mf(\underline{J}_{\geq m}) in terms of a Buchberger-like criterion, we compute the equations defining the $\underline{J}_{\geq m}$-marked scheme by a new reduction relation, called {\em superminimal reduction}, and obtain an embedding of \Mf(\underline{J}_{\geq m}) in an affine space of low dimension. In this setting, explicit computations are achievable in many non-trivial cases. Moreover, for every $m$, we give a closed embedding \phi_m: \Mf(\underline{J}_{\geq m})\hookrightarrow \Mf(\underline{J}_{\geq m+1}), characterize those $\phi_m$ that are isomorphisms in terms of the monomial basis of $\underline{J}$, especially we characterize the minimum integer $m_0$ such that $\phi_m$ is an isomorphism for every $m\geq m_0$.Comment: 28 pages; this paper contains and extends the second part of the paper posed at arXiv:0909.2184v2[math.AG]; sections are now reorganized and the general presentation of the paper is improved. Final version accepted for publicatio

On the functoriality of marked families

The application of methods of computational algebra has recently introduced new tools for the study of Hilbert schemes. The key idea is to define at families of ideals endowed with a scheme structure whose defining equations can be determined by algorithmic procedures. For this reason, several authors developed new methods, based on the combinatorial properties of Borel-fixed ideals, that allow associating to each ideal $J$ of this type a scheme $\mathbf{Mf}_J$, called a $J$-marked scheme. In this paper, we provide a solid functorial foundation to marked schemes and show that the algorithmic procedures introduced in previous papers do not depend on the ring of coefficients. We prove that, for all strongly stable ideals $J$, the marked schemes $\mathbf{Mf}_J$ can be embedded in a Hilbert scheme as locally closed subschemes, and that they are open under suitable conditions on $J$. Finally, we generalize Lederer's result about Gröbner strata of zero-dimensional ideals, proving that Gröbner strata of any ideals are locally closed subschemes of Hilbert schemes