Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 January 2009
This paper studies questions connected with when the Rees algebra of an ideal or the formring of an ideal is Gorenstein. The main results are for ideals of small analytic deviation, and for m-primary ideals of a regular local ring (R, m). The general point proved is that the Gorenstein property forces (and is sometimes equivalent to) lowering the reduction number of the ideal by one from the value predicted if one only assumes the Rees algebra or formring is Cohen–Macaulay.