Category: News Postings

The deadline to apply to the 2027 SLMath AxIOM program on Commutative Algebra, Representation Theory, and other interactions has been extended to April 30.

We received the following letter from Jim Coykendall concerning the mass resignation of the editorial board at Communications in Algebra.

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Resignation email from (most of) the board at CIA:
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To Whom It May Concern:

We as editorial board members at Communications in Algebra are sending this notification of our resignation from the board. This letter is being written to explain our position. We note at the outset that a number of the signatories are willing to finish their currently assigned queue if requested by Taylor and Francis.

As associate editors, it is our duty to protect the mathematical integrity of Communications in Algebra in all arenas in which our expertise applies, and it is in this aspect where our concern lies. The “top-down” management that Taylor and Francis seems to be implementing is running roughshod over the standard practices of the refereeing process in mathematics. To unilaterally implement a system that demands multiple full reviews for papers in mathematics is extremely dangerous to the health and the quality of this journal. The system of peer review in mathematics is different from the standard peer-review process in the sciences; in mathematics the referee is expected to do a much more in-depth and thorough review of a paper than one encounters in most of the sciences. This often involves not only an assessment of the impact and significance of the results but also a line-by-line painstaking check for correctness of the results. This process is often quite time-consuming and makes referees a valuable commodity. Doubling the number of expected reviews will quickly either deplete the pool of willing reviewers or vastly dilute the quality of their reviews, and both of these are unacceptable outcomes. It is our understanding that one solution proposed in this vein was to “drastically increase” the size of the editorial board, but this does not address the problem at all, and also would have the side effect of making Communications in Algebra look like one of the many predatory journals invading the current market.

These are extremely important issues that should have been discussed with the editorial board, but it appears that Taylor and Francis has no interest in the board’s perspective in this regard. Of course, we realize that Taylor and Francis is a business and is responsible for the financial success (or failure) of the journals in its charge, but the irony here is that as bad as this is from our “mathematical” perspective, it is potentially an even bigger business mistake. Moving forward, the multiple review system will likely dissuade many authors from considering Communications in Algebra as an outlet. Only the highest-tier journals regularly implement more than one full review (and even at these journals, we do not believe that multiple reviews are mandated as policy). Frankly speaking, Communications in Algebra improved in prominence and stature under Scott Chapman’s tenure, but Communications in Algebra is still not the Annals of Mathematics. Why would any author wait for a year or more for two reviews to come in when there are many other options (Journal of Algebra, Journal of Pure and Applied Algebra, etc.) which are higher profile with less waiting time? The multiple review process has the potential to create a huge backlog of “under review” papers and greatly diminish the quality of submissions. It is likely the case that in a short while, Communications in Algebra will have significantly fewer quality submissions and could become a publishing mill for low-grade papers to meet its quota. In the long run, this is not good for the journal’s reputation or for the business interests of Taylor and Francis.

Again, this is something about which the board should have at the very least been consulted instead of learning this by way of the cloak-and-dagger removal of a respected and visionary managing editor who worked well with the board and made demonstrable advances for the journal’s prestige. We are gravely concerned about the future of Communications in Algebra. Taylor and Francis has not only removed Scott Chapman but also has not even reached out to the editorial board and is not taking any visible steps to replace Scott (which would not be an easy task even if Scott were only a mediocre editor). This, coupled with the Taylor and Francis’ puzzling antipathy to input on best practices in mathematics research publishing and review, as well as its apparent abandonment of the Taft Award that they committed to last year, belies an aggressive disdain for the future quality of Communications in Algebra. We certainly hope you will adopt a more positive and productive relationship with your next board.

R. Beheshti
G. Carnovale
J. Coykendall
J. East
P. García-Sánchez
A. Geroldinger
F. Gotti
D. Herbera
E. Jespers
I. Klep
P. Kolesnikov
J. Külshammer
M. Lewis
V. Miemietz
P. Nielsen
T. Puthenpurakal
Á. del Río Mateos
M. Reyes
A. Schaeffer Fry
P. Sin
D. Smertnig
C. Vay
A. Wadsworth

The Galois Journal of Algebra is issuing a call for papers for various special issues in fields closely related to commutative algebra:

• A special issue on Recent Advances in Algebraic Combinatorics, including topics such as symmetric and Schur functions, combinatorial representation theory, matroids, polytopes and lattices, combinatorics of monomial and binomial ideals, and enumerative and tableaux-based combinatorics. Submissions due May 31, 2026. For more, see the journal’s website.
• A special issue on Recent Advances in Monomial Algebras. For more, see the journal’s page on this issue.
• A special issue on Recent Advances in Algebraic Graph Theory. This special issue is in honor of Prof. T. Tamizh Chelvam. For more, see the journal’s page on this issue.
• A special issue on Recent Advances in Algebraic Coding Theory and Cryptography. This special issue is dedicated to the 75th Birthday of Prof. B. K. Dass, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India. For more, see the journal’s page on this issue.

We are deeply saddened to share with the community the news of the passing of Mitsuyasu Hashimoto on December 29, 2025, at the age of 63.

Below is a message we received from Kazuhiko Kurano:

Hashimoto had long pursued research in the boundary between commutative algebra and invariant theory/representation theory. He did his mathematics with extreme care and, in that sense, he also had an uncompromising side. At the same time, he was very kind to those around him.

Hashimoto and I entered Kyoto University in 1981. As I recall, we first became acquainted in our third year. In our fourth year, we were both assigned to the laboratory of Professor Masayoshi Nagata, where we began studying commutative algebra. At that time, the members of Nagata’s group included Assistant Professor Jun-ichi Nishimura and a senior student, Mitsuhiro Miyazaki, who was two years ahead of us. Hashimoto and I worked on the problem of whether the minimal free resolution of determinantal ideals can be realized over the integers — in other words, whether the Betti numbers depend on the characteristic of the base field. Hashimoto resolved this problem by showing that, in the case of the ideal generated by the 2×2 minors of a generic 5×5 matrix, the second Betti number does depend on the characteristic of the field. I greatly admired his quick thinking and sheer intellectual power. Hashimoto and I were the last students to receive a doctoral degree under Nagata.

After that, Hashimoto took a position at Nagoya University. We were able to meet several times a year at symposia. Later, Hashimoto moved to Okayama University, and then to Osaka Metropolitan University. He wrote a Springer Lecture Notes on twisted inverse functors with group actions. In our second joint paper, we determined the canonical module of the Cox ring, and in the proof we made use of this twisted inverse functor with group actions. He also conducted research on a positive-characteristic version of Boutot’s theorem. In recognition of these achievements, he was awarded the Algebra Prize of the Mathematical Society of Japan in 2017.

Hashimoto devoted a great deal of energy towards settling the Jacobian conjecture; he even took a vow to abstain from alcohol until the day that he was successful.

About forty days before his passing, Hashimoto, Nishimura and I had dinner together and enjoyed fugu cuisine. Hashimoto had a good appetite, and spoke very positively about the future. However, I was told that his condition suddenly worsened in mid-December 2025. We had talked about continuing to enjoy mathematics together, without rushing, taking things slowly; it is deeply regrettable that this will no longer be possible.

We will remember Mitsuyasu Hashimoto and his work forever.

Auburn University is hiring a two-year postdoc (with possibility of extension to a third year) to start in Fall 2026 as part of an NSF FRG grant on connections between commutative algebra, algebraic geometry, and symplectic geometry. Per NSF requirements, candidates must be US citizens or permanent residents. For more, and to apply, see mathjobs.

This August, at Summer CAMP, early-career commutative algebraists gave elevator pitches on their research, aimed at other commutative algebraists, at mathematicians, and even at the general public. You can view video recordings of the elevator pitches on YouTube:

Elevator pitches aimed at commutative algebraists

Elevator pitches aimed at all mathematicians

Elevator pitches for a general audience

Below is a message from Sara Faridi, Tài Huy Hà, and Adam Van Tuyl:

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce the launch of Combinatorial Commutative Algebra (CCA), a new Diamond Open Access journal dedicated to high-quality research in combinatorial commutative algebra and its interactions with geometry, topology, and applied fields. All articles are freely available to both readers and authors at:

[www.ccamath.org] www.ccamath.org

Submissions: https://ef.msp.org/submit_new.php?j=cca

Combinatorial Commutative Algebra (CCA) is a fully refereed journal publishing significant advances in topics such as:
• Monomial and toric ideals
• Combinatorial aspects of homological algebra
• Combinatorial topology
• Arrangements
• Tropical geometry
• Applications to coding theory, algebraic statistics, and related areas

CCA is community-owned and community-managed, committed to maintaining the highest standards of scholarship while remaining freely accessible.

We also invite submissions for the inaugural volume, scheduled for release in late 2026.

Honorary Editors
• Mel Hochster, University of Michigan, USA
• Richard Stanley, MIT and University of Miami, USA
Editors-in-Chief
• Sara Faridi, Dalhousie University, Canada
• Tài Huy Hà, Tulane University, USA
• Adam Van Tuyl, McMaster University, Canada
Editors
• Sara Madani, Amirkabir University of Technology, Iran
• Fatemeh Mohammadi, KU Leuven, Belgium
• Susan Morey, Texas State University, USA
• Uwe Nagel, University of Kentucky, USA
• Eran Nevo, Hebrew University, Israel
• Nguyen Cong Minh, Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Vietnam
• Sonja Petrović, Illinois Institute of Technology, USA
• Jenna Rajchgot, McMaster University, Canada
• Vic Reiner, University of Minnesota, USA
• Tim Römer, Osnabrück University, Germany
• Alexandra Seceleanu, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, USA
• Volkmar Welker, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Germany
• Masahiko Yoshinaga, Osaka University, Japan
Production Editors
• Federico Galetto, Cleveland State University, USA
• Selvi Kara, Bryn Mawr College, USA
Advisory Editors
• Winfred Bruns, Osnabrück University, Germany
• Aldo Conca, University of Genova, Italy
• Alicia Dickenstein, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina
• Takayuki Hibi, Osaka University, Japan
• Satoshi Murai, Waseda University, Japan
• Isabella Novik, University of Washington, USA
• Irena Peeva, Cornell University, USA
• Hal Schenck, Auburn University, USA
• Bernd Sturmfels, Max Planck Institute / University of California at Berkeley (Germany/USA)
• Ngo Viet Trung, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Vietnam
• Rafael Villarreal, Cinvestav – CDMX Zacatenco, Mexico

We warmly invite you to submit your work and help make this new journal a success.
Best wishes,
Adam, Sara, and Tai

Mats Boij is hiring a PhD student in commutative algebra at KTH – Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. KTH also has other PhD positions in related fields. More information can be found here. Application deadline: January 9, 2026.