Two reduction theorems for threefold birational morphisms (Q798385)

A birational map is ''factorizable'' provided it may be written as a composition of smooth blow-ups and blow-downs. Given a proper birational morphism, \(f: X\to Y,\) of smooth threefolds, we prove that there are factorizable maps \(\beta: X\to W\) and \(\gamma: W\to Z\) such that I. \(g=f\circ\beta^{-1}\) is a birational morphism whose fundamental locus contains no curves, and II. \(h=g\circ\gamma^{-1}\) is a birational morphism with the same fundamental locus as g and which contains only rational surfaces in its exceptional divisor. Result I has been independently obtained by \textit{V. Kulikov} [Izv. Akad. Nauk. SSSR, Ser. Mat. 46, No.4, 881-895 (1982).