Some consequences of perversity of vanishing cycles. (Q1774078)

Let \(f\) be a nonconstant holomorphic function on a complex analytic space \(X\). For each \(x\in Y:=f^{-1}(0)\) denote by \(F_x\) the typical fibre of the Milnor fibration around \(x\), and by \(\widetilde{H}\) the reduced cohomology. The vanishing cohomology \(\widetilde{H}^j(F_x,{\mathbb Q})\) forms a constructible sheaf (the vanishing cohomology sheaf). The authors use perversity of the vanishing cycle complex to prove that the vanishing cohomology of lower degree at a point is determined by that of points near it. In the case when the hypersurface has simple normal crossings outside the point they calculate the order of vanishing explicitly. Applications are given to the size of the Jordan blocks of the monodromy operator.