Conway games, algebraically and coalgebraically

Using coalgebraic methods, we extend Conway's theory of games to possibly non-terminating, i.e. non-wellfounded games (hypergames). We take the view that a play which goes on forever is a draw, and hence rather than focussing on winning strategies, we focus on non-losing strategies. Hypergames are a fruitful metaphor for non-terminating processes, Conway's sum being similar to shuffling. We develop a theory of hypergames, which extends in a non-trivial way Conway's theory; in particular, we generalize Conway's results on game determinacy and characterization of strategies. Hypergames have a rather interesting theory, already in the case of impartial hypergames, for which we give a compositional semantics, in terms of a generalized Grundy-Sprague function and a system of generalized Nim games. Equivalences and congruences on games and hypergames are discussed. We indicate a number of intriguing directions for future work. We briefly compare hypergames with other notions of games used in computer science.Comment: 30 page

Sequoidal Categories and Transfinite Games:A Coalgebraic Approach to Stateful Objects in Game Semantics

The non-commutative sequoid operator $\oslash$ on games was introduced to capture algebraically the presence of state in history-sensitive strategies in game semantics, by imposing a causality relation on the tensor product of games. Coalgebras for the functor $A \oslash \_$ - i.e. morphisms from $S$ to $A \oslash S$ - may be viewed as state transformers: if $A \oslash \_$ has a final coalgebra, $!A$, then the anamorphism of such a state transformer encapsulates its explicit state, so that it is shared only between successive invocations. We study the conditions under which a final coalgebra $!A$ for $A \oslash \_$ is the carrier of a cofree commutative comonoid on $A$. That is, it is a model of the exponential of linear logic in which we can construct imperative objects such as reference cells coalgebraically, in a game semantics setting. We show that if the tensor decomposes into the sequoid, the final coalgebra $!A$ may be endowed with the structure of the cofree commutative comonoid if there is a natural isomorphism from $!(A \times B)$ to $!A \otimes !B$. This condition is always satisfied if $!A$ is the bifree algebra for $A \oslash \_$, but in general it is necessary to impose it, as we establish by giving an example of a sequoidally decomposable category of games in which plays will be allowed to have transfinite length. In this category, the final coalgebra for the functor $A \oslash \_$ is not the cofree commutative comonoid over A: we illustrate this by explicitly contrasting the final sequence for the functor $A \oslash \_$ with the chain of symmetric tensor powers used in the construction of the cofree commutative comonoid as a limit by Melli\'es, Tabareau and Tasson.Comment: Accepted for publication in the proceedings of CALCO 2017, published in the Dagstuhl LIPIcs series. 15pp + 2pp bibliography + 12 pp Appendix (the appendix is not part of the conference version

A Temporal Framework for Hypergame Analysis of Cyber Physical Systems in Contested Environments

Game theory is used to model conflicts between one or more players over resources. It offers players a way to reason, allowing rationale for selecting strategies that avoid the worst outcome. Game theory lacks the ability to incorporate advantages one player may have over another player. A meta-game, known as a hypergame, occurs when one player does not know or fully understand all the strategies of a game. Hypergame theory builds upon the utility of game theory by allowing a player to outmaneuver an opponent, thus obtaining a more preferred outcome with higher utility. Recent work in hypergame theory has focused on normal form static games that lack the ability to encode several realistic strategies. One example of this is when a player’s available actions in the future is dependent on his selection in the past. This work presents a temporal framework for hypergame models. This framework is the first application of temporal logic to hypergames and provides a more flexible modeling for domain experts. With this new framework for hypergames, the concepts of trust, distrust, mistrust, and deception are formalized. While past literature references deception in hypergame research, this work is the first to formalize the definition for hypergames. As a demonstration of the new temporal framework for hypergames, it is applied to classical game theoretical examples, as well as a complex supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) network temporal hypergame. The SCADA network is an example includes actions that have a temporal dependency, where a choice in the first round affects what decisions can be made in the later round of the game. The demonstration results show that the framework is a realistic and flexible modeling method for a variety of applications

Foundations of Software Science and Computation Structures

This open access book constitutes the proceedings of the 22nd International Conference on Foundations of Software Science and Computational Structures, FOSSACS 2019, which took place in Prague, Czech Republic, in April 2019, held as part of the European Joint Conference on Theory and Practice of Software, ETAPS 2019. The 29 papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 85 submissions. They deal with foundational research with a clear significance for software science

Foundations of Software Science and Computation Structures

This open access book constitutes the proceedings of the 23rd International Conference on Foundations of Software Science and Computational Structures, FOSSACS 2020, which took place in Dublin, Ireland, in April 2020, and was held as Part of the European Joint Conferences on Theory and Practice of Software, ETAPS 2020. The 31 regular papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 98 submissions. The papers cover topics such as categorical models and logics; language theory, automata, and games; modal, spatial, and temporal logics; type theory and proof theory; concurrency theory and process calculi; rewriting theory; semantics of programming languages; program analysis, correctness, transformation, and verification; logics of programming; software specification and refinement; models of concurrent, reactive, stochastic, distributed, hybrid, and mobile systems; emerging models of computation; logical aspects of computational complexity; models of software security; and logical foundations of data bases.

Foundations of Software Science and Computation Structures

This open access book constitutes the proceedings of the 23rd International Conference on Foundations of Software Science and Computational Structures, FOSSACS 2020, which took place in Dublin, Ireland, in April 2020, and was held as Part of the European Joint Conferences on Theory and Practice of Software, ETAPS 2020. The 31 regular papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 98 submissions. The papers cover topics such as categorical models and logics; language theory, automata, and games; modal, spatial, and temporal logics; type theory and proof theory; concurrency theory and process calculi; rewriting theory; semantics of programming languages; program analysis, correctness, transformation, and verification; logics of programming; software specification and refinement; models of concurrent, reactive, stochastic, distributed, hybrid, and mobile systems; emerging models of computation; logical aspects of computational complexity; models of software security; and logical foundations of data bases.

Formal Frameworks for Circular Phenomena. Possibilities of Modeling Pathological Expressions in Formal and Natural Languages

This dissertation has four parts. The first one is a general introduction into the topic of the work separated in a chapter that explains the used notation, a chapter that discusses typical examples, and a chapter that gives an overview of the three main parts. An important aspect of this first part is the attempt of a conceptual clarification of circularity, in particular in relation to the non-well-foundedness of a phenomenon. This clarification represents the philosophical core of the primarily formal dissertation. In the second part, Kripke's fixed point approach concerning partially defined truth predicates is examined: the algebraic foundations are introduced and problems of the construction are discussed. The main results of this second part are three characterization theorems of subclasses of interlaced bilattices and their applications. In the third part, revision theories are introduced. Their adequacy for the representation of circularity is discussed. Additionally, the complexity of these theories, the relation of revision theories to a wider thematic context, and their empirical properties are examined. In the last part of this dissertation, circularity is introduced on the level of set theory. The crucial idea is the concept of a coalgebraic modeling. In particular, the modeling of truth and the representation of the difference between private and common knowledge is emphasized. A comparison of the different accounts is provided in the last chapter.This dissertation has four parts. The first one is a general introduction into the topic of the work separated in a chapter that explains the used notation, a chapter that discusses typical examples, and a chapter that gives an overview of the three main parts. An important aspect of this first part is the attempt of a conceptual clarification of circularity, in particular in relation to the non-well-foundedness of a phenomenon. This clarification represents the philosophical core of the primarily formal dissertation. In the second part, Kripke's fixed point approach concerning partially defined truth predicates is examined: the algebraic foundations are introduced and problems of the construction are discussed. The main results of this second part are three characterization theorems of subclasses of interlaced bilattices and their applications. In the third part, revision theories are introduced. Their adequacy for the representation of circularity is discussed. Additionally, the complexity of these theories, the relation of revision theories to a wider thematic context, and their empirical properties are examined. In the last part of this dissertation, circularity is introduced on the level of set theory. The crucial idea is the concept of a coalgebraic modeling. In particular, the modeling of truth and the representation of the difference between private and common knowledge is emphasized. A comparison of the different accounts is provided in the last chapter