13,506 research outputs found
Building an IDE for the Calculational Derivation of Imperative Programs
In this paper, we describe an IDE called CAPS (Calculational Assistant for
Programming from Specifications) for the interactive, calculational derivation
of imperative programs. In building CAPS, our aim has been to make the IDE
accessible to non-experts while retaining the overall flavor of the
pen-and-paper calculational style. We discuss the overall architecture of the
CAPS system, the main features of the IDE, the GUI design, and the trade-offs
involved.Comment: In Proceedings F-IDE 2015, arXiv:1508.0338
PROSET â A Language for Prototyping with Sets
We discuss the prototyping language PROSET(Prototyping with Sets) as a language for experimental and evolutionary prototyping, focusing its attention on algorithm design. Some of PROSETâs features include generative communication, flexible exception handling and the integration of persistence. A discussion of some issues pertaining to the compiler and the programming environment conclude the pape
Transforming specifications of observable behaviour into programs
A methodology for deriving programs from specifications of observable
behaviour is described. The class of processes to which this methodology
is applicable includes those whose state changes are fully definable by labelled
transition systems, for example communicating processes without
internal state changes. A logic program representation of such labelled
transition systems is proposed, interpreters based on path searching techniques
are defined, and the use of partial evaluation techniques to derive
the executable programs is described
On the engineering of crucial software
The various aspects of the conventional software development cycle are examined. This cycle was the basis of the augmented approach contained in the original grant proposal. This cycle was found inadequate for crucial software development, and the justification for this opinion is presented. Several possible enhancements to the conventional software cycle are discussed. Software fault tolerance, a possible enhancement of major importance, is discussed separately. Formal verification using mathematical proof is considered. Automatic programming is a radical alternative to the conventional cycle and is discussed. Recommendations for a comprehensive approach are presented, and various experiments which could be conducted in AIRLAB are described
Applying Formal Methods to Networking: Theory, Techniques and Applications
Despite its great importance, modern network infrastructure is remarkable for
the lack of rigor in its engineering. The Internet which began as a research
experiment was never designed to handle the users and applications it hosts
today. The lack of formalization of the Internet architecture meant limited
abstractions and modularity, especially for the control and management planes,
thus requiring for every new need a new protocol built from scratch. This led
to an unwieldy ossified Internet architecture resistant to any attempts at
formal verification, and an Internet culture where expediency and pragmatism
are favored over formal correctness. Fortunately, recent work in the space of
clean slate Internet design---especially, the software defined networking (SDN)
paradigm---offers the Internet community another chance to develop the right
kind of architecture and abstractions. This has also led to a great resurgence
in interest of applying formal methods to specification, verification, and
synthesis of networking protocols and applications. In this paper, we present a
self-contained tutorial of the formidable amount of work that has been done in
formal methods, and present a survey of its applications to networking.Comment: 30 pages, submitted to IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorial
Model Checking Classes of Metric LTL Properties of Object-Oriented Real-Time Maude Specifications
This paper presents a transformational approach for model checking two
important classes of metric temporal logic (MTL) properties, namely, bounded
response and minimum separation, for nonhierarchical object-oriented Real-Time
Maude specifications. We prove the correctness of our model checking
algorithms, which terminate under reasonable non-Zeno-ness assumptions when the
reachable state space is finite. These new model checking features have been
integrated into Real-Time Maude, and are used to analyze a network of medical
devices and a 4-way traffic intersection system.Comment: In Proceedings RTRTS 2010, arXiv:1009.398
Failure is an option:an innovative engineering curriculum
PurposeAdvancements and innovation in engineering design are based on learning from previous failures but students are encouraged to âsucceedâ first time and hence can avoid learning from failure in practice. The purpose of the study was to design and evaluate a curriculum to help engineering design students to learn from failure.Design/Methodology/ApproachA new curriculum design provided a case study for evaluating the effects of incorporating learning from failure within a civil engineering course. An analysis of the changes in course output was undertaken in relation to graduate destination data covering 2006 to 2016 and student satisfaction from 2012 to 2017 and a number of challenges and solutions for curriculum designers were identified.FindingsThe design and delivery of an innovative curriculum, within typical constraints, can provide opportunities for students to develop resilience to failure as an integral part of their learning in order to think creatively and develop novel engineering solutions. The key issues identified were: the selection of appropriate teaching methods, creating an environment for exploratory learning, group and team assessments with competitive elements where practicable, and providing students with many different pedagogical approaches to produce a quality learning experience.OriginalityThis case study demonstrates how to design and implement an innovative curriculum that can produce positive benefits of learning from failure. This model can be applied to other disciplines such as building surveying and construction management. This approach underpins the development of skills necessary in the educational experience to develop as a professional building pathologist
Probabilistic Hybrid Action Models for Predicting Concurrent Percept-driven Robot Behavior
This article develops Probabilistic Hybrid Action Models (PHAMs), a realistic
causal model for predicting the behavior generated by modern percept-driven
robot plans. PHAMs represent aspects of robot behavior that cannot be
represented by most action models used in AI planning: the temporal structure
of continuous control processes, their non-deterministic effects, several modes
of their interferences, and the achievement of triggering conditions in
closed-loop robot plans.
The main contributions of this article are: (1) PHAMs, a model of concurrent
percept-driven behavior, its formalization, and proofs that the model generates
probably, qualitatively accurate predictions; and (2) a resource-efficient
inference method for PHAMs based on sampling projections from probabilistic
action models and state descriptions. We show how PHAMs can be applied to
planning the course of action of an autonomous robot office courier based on
analytical and experimental results
Fifty years of Hoare's Logic
We present a history of Hoare's logic.Comment: 79 pages. To appear in Formal Aspects of Computin
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