Rule-based Methodologies for the Specification and Analysis of Complex Computing Systems

Desde los orígenes del hardware y el software hasta la época actual, la complejidad de los sistemas de cálculo ha supuesto un problema al cual informáticos, ingenieros y programadores han tenido que enfrentarse. Como resultado de este esfuerzo han surgido y madurado importantes áreas de investigación. En esta disertación abordamos algunas de las líneas de investigación actuales relacionada con el análisis y la verificación de sistemas de computación complejos utilizando métodos formales y lenguajes de dominio específico. En esta tesis nos centramos en los sistemas distribuidos, con un especial interés por los sistemas Web y los sistemas biológicos. La primera parte de la tesis está dedicada a aspectos de seguridad y técnicas relacionadas, concretamente la certificación del software. En primer lugar estudiamos sistemas de control de acceso a recursos y proponemos un lenguaje para especificar políticas de control de acceso que están fuertemente asociadas a bases de conocimiento y que proporcionan una descripción sensible a la semántica de los recursos o elementos a los que se accede. También hemos desarrollado un marco novedoso de trabajo para la Code-Carrying Theory, una metodología para la certificación del software cuyo objetivo es asegurar el envío seguro de código en un entorno distribuido. Nuestro marco de trabajo está basado en un sistema de transformación de teorías de reescritura mediante operaciones de plegado/desplegado. La segunda parte de esta tesis se concentra en el análisis y la verificación de sistemas Web y sistemas biológicos. Proponemos un lenguaje para el filtrado de información que permite la recuperación de informaciones en grandes almacenes de datos. Dicho lenguaje utiliza información semántica obtenida a partir de ontologías remotas para re nar el proceso de filtrado. También estudiamos métodos de validación para comprobar la consistencia de contenidos web con respecto a propiedades sintácticas y semánticas. Otra de nuestras contribuciones es la propuesta de un lenguaje que permite definir y comprobar automáticamente restricciones semánticas y sintácticas en el contenido estático de un sistema Web. Finalmente, también consideramos los sistemas biológicos y nos centramos en un formalismo basado en lógica de reescritura para el modelado y el análisis de aspectos cuantitativos de los procesos biológicos. Para evaluar la efectividad de todas las metodologías propuestas, hemos prestado especial atención al desarrollo de prototipos que se han implementado utilizando lenguajes basados en reglas.Baggi ., M. (2010). Rule-based Methodologies for the Specification and Analysis of Complex Computing Systems [Tesis doctoral no publicada]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/8964Palanci

A survey of program transformation with special reference to unfold/fold style program development

This paper consists of a survey of current, and past, work on *program transformation* for the purpose of optimization. We first discuss some of the general methodological frameworks for program modification, such as *analogy*, *explanation based learning*, *partial evaluation*, *proof theoretic optimization*, and the *unfold/fold* technique. These frameworks are not mutually exclusive, and the latter, unfold/fold, is certainly the most widely used technique, in various guises, for program transformation. Thus we shall often have occasion to: compare the relative merits of systems that employ the technique in some form, *and*; compare the unfold/fold systems with those that employ alternative techniques. We also include (and compare with unfold/fold) a brief survey of recent work concerning the use of *formal methods* for program transformation

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

A Term Rewriting Approach to Program Transformation by Templates

Tohoku University外山 芳人課

Stream Fusion, to Completeness

Stream processing is mainstream (again): Widely-used stream libraries are now available for virtually all modern OO and functional languages, from Java to C# to Scala to OCaml to Haskell. Yet expressivity and performance are still lacking. For instance, the popular, well-optimized Java 8 streams do not support the zip operator and are still an order of magnitude slower than hand-written loops. We present the first approach that represents the full generality of stream processing and eliminates overheads, via the use of staging. It is based on an unusually rich semantic model of stream interaction. We support any combination of zipping, nesting (or flat-mapping), sub-ranging, filtering, mapping-of finite or infinite streams. Our model captures idiosyncrasies that a programmer uses in optimizing stream pipelines, such as rate differences and the choice of a "for" vs. "while" loops. Our approach delivers hand-written-like code, but automatically. It explicitly avoids the reliance on black-box optimizers and sufficiently-smart compilers, offering highest, guaranteed and portable performance. Our approach relies on high-level concepts that are then readily mapped into an implementation. Accordingly, we have two distinct implementations: an OCaml stream library, staged via MetaOCaml, and a Scala library for the JVM, staged via LMS. In both cases, we derive libraries richer and simultaneously many tens of times faster than past work. We greatly exceed in performance the standard stream libraries available in Java, Scala and OCaml, including the well-optimized Java 8 streams

A general technique for automatically optimizing programs through the use of proof plans

The use of {\em proof plans} -- formal patterns of reasoning for theorem proving -- to control the (automatic) synthesis of efficient programs from standard definitional equations is described. A general framework for synthesizing efficient programs, using tools such as higher-order unification, has been developed and holds promise for encapsulating an otherwise diverse, and often ad hoc, range of transformation techniques. A prototype system has been implemented. We illustrate the methodology by a novel means of affecting {\em constraint-based} program optimization through the use of proof plans for mathematical induction. Proof plans are used to control the (automatic) synthesis of functional programs, specified in a standard equational form, {$\cal E$}, by using the proofs as programs principle. The goal is that the program extracted from a constructive proof of the specification is an optimization of that defined solely by {$\cal E$}. Thus the theorem proving process is a form of program optimization allowing for the construction of an efficient, {\em target}, program from the definition of an inefficient, {\em source}, program. The general technique for controlling the syntheses of efficient programs involves using {$\cal E$} to specify the target program and then introducing a new sub-goal into the proof of that specification. Different optimizations are achieved by placing different characterizing restrictions on the form of this new sub-goal and hence on the subsequent proof. Meta-variables and higher-order unification are used in a technique called {\em middle-out reasoning} to circumvent eureka steps concerning, amongst other things, the identification of recursive data-types, and unknown constraint functions. Such problems typically require user intervention

Scrap your boilerplate with object algebras

htmlabstractTraversing complex Abstract Syntax Trees (ASTs) typically requires large amounts of tedious boilerplate code. For many operations most of the code simply walks the structure, and only a small portion of the code implements the functional- ity that motivated the traversal in the first place. This paper presents a type-safe Java framework called Shy that removes much of this boilerplate code. In Shy Object Algebras are used to describe complex and extensible AST structures. Using Java annotations Shy generates generic boilerplate code for various types of traversals. For a concrete traversal, users of Shy can then inherit from the generated code and over- ride only the interesting cases. Consequently, the amount of code that users need to write is significantly smaller. Moreover, traversals using the Shy framework are also much more structure shy, becoming more adaptive to future changes or extensions to the AST structure. To prove the effectiveness of the approach, we applied Shy in the implementation of a domain-specific questionnaire language. Our results show that for a large number of traversals there was a significant reduction in the amount of user-defined code

Graphical type inference: A graph grammar definition

We present a graph grammar based type inference system for a totally graphic language inspired in the data flow view of lazy functional programs. NiMo (Nets in Motion) can be seen as a graphic equivalent to Haskell that acts as an on-line tracer and debugger. The user not only sees the results but also the way they are calculated according to an understandable model and can interrupt the execution at any point, change data, processes and/or process activation, undo steps, and also execute incomplete programs. Type inference is incremental; during the net edition (construction or modification) only type safe connections are allowed. The user visualises the type information evolution and, in case of type error, can identify where and why it happened. The NiMo type system, though similar, has significant differences with systems in functional languages due to the data flow ingredient. It needs to cope with processes with no entries and zero or more that one output and therefore the process type is a generalization of functional types. We present the notion of non-structural type unification, the elements for modelling graphic type inference, and the correspondence with the classical type inference approach. Construction and execution of NiMo programs are fully defined via an attributed graph grammar. In the previous version type information was incomplete and static type inference was partial in presence of polymorphism. Therefore type inconsistent nets could be executed. Here we present the type descriptor graphs and the graph grammar definition of the complete static type inference system. The grammar has been implemented and successfully tested using AGG as the graph transformation system.Postprint (published version

On Language Processors and Software Maintenance

This work investigates declarative transformation tools in the context of software maintenance. Besides maintenance of the language specification, evolution of a software language requires the adaptation of the software written in that language as well as the adaptation of the software that transforms software written in the evolving language. This co-evolution is studied to derive automatic adaptations of artefacts from adaptations of the language specification. Furthermore, AOP for Prolog is introduced to improve maintainability of language specifications and derived tools.Die Arbeit unterstützt deklarative Transformationswerkzeuge im Kontext der Softwarewartung. Neben der Wartung der Sprachbeschreibung erfordert die Evolution einer Sprache sowohl die Anpassung der Software, die in dieser Sprache geschrieben ist als auch die Anpassung der Software, die diese Software transformiert. Diese Koevolution wird untersucht, um automatische Anpassungen von Artefakten von Anpassungen der Sprachbeschreibungen abzuleiten. Weiterhin wird AOP für Prolog eingeführt, um die Wartbarkeit von Sprachbeschreibungen und den daraus abgeleiteten Werkzeugen zu erhöhen