Transforming floundering into success

We show how logic programs with "delays" can be transformed to programs without delays in a way which preserves information concerning floundering (also known as deadlock). This allows a declarative (model-theoretic), bottom-up or goal independent approach to be used for analysis and debugging of properties related to floundering. We rely on some previously introduced restrictions on delay primitives and a key observation which allows properties such as groundness to be analysed by approximating the (ground) success set. This paper is to appear in Theory and Practice of Logic Programming (TPLP). Keywords: Floundering, delays, coroutining, program analysis, abstract interpretation, program transformation, declarative debuggingComment: Number of pages: 24 Number of figures: 9 Number of tables: non

Transforming acyclic programs

An unfold/fold transformation system is a source-to-source rewriting methodology devised to improve the efficiency of a program. Any such transformation should preserve the main properties of the initial program: among them, termination. In the field of logic programming, the class of acyclic programs plays an important role in this respect, since it is closely related to the one of terminating programs. The two classes coincide when negation is not allowed in the bodies of the clauses. We prove that the Unfold/Fold transformation system defined by Tamaki and Sato preserves the acyclicity of the initial program. From this result, it follows that when the transformation is applied to an acyclic program, then the finite failure set for definite programs is preserved; in the case of normal programs, all major declarative and operational semantics are preserved as well. These results cannot be extended to the class of left-terminating programs without modifying the definition of the transformation

Efficient negation using abstract interpretation

While negation has been a very active área of research in logic programming, comparatively few papers have been devoted to implementation issues. Furthermore, the negation-related capabilities of current Prolog systems are limited. We recently presented a novel method for incorporating negation in a Prolog compiler which takes a number of existing methods (some modified and improved by us) and uses them in a combined fashion. The method makes use of information provided by a global analysis of the source code. Our previous work focused on the systematic description of the techniques and the reasoning about correctness and completeness of the method, but provided no experimental evidence to evalúate the proposal. In this paper, we report on an implementation, using the Ciao Prolog system preprocessor, and provide experimental data which indicates that the method is not only feasible but also quite promising from the efficiency point of view. In addition, the tests have provided new insight as to how to improve the proposal further. Abstract interpretation techniques are shown to offer important improvements in this application

Managing educational leadership and online teaching in a diverse technological society

This paper consisted of an overview of leadership and its definition and\ud a discussion of who and what surrounds the leader in a diverse society of everchanging technology as he/she make decisions that impact the students, teachers\ud and staff of school districts and other educational institutions. The discussion\ud supported the notion espoused by Thomas Freeman that the world is indeed truly\ud flat and getting smaller through instant communication. Leaders interested in\ud applying the best practices in communicating are now able to utilize the internet in\ud ways that can save time, energy and money. Selected technology and best\ud practices from various disciplines were outlined as examples of how leaders can\ud bring about positive change and focus on cutting edge techniques for classroom\ud and business applications. Methods were discussed in the use of an analysis of a\ud business or corporation, to the use of bringing experts to students, university\ud professors, managers and chief executive officers via the internet and other\ud electronic devices. The author included several examples of best practices for use\ud with the adult or P-12 learners in the classroom, or managers of a Fortune 500\ud organization. Examples of how to conduct live, online international connections\ud were presented in detail. Key concepts such as defining leadership, who controls\ud leaders, and the managing leadership in a diverse society as contradiction were\ud discussed

Advocating for the Adoption of a Comprehensive Work-Based Learning System

Work-Based Learning (WBL) is an instructional strategy that has the potential to help students make powerful connections to the world of work leading to the development of viable post-secondary plans and successful careers. This study advocates for the implementation of a structured continuum of WBL experiences for all students at a large suburban high school. The benefits of WBL for students, the school, the community, and employers are examined. The impact of WBL is analyzed through the lenses of educational, economic, social, political, and ethical perspectives. The negative aspects of the prevailing culture of college for all is discussed. The importance of building and sustaining strong relationships between educators and the business community is highlighted, as well as the importance of addressing the effects of historic racism or bias in both education and employment. The author argues that with input from a range of stakeholders, high schools can develop, implement, and measure the success of comprehensive WBL systems leading to higher levels of post-secondary success for ALL graduates

A Divided Front: Military Dissent During the Vietnam War

Emerging from a triumphant victory in World War Two, American patriotism surged in the 1950s. Positive images in theater and literature of America’s potential to bring peace and prosperity to a grateful Asia fueled the notion that the United States could be the “good Samaritan of the entire world.”[1] This idea prevailed through the mid-1960s as three-quarters of Americans indicated they trusted their government. That positive feeling would not last, and America’s belief in its own exceptionalism would begin to shatter with “the major military escalation in Vietnam and the shocking revelations it brought.”[2] The turmoil in social and economic spheres during the 1960s combined with contradictions about America’s role in Vietnam and realization of the government’s deception regarding the nature and progress of the war itself fueled the largest movement of servicemen and veteran dissent in this nation’s history. [1] Christian G. Appy, American Reckoning (New York: The Penguin Group, 2015) 13. [2] Appy, American Reckoning, xv

Efficient implementation of general negation using abstract interpretation

While negation has been a very active área of research in logic programming, comparatively few papers have been devoted to implementation issues. Furthermore, the negation-related capabilities of current Prolog systems are limited. We recently presented a novel method for incorporating negation in a Prolog compiler which takes a number of existing methods (some modified and improved) and uses them in a combined fashion. The method makes use of information provided by a global analysis of the source code. Our previous work focused on the systematic description of the techniques and the reasoning about correctness and completeness of the method, but provided no experimental evidence to evalúate the proposal. In this paper, after proposing some extensions to the method, we provide experimental data which indicates that the method is not only feasible but also quite promising from the efficiency point of view. In addition, the tests have provided new insight as to how to improve the proposal further. Abstract interpretation techniques (in particular those included in the Ciao Prolog system preprocessor) have had a significant role in the success of the technique

A Movement to Transform Foster Parenting

This report explores ways for public agencies to ensure that children receive the care they need by enlisting more volunteers to step forward as foster parents and by encouraging the extraordinary individuals who have already answered the call to continue their commitment to care. The report identifies three major themes for engaging and empowering foster parents: ensuring quality caregiving for children; forging strong relationships; and, finding and keeping more amazing caregivers