1,225 research outputs found
Compositional reasoning for shared-variable concurrent programs
Scalable and automatic formal verification for concurrent systems is always
demanding. In this paper, we propose a verification framework to support
automated compositional reasoning for concurrent programs with shared
variables. Our framework models concurrent programs as succinct automata and
supports the verification of multiple important properties. Safety verification
and simulations of succinct automata are parallel compositional, and safety
properties of succinct automata are preserved under refinements. We generate
succinct automata from infinite state concurrent programs in an automated
manner. Furthermore, we propose the first automated approach to checking
rely-guarantee based simulations between infinite state concurrent programs. We
have prototyped our algorithms and applied our tool to the verification of
multiple refinements
Component-wise incremental LTL model checking
Efficient symbolic and explicit-state model checking
approaches have been developed for the verification of linear
time temporal
logic (LTL) properties. Several attempts have been made to
combine the advantages of the various algorithms. Model
checking LTL
properties usually poses two challenges: one must compute the
synchronous product of the state space and the automaton
model of the
desired property, then look for counterexamples that is
reduced to finding strongly connected components (SCCs) in
the state space
of the product. In case of concurrent systems, where the
phenomenon of state space explosion often prevents the
successful
verification, the so-called saturation algorithm has proved
its efficiency in state space exploration. This paper
proposes a new
approach that leverages the saturation algorithm both as an
iteration strategy constructing the product directly, as well
as in a
new fixed-point computation algorithm to find strongly
connected components on-the-fly by incrementally processing
the components
of the model. Complementing the search for SCCs, explicit
techniques and component-wise abstractions are used to prove
the absence
of counterexamples. The resulting on-the-fly, incremental LTL
model checking algorithm proved to scale well with the size
of
models, as the evaluation on models of the Model Checking
Contest suggests
Star Routing: Between Vehicle Routing and Vertex Cover
We consider an optimization problem posed by an actual newspaper company,
which consists of computing a minimum length route for a delivery truck, such
that the driver only stops at street crossings, each time delivering copies to
all customers adjacent to the crossing. This can be modeled as an abstract
problem that takes an unweighted simple graph and a subset of
edges and asks for a shortest cycle, not necessarily simple, such that
every edge of has an endpoint in the cycle.
We show that the decision version of the problem is strongly NP-complete,
even if is a grid graph. Regarding approximate solutions, we show that the
general case of the problem is APX-hard, and thus no PTAS is possible unless P
NP. Despite the hardness of approximation, we show that given any
-approximation algorithm for metric TSP, we can build a
-approximation algorithm for our optimization problem, yielding a
concrete -approximation algorithm.
The grid case is of particular importance, because it models a city map or
some part of it. A usual scenario is having some neighborhood full of
customers, which translates as an instance of the abstract problem where almost
every edge of is in . We model this property as , and
for these instances we give a -approximation algorithm,
for any , provided that the grid is sufficiently big.Comment: Accepted to the 12th Annual International Conference on Combinatorial
Optimization and Applications (COCOA'18
Resolution in Solving Graph Problems
International audienceResolution is a proof-search method for proving unsatisfia-bility problems. Various refinements have been proposed to improve the efficiency of this method. However, when we try to prove some graph properties, it seems that none of the refinements have an efficiency comparable with traditional graph traversal algorithms. In this paper we propose a way of encoding some graph problems as resolution. We define a selection function and a new subsumption rule to avoid redundancies while solving such problems
Towards formal modelling and verification of pervasive computing systems
Smart systems equipped with emerging pervasive computing technologies enable people with limitations to live in their homes independently. However, lack of guarantees for correctness prevent such system to be widely used. Analysing the system with regard to correctness requirements is a challenging task due to the complexity of the system and its various unpredictable faults. In this work, we propose to use formal methods to analyse pervasive computing (PvC) systems. Firstly, a formal modelling framework is proposed to cover the main characteristics of such systems (e.g., context-awareness, concurrent communications, layered architectures). Secondly, we identify the safety requirements (e.g., free of deadlocks and conflicts) and specify them as safety and liveness properties. Furthermore, based on the modelling framework, we propose an approach of verifying reasoning rules which are used in the middleware for perceiving the environment and making adaptation decisions. Finally, we demonstrate our ideas using a case study of a smart healthcare system. Experimental results show the usefulness of our approach in exploring system behaviours and revealing system design flaws such as information inconsistency and conflicting reminder services.No Full Tex
Non-fullerene acceptor photostability and its impact on organic solar cell lifetime
The development of non-fullerene acceptors (NFAs) has facilitated the realization of efficient organic solar cells (OSCs) with minimal burn-in losses and excellent long-term stability. However, the role of NFA molecular structures on device stability remains unclear, limiting commercialization of NFA-based OSCs. Herein, the photostability of 10 OSC devices, fabricated with various NFAs (O-IDTBR, EH-IDTBR, ITIC, and ITIC-M) blended with donor polymers (PTB7-Th, PffBT4T-2OD, and PBDB-T), is investigated. O-IDTBR and EH-IDTBR form highly stable devices with all three polymers, whereas ITIC and ITIC-M devices suffer from burn-in losses and long-term degradation. Conformational instability is found to be responsible for the poor photostability of ITIC and ITIC-M, resulting in poor device stability. Twisting and potential breakage of the chemical bond that links the end group to the main backbone of ITIC and ITIC-M molecules causes undesirable conformational changes. Potential strategies to overcome such detrimental photo-induced conformational changes in NFAs are proposed
Are mice good models for human neuromuscular disease? Comparing muscle excursions in walking between mice and humans
The mouse is one of the most widely used animal models to study neuromuscular diseases and test new therapeutic strategies. However, findings from successful pre-clinical studies using mouse models frequently fail to translate to humans due to various factors. Differences in muscle function between the two species could be crucial but often have been overlooked. The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare muscle excursions in walking between mice and humans
Beyond the Gene
This paper is a response to the increasing difficulty biologists find in agreeing upon a definition of the gene, and indeed, the increasing disarray in which that concept finds itself. After briefly reviewing these problems, we propose an alternative to both the concept and the word gene—an alternative that, like the gene, is intended to capture the essence of inheritance, but which is both richer and more expressive. It is also clearer in its separation of what the organism statically is (what it tangibly inherits) and what it dynamically does (its functionality and behavior). Our proposal of a genetic functor, or genitor, is a sweeping extension of the classical genotype/phenotype paradigm, yet it appears to be faithful to the findings of contemporary biology, encompassing many of the recently emerging—and surprisingly complex—links between structure and functionality
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