Speeding up the constraint-based method in difference logic

"The final publication is available at http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-3-319-40970-2_18"Over the years the constraint-based method has been successfully applied to a wide range of problems in program analysis, from invariant generation to termination and non-termination proving. Quite often the semantics of the program under study as well as the properties to be generated belong to difference logic, i.e., the fragment of linear arithmetic where atoms are inequalities of the form u v = k. However, so far constraint-based techniques have not exploited this fact: in general, Farkas’ Lemma is used to produce the constraints over template unknowns, which leads to non-linear SMT problems. Based on classical results of graph theory, in this paper we propose new encodings for generating these constraints when program semantics and templates belong to difference logic. Thanks to this approach, instead of a heavyweight non-linear arithmetic solver, a much cheaper SMT solver for difference logic or linear integer arithmetic can be employed for solving the resulting constraints. We present encouraging experimental results that show the high impact of the proposed techniques on the performance of the VeryMax verification systemPeer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Refinement Type Inference via Horn Constraint Optimization

We propose a novel method for inferring refinement types of higher-order functional programs. The main advantage of the proposed method is that it can infer maximally preferred (i.e., Pareto optimal) refinement types with respect to a user-specified preference order. The flexible optimization of refinement types enabled by the proposed method paves the way for interesting applications, such as inferring most-general characterization of inputs for which a given program satisfies (or violates) a given safety (or termination) property. Our method reduces such a type optimization problem to a Horn constraint optimization problem by using a new refinement type system that can flexibly reason about non-determinism in programs. Our method then solves the constraint optimization problem by repeatedly improving a current solution until convergence via template-based invariant generation. We have implemented a prototype inference system based on our method, and obtained promising results in preliminary experiments.Comment: 19 page

On Optimization Modulo Theories, MaxSMT and Sorting Networks

Optimization Modulo Theories (OMT) is an extension of SMT which allows for finding models that optimize given objectives. (Partial weighted) MaxSMT --or equivalently OMT with Pseudo-Boolean objective functions, OMT+PB-- is a very-relevant strict subcase of OMT. We classify existing approaches for MaxSMT or OMT+PB in two groups: MaxSAT-based approaches exploit the efficiency of state-of-the-art MAXSAT solvers, but they are specific-purpose and not always applicable; OMT-based approaches are general-purpose, but they suffer from intrinsic inefficiencies on MaxSMT/OMT+PB problems. We identify a major source of such inefficiencies, and we address it by enhancing OMT by means of bidirectional sorting networks. We implemented this idea on top of the OptiMathSAT OMT solver. We run an extensive empirical evaluation on a variety of problems, comparing MaxSAT-based and OMT-based techniques, with and without sorting networks, implemented on top of OptiMathSAT and {\nu}Z. The results support the effectiveness of this idea, and provide interesting insights about the different approaches.Comment: 17 pages, submitted at Tacas 1

Change in hippocampal theta oscillation associated with multiple lever presses in a bimanual two-lever choice task for robot control in rats.

Hippocampal theta oscillations have been implicated in working memory and attentional process, which might be useful for the brain-machine interface (BMI). To further elucidate the properties of the hippocampal theta oscillations that can be used in BMI, we investigated hippocampal theta oscillations during a two-lever choice task. During the task body-restrained rats were trained with a food reward to move an e-puck robot towards them by pressing the correct lever, ipsilateral to the robot several times, using the ipsilateral forelimb. The robot carried food and moved along a semicircle track set in front of the rat. We demonstrated that the power of hippocampal theta oscillations gradually increased during a 6-s preparatory period before the start of multiple lever pressing, irrespective of whether the correct lever choice or forelimb side were used. In addition, there was a significant difference in the theta power after the first choice, between correct and incorrect trials. During the correct trials the theta power was highest during the first lever-releasing period, whereas in the incorrect trials it occurred during the second correct lever-pressing period. We also analyzed the hippocampal theta oscillations at the termination of multiple lever pressing during the correct trials. Irrespective of whether the correct forelimb side was used, the power of hippocampal theta oscillations gradually decreased with the termination of multiple lever pressing. The frequency of theta oscillation also demonstrated an increase and decrease, before and after multiple lever pressing, respectively. There was a transient increase in frequency after the first lever press during the incorrect trials, while no such increase was observed during the correct trials. These results suggested that hippocampal theta oscillations reflect some aspects of preparatory and cognitive neural activities during the robot controlling task, which could be used for BMI

Dumps for dead livestock and the conservation of wintering Red Kites (Milvus milvus)

Volume: 33Start Page: 338End Page: 34

Populism and nationalism revisited: A comparative study of the Spanish and Portuguese New Left

Current definitions of populism are insufficiently determinate. They fail to distinguish between populism and nationalism. We propose to remedy this problem by advancing a new definition of populism as the logic of democratic resentment. We apply this new definition to a comparison between Spain’s Podemos and Portugal’s Left Bloc (BE), which we classify as social carriers of populism. We make two contributions to the literature. First, our findings dispute existing characterisations of the Portuguese case, which fail to distinguish between populist and nationalist claim-making. Second, our analysis undermines depictions of Podemos as the consummate populist party in Iberia: in 2015, the little studied BE was a stronger populist carrier than Podemos. The analytical framework underpinning this conclusion offers a more refined approach to populism than the alternatives and sets a higher standard for empirical replication.Research Project “POPULUS – Rethinking Populism” (PDTC/SOC-SOC/28524/2017). Funded by: Foundation for Science and Technology, Portuguese Ministry for Science, Technology and Higher Education

Heteropolynuclear gold complexes with metallophilic interactions: Modulation of the luminescent properties

Metalloligands of stoichiometry [AuCl(P−N)] have been obtained by the reaction of the heterofunctional phosphines P−N = PPh2py, PPh2CH2CH2py, or PPhpy2 with [AuCl(tht)] (tht = tetrahydrothiophene). Reactions of these metalloligands with several metal compounds have afforded heteropolynuclear species which exhibit luminescent properties. The stoichiometries depend on the molar ratio and the heterometal. Thus, the reaction with [Cu(NCMe)4]+ in a molar ratio 2:1 gives the trinuclear compounds [Au2CuCl2(P−N)2]+, in which the structure and Au···Cu interactions depend on the phosphine ligand. With rhodium and iridium derivatives the reactivity is different leading to complexes of the type [AuMCl2(cod)(P−N)] for P−N = PPh2py, PPhpy2, and [Au2M2Cl(cod)2(P−N)2]Cl with PPh2CH2CH2py. Using [MCl2(NCPh)2] (M = Pd, Pt) in a 2:1 molar ratio yields [Au2MCl4(P−N)2] and in a 1:1 molar ratio [AuPdCl3(μ3-PPhpy2)]. Several compounds have been characterized by X-ray diffraction showing in many cases short Au···M distances. The luminescence of these derivatives has been studied. The metalloligands display bands assigned to intraligand (IL) transitions. For the bimetallic (Au/M) systems the luminescence depends on the heterometal present and on the metallophilic interactions. The most important excitations in the relevant energy range were assigned essentially a MMLCT character (from Rh/Ir and Au to ligands) based on density functional theory (DFT) calculations in selected complexes. The luminescence behavior in Rh/Ir [AuMCl2(cod)(PPh2py)] complexes was interpreted on the basis of the different nature of the half occupied orbitals in the triplet state.We thank the Dirección General de Investigación Científica y Técnica (CTQ2007-67273-C02-01) for financial support. M.J.C. and P.D.V. acknowledge FCT, POCI, and FEDER (project PTDC/QUI/58925/2004) for financial support.Peer Reviewe