We present a programming language for machine learning
based on the concepts of ‘induction’ and ‘abduction’ as encountered in
Peirce’s logic of science. We consider the desirable features such a language
must have, and we identify the ‘abductive decoupling’ of parameters
as a key general enabler of these features. Both an idealised abductive
calculus and its implementation as a PPX extension of OCaml are
presented, along with several simple examples