Zohar Manna – Communications of the ACM

Research and Advances Aug 1 1979

Proving termination with multiset orderings

A common tool for proving the termination of programs is the well-founded set, a set ordered in such a way as to admit no infinite descending sequences. The basic approach is to find a termination function that maps the values of the program variables into some well-founded set, such that the value of the termination function is repeatedly reduced throughout the computation. All too often, the termination functions required are difficult to find and are of a complexity out of proportion to the program under consideration. Multisets (bags) over a given well-founded set S are sets that admit multiple occurrences of elements taken from S. The given ordering on S induces an ordering on the finite multisets over S. This multiset ordering is shown to be well-founded. The multiset ordering enables the use of relatively simple and intuitive termination functions in otherwise difficult termination proofs. In particular, the multiset ordering is used to prove the termination of production systems, programs defined in terms of sets of rewriting rules.

Author Archives

Research and Advances Feb 1 1978

Is “sometime” sometimes better than “always”?: intermittent assertions in proving program correctness

This paper explores a technique for proving the correctness and termination of programs simultaneously. This approach, the intermittent-assertion method, involves documenting the program with assertions that must be true at some time when control passes through the corresponding point, but that need not be true every time. The method, introduced by Burstall, promises to provide a valuable complement to the more conventional methods. The intermittent-assertion method is presented with a number of examples of correctness and termination proofs. Some of these proofs are markedly simpler than their conventional counterparts. On the other hand, it is shown that a proof of correctness or termination by any of the conventional techniques can be rephrased directly as a proof using intermittent assertions. Finally, it is shown how the intermittent-assertion method can be applied to prove the validity of program transformations and the correctness of continuously operating programs.

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Research and Advances Nov 1 1977

The optimal approach to recursive programs

The classical fixedpoint approach toward recursive programs suggests choosing the “least defined fixedpoint” as the most appropriate solution to a recursive program. A new approach is described which introduces an “optimal fixedpoint,” which, in contrast to the least defined fixedpoint, embodies the maximal amount of valuable information embedded in the program. The practical implications of this approach are discussed and techniques for proving properties of optimal fixedpoints are given. The presentation is informal, with emphasis on examples.

Research and Advances Apr 1 1976

Logical analysis of programs

Most present systems for verification of computer programs are incomplete in that intermediate inductive assertions must be provided manually by the user, termination is not proven, and incorrect programs are not treated. As a unified solution to these problems, this paper suggests conducting a logical analysis of programs by using invariants which express what is actually occurring in the program. The first part of the paper is devoted to techniques for the automatic generation of invariants. The second part provides criteria for using the invariants to check simultaneously for correctness (including termination) or incorrectness. A third part examines the implications of the approach for the automatic diagnosis and correction of logical errors.

Research and Advances Aug 1 1973

Inductive methods for proving properties of programs

There are two main purposes in this paper: first, clarification and extension of known results about computation of recursive programs, with emphasis on the difference between the theoretical and practical approaches; second, presentation and examination of various known methods for proving properties of recursive programs. Discussed in detail are two powerful inductive methods, computational induction and structural induction, including examples of their applications.

Research and Advances Jul 1 1972

Fixpoint approach to the theory of computation

Following the fixpoint theory of Scott, the semantics of computer programs are defined in terms of the least fixpoints of recursive programs. This allows not only the justification of all existing verification techniques, but also their extension to the handling, in a uniform manner of various properties of computer programs, including correctness, termination, and equivalence.

Research and Advances Mar 1 1971

Toward automatic program synthesis

An elementary outline of the theorem-proving approach to automatic program synthesis is given, without dwelling on technical details. The method is illustrated by the automatic construction of both recursive and iterative programs operating on natural numbers, lists, and trees. In order to construct a program satisfying certain specifications, a theorem induced by those specifications is proved, and the desired program is extracted from the proof. The same technique is applied to transform recursively defined functions into iterative programs, frequently with a major gain in efficiency. It is emphasized that in order to construct a program with loops or with recursion, the principle of mathematical induction must be applied. The relation between the version of the induction rule used and the form of the program constructed is explored in some detail.

Shape the Future of Computing

ACM encourages its members to take a direct hand in shaping the future of the association. There are more ways than ever to get involved.

Get Involved