The problem of mechanically formalizing and proving metatheoretic properties of programming language calculi, type systems, operational semantics, and related formal systems has received considerable attention recently. However, the dual problem of searching for errors in such formalizations has attracted comparatively little attention. In this article, we present αCheck, a bounded model checker for metatheoretic properties of formal systems specified using nominal logic. In contrast to the current state of the art for metatheory verification, our approach is fully automatic, does not require expertise in theorem proving on the part of the user, and produces counterexamples in the case that a flaw is detected. We present two implementations of this technique, one based on negation-as-failure and one based on negation elimination, along with experimental results showing that these techniques are fast enough to be used interactively to debug systems as they are developed.
alphaCheck : A mechanized metatheory model checker / J. Cheney, A. Momigliano. - In: THEORY AND PRACTICE OF LOGIC PROGRAMMING. - ISSN 1475-3081. - 17:3(2017 May 22), pp. 311-352.
alphaCheck : A mechanized metatheory model checker
A. Momigliano
Secondo
2017
Abstract
The problem of mechanically formalizing and proving metatheoretic properties of programming language calculi, type systems, operational semantics, and related formal systems has received considerable attention recently. However, the dual problem of searching for errors in such formalizations has attracted comparatively little attention. In this article, we present αCheck, a bounded model checker for metatheoretic properties of formal systems specified using nominal logic. In contrast to the current state of the art for metatheory verification, our approach is fully automatic, does not require expertise in theorem proving on the part of the user, and produces counterexamples in the case that a flaw is detected. We present two implementations of this technique, one based on negation-as-failure and one based on negation elimination, along with experimental results showing that these techniques are fast enough to be used interactively to debug systems as they are developed.File | Dimensione | Formato | |
---|---|---|---|
tplp.pdf
accesso aperto
Tipologia:
Pre-print (manoscritto inviato all'editore)
Dimensione
435.48 kB
Formato
Adobe PDF
|
435.48 kB | Adobe PDF | Visualizza/Apri |
check-a-mechanized-metatheory-model-checker-.pdf
accesso riservato
Tipologia:
Publisher's version/PDF
Dimensione
985.07 kB
Formato
Adobe PDF
|
985.07 kB | Adobe PDF | Visualizza/Apri Richiedi una copia |
Pubblicazioni consigliate
I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.