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Volume 18, Issue 4
2022
1. An Analytic Propositional Proof System on Graphs
In this paper we present a proof system that operates on graphs instead of formulas. Starting from the well-known relationship between formulas and cographs, we drop the cograph-conditions and look at arbitrary undirected) graphs. This means that we lose the tree structure of the formulas corresponding to the cographs, and we can no longer use standard proof theoretical methods that depend on that tree structure. In order to overcome this difficulty, we use a modular decomposition of graphs and some techniques from deep inference where inference rules do not rely on the main connective of a formula. For our proof system we show the admissibility of cut and a generalisation of the splitting property. Finally, we show that our system is a conservative extension of multiplicative linear logic with mix, and we argue that our graphs form a notion of generalised connective.
2. General Decidability Results for Asynchronous Shared-Memory Programs: Higher-Order and Beyond
The model of asynchronous programming arises in many contexts, from low-level systems software to high-level web programming. We take a language-theoretic perspective and show general decidability and undecidability results for asynchronous programs that capture all known results as well as show decidability of new and important classes. As a main consequence, we show decidability of safety, termination and boundedness verification for higher-order asynchronous programs -- such as OCaml programs using Lwt -- and undecidability of liveness verification already for order-2 asynchronous programs. We show that under mild assumptions, surprisingly, safety and termination verification of asynchronous programs with handlers from a language class are decidable iff emptiness is decidable for the underlying language class. Moreover, we show that configuration reachability and liveness (fair termination) verification are equivalent, and decidability of these problems implies decidability of the well-known "equal-letters" problem on languages. Our results close the decidability frontier for asynchronous programs.
3. Uniform Reliability of Self-Join-Free Conjunctive Queries
The reliability of a Boolean Conjunctive Query (CQ) over a tuple-independent probabilistic database is the probability that the CQ is satisfied when the tuples of the database are sampled one by one, independently, with their associated probability. For queries without self-joins (repeated relation symbols), the data complexity of this problem is fully characterized by a known dichotomy: reliability can be computed in polynomial time for hierarchical queries, and is #P-hard for non-hierarchical queries. Inspired by this dichotomy, we investigate a fundamental counting problem for CQs without self-joins: how many sets of facts from the input database satisfy the query? This is equivalent to the uniform case of the query reliability problem, where the probability of every tuple is required to be 1/2. Of course, for hierarchical queries, uniform reliability is solvable in polynomial time, like the reliability problem. We show that being hierarchical is also necessary for this tractability (under conventional complexity assumptions). In fact, we establish a generalization of the dichotomy that covers every restricted case of reliability in which the probabilities of tuples are determined by their relation.
4. Building Specifications in the Event-B Institution
This paper describes a formal semantics for the Event-B specification language using the theory of institutions. We define an institution for Event-B, EVT, and prove that it meets the validity requirements for satisfaction preservation and model amalgamation. We also present a series of functions that show how the constructs of the Event-B specification language can be mapped into our institution. Our semantics sheds new light on the structure of the Event-B language, allowing us to clearly delineate three constituent sub-languages: the superstructure, infrastructure and mathematical languages. One of the principal goals of our semantics is to provide access to the generic modularisation constructs available in institutions, including specification-building operators for parameterisation and refinement. We demonstrate how these features subsume and enhance the corresponding features already present in Event-B through a detailed study of their use in a worked example. We have implemented our approach via a parser and translator for Event-B specifications, EBtoEVT, which also provides a gateway to the Hets toolkit for heterogeneous specification.
5. Inductive and Coinductive Topological Generation with Church's thesis and the Axiom of Choice
In this work we consider an extension MFcind of the Minimalist Foundation MF for predicative constructive mathematics with the addition of inductive and coinductive definitions sufficient to generate Sambin's Positive topologies, namely Martin-Löf-Sambin formal topologies equipped with a Positivity relation (used to describe pointfree formal closed subsets). In particular the intensional level of MFcind, called mTTcind, is defined by extending with coinductive definitions another theory mTTind extending the intensional level mTT of MF with the sole addition of inductive definitions. In previous work we have shown that mTTind is consistent with Formal Church's Thesis CT and the Axiom of Choice AC via an interpretation in Aczel's CZF+REA. Our aim is to show the expectation that the addition of coinductive definitions to mTTind does not increase its consistency strength by reducing the consistency of mTTcind+CT+AC to the consistency of CZF+REA through various interpretations. We actually reach our goal in two ways. One way consists in first interpreting mTTcind+CT+AC in the theory extending CZF with the Union Regular Extension Axiom, REA_U, a strengthening of REA, and the Axiom of Relativized Dependent Choice, RDC. The theory CZF+REA_U+RDC is then interpreted in MLS*, a version of Martin-Löf's type theory with Palmgren's superuniverse S. A last step consists in interpreting MLS* back into CZF+REA. The alternative way consists in first interpreting […]
6. Quasilinear-time Computation of Generic Modal Witnesses for Behavioural Inequivalence
We provide a generic algorithm for constructing formulae that distinguish behaviourally inequivalent states in systems of various transition types such as nondeterministic, probabilistic or weighted; genericity over the transition type is achieved by working with coalgebras for a set functor in the paradigm of universal coalgebra. For every behavioural equivalence class in a given system, we construct a formula which holds precisely at the states in that class. The algorithm instantiates to deterministic finite automata, transition systems, labelled Markov chains, and systems of many other types. The ambient logic is a modal logic featuring modalities that are generically extracted from the functor; these modalities can be systematically translated into custom sets of modalities in a postprocessing step. The new algorithm builds on an existing coalgebraic partition refinement algorithm. It runs in time O((m+n) log n) on systems with n states and m transitions, and the same asymptotic bound applies to the dag size of the formulae it constructs. This improves the bounds on run time and formula size compared to previous algorithms even for previously known specific instances, viz. transition systems and Markov chains; in particular, the best previous bound for transition systems was O(mn).
7. Geometric Model Checking of Continuous Space
Topological Spatial Model Checking is a recent paradigm where model checking techniques are developed for the topological interpretation of Modal Logic. The Spatial Logic of Closure Spaces, SLCS, extends Modal Logic with reachability connectives that, in turn, can be used for expressing interesting spatial properties, such as "being near to" or "being surrounded by". SLCS constitutes the kernel of a solid logical framework for reasoning about discrete space, such as graphs and digital images, interpreted as quasi discrete closure spaces. Following a recently developed geometric semantics of Modal Logic, we propose an interpretation of SLCS in continuous space, admitting a geometric spatial model checking procedure, by resorting to models based on polyhedra. Such representations of space are increasingly relevant in many domains of application, due to recent developments of 3D scanning and visualisation techniques that exploit mesh processing. We introduce PolyLogicA, a geometric spatial model checker for SLCS formulas on polyhedra and demonstrate feasibility of our approach on two 3D polyhedral models of realistic size. Finally, we introduce a geometric definition of bisimilarity, proving that it characterises logical equivalence.
8. Convexity via Weak Distributive Laws
We study the canonical weak distributive law $\delta$ of the powerset monad over the semimodule monad for a certain class of semirings containing, in particular, positive semifields. For this subclass we characterise $\delta$ as a convex closure in the free semimodule of a set. Using the abstract theory of weak distributive laws, we compose the powerset and the semimodule monads via $\delta$, obtaining the monad of convex subsets of the free semimodule.
9. Algebraic coherent confluence and higher globular Kleene algebras
We extend the formalisation of confluence results in Kleene algebras to a formalisation of coherent confluence proofs. For this, we introduce the structure of higher globular Kleene algebra, a higher-dimensional generalisation of modal and concurrent Kleene algebra. We calculate a coherent Church-Rosser theorem and a coherent Newman's lemma in higher Kleene algebras by equational reasoning. We instantiate these results in the context of higher rewriting systems modelled by polygraphs.
10. Coalgebraic Geometric Logic: Basic Theory
Using the theory of coalgebra, we introduce a uniform framework for adding modalities to the language of propositional geometric logic. Models for this logic are based on coalgebras for an endofunctor on some full subcategory of the category of topological spaces and continuous functions. We investigate derivation systems, soundness and completeness for such geometric modal logics, and we specify a method of lifting an endofunctor on Set, accompanied by a collection of predicate liftings, to an endofunctor on the category of topological spaces, again accompanied by a collection of (open) predicate liftings. Furthermore, we compare the notions of modal equivalence, behavioural equivalence and bisimulation on the resulting class of models, and we provide a final object for the corresponding category.
11. Linear equations for unordered data vectors in $[D]^k\to{}Z^d$
Following a recently considered generalisation of linear equations to unordered-data vectors and to ordered-data vectors, we perform a further generalisation to data vectors that are functions from k-element subsets of the unordered-data set to vectors of integer numbers. These generalised equations naturally appear in the analysis of vector addition systems (or Petri nets) extended so that each token carries a set of unordered data. We show that nonnegative-integer solvability of linear equations is in nondeterministic exponential time while integer solvability is in polynomial time.
12. A theory of Automated Market Makers in DeFi
Automated market makers (AMMs) are one of the most prominent decentralized finance (DeFi) applications. AMMs allow users to trade different types of crypto-tokens, without the need to find a counter-party. There are several implementations and models for AMMs, featuring a variety of sophisticated economic mechanisms. We present a theory of AMMs. The core of our theory is an abstract operational model of the interactions between users and AMMs, which can be concretised by instantiating the economic mechanisms. We exploit our theory to formally prove a set of fundamental properties of AMMs, characterizing both structural and economic aspects. We do this by abstracting from the actual economic mechanisms used in implementations, and identifying sufficient conditions which ensure the relevant properties. Notably, we devise a general solution to the arbitrage problem, the main game-theoretic foundation behind the economic mechanisms of AMMs.
13. Converse extensionality and apartness
In this paper we try to find a computational interpretation for a strong form of extensionality, which we call "converse extensionality". Converse extensionality principles, which arise as the Dialectica interpretation of the axiom of extensionality, were first studied by Howard. In order to give a computational interpretation to these principles, we reconsider Brouwer's apartness relation, a strong constructive form of inequality. Formally, we provide a categorical construction to endow every typed combinatory algebra with an apartness relation. We then exploit that functions reflect apartness, in addition to preserving equality, to prove that the resulting categories of assemblies model a converse extensionality principle.