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Lecturer: Dr L.C. Paulson
(lcp@cl.cam.ac.uk)
No. of lectures: 12
This course is a prerequisite for Specification and
Verification I (Part II).
Aims
This course will teach logic, especially the predicate calculus. It will
present the basic principles and definitions, then describe a variety of
different formalisms and algorithms that can be used to solve problems in
logic. Putting logic into the context of Computer Science, the course will
show how the programming language Prolog arises from the automatic proof
method known as resolution. It will introduce topics that are important in
mechanical verification, such as ordered binary decision diagrams (OBDDs) and
modal logic.
Lectures
- Introduction to logic.
Schematic statements. Interpretations and validity. Logical
consequence. Inference.
- Propositional logic.
Basic syntax and semantics. Equivalences. Normal forms.
Tautology checking using CNF.
- The sequent calculus.
A simple (Hilbert-style) proof system. Natural deduction systems.
Sequent calculus rules. Sample proofs.
- Ordered binary decision diagrams.
General concepts. Fast canonical form algorithm. Optimisations.
Applications.
- First order logic.
Basic syntax. Quantifiers. Semantics (truth definition).
- Formal reasoning in FOL.
Free versus bound variables. Substitution. Equivalences for
quantifiers. Sequent calculus rules. Examples.
- Clausal proof methods.
Clause form. The Davis-Putnam procedure. The resolution rule.
Examples. Refinements.
- Skolem functions and Herbrand's theorem.
Prenex normal form. Skolemisation. Herbrand models and their
properties.
- Unification.
Composition of substitutions. Most general unifiers. A
unification algorithm. Applications and variations.
- Prolog.
Binary resolution. Factorisation. Example of Prolog
execution. Proof by model elimination.
- Modal logics.
Possible worlds semantics. Truth and validity. A Hilbert-style
proof system. Sequent calculus rules.
- Tableaux methods.
Simplifying the sequent calculus. Examples. Adding unification.
Skolemisation. The world's smallest theorem prover?
Objectives
At the end of the course students should
- be able to manipulate logical formulas accurately
- be able to perform proofs using the presented formal calculi
- be able to construct a small OBDD
- understand the relationships among the various calculi, e.g. Davis-Putnam, resolution and Prolog
- be able to apply the unification algorithm and to describe its uses
- be able to manipulate logical formulas and to notice their own errors
Recommended book
Huth, M. & Ryan, M. (2000). Logic in Computer Science: Modelling
and Reasoning about Systems. Cambridge University Press.
Gentle introduction:
Barwise, J. & Etchemendy, J. (1999). Language Proof and Logic.
CSLI Publications.
Next: Numerical Analysis I
Up: Michaelmas Term 2000: Part
Previous: Group Project
Christine Northeast
Wed Sep 20 15:13:44 BST 2000