Andrzej Tarlecki: Software Specification and Development in Heterogeneous Environments
The overall idea of the talk is to present recent work aimed at
dealing with multiple logical systems in a single specification and
software development task. I first recall the basic technical notions
related to modelling logical systems as institutions, presenting them
using (model-theoretic) parchments, relating institutions and
parchments using morphisms of various kinds, etc. Given this
background, I discuss in some detail the possibilities for combining
logical systems using standard categorical constructions in the
category of either institutions or parchments. Some positive results
(like completeness of the relevant categories) are given. However,
these do not lead to miraculous combinations of any possible logical
features, but rather provide a framework which limits the necessary
ingenuity (and human decisions) to some specific points, and hint at
possible techniques of formulating the necessary decisions in the most
effective way. Then, I sketch how the mechanisms of various mappings
between institutions may be used to cater for heterogeneous
specifications, which span an number of linked institutions, and for
the description of the development process which may 'migrate' between
various institutions in the course of development of separate modules
of the system. Overall, a picture of a heterogeneous logical
environment for software specification and development is emerging as
as simply a diagram of institutions linked by morphisms of various
kinds.
Last modified: Mon Sep 26 12:51:06 CEST 2005