Appendix: Conjectures concerning proof, design, and verification.
This article focuses on an esoteric but practical use of automated reasoning that may indeed be new to many, especially those concerned primarily with verification of both hardware and software. Specifically, featured are a discussion and some methodology for taking an existing design -- of a circuit, a chip, a program, or the like--and refining and improving it in various ways. Although the methodology is general and does not require the use of a specific program, McCune's program OTTER does offer what is needed. OTTER has played and continues to play the key role in my research, and an interested person can gain access to this program in various ways, not the least of which is through the included CD-ROM in [3]. When success occurs, the result is a new design that may require fewer components, avoid the use of certain costly components, offer more reliability and ease of verification, and, perhaps most important, be more efficient in the contexts of speed and heat generation. Although the author has minimal experience in circuit design, circuit validation, program synthesis, program verification, and similar concerns, (at the encouragement of colleagues based on successes to be cited) he presents materials that might indeed be of substantial interest to manufacturers and programmers. He writes this article in part prompted by the recent activities of chip designers that include Intel and AMD, activities heavily emphasizing the proving of theorems. As for his research that appears to the author to be relevant, he has made an intense and most profitable study of finding proofs that are shorter [2,3], some that avoid the use of various types of term, some that are far less complex than previously known, and the like. Those results suggest to me a strong possible connection between more appealing proofs (in mathematics and in logic) and enhanced and improved design of both hardware and software. Here the author explores diverse conjectures that elucidate some of the possibly fruitful connections.
- Research Organization:
- Argonne National Lab., IL (US)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- US Department of Energy (US)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-31109-ENG-38
- OSTI ID:
- 757536
- Report Number(s):
- ANL/MCS/CP-102044; TRN: US200304%%189
- Resource Relation:
- Journal Volume: 1869; Conference: Higher-Order Logic Conference, Portland, OR (US), 08/15/2000--08/18/2000; Other Information: PBD: 31 May 2000; PBD: 31 May 2000; PBD: 31 May 2000
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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