[Colloquium] Tomorrow: Kuan/MS Presentation/Nov. 3, 2006

[Margaret Jaffey]

This is a reminder about George Kuan's MS Presentation, which will be  
held tomorrow afternoon.

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Date:  Friday, November 3, 2006

Time:  2:30 p.m.

Place:  Ryerson 251

M.S. Candidate:  George Kuan

M.S. Paper Title:  A Rewriting Semantics for Type Inference

Abstract:
When students first learn programming, they often rely on a
simple operational model of a program's behavior to explain how
particular features work. Because such models build on their
earlier training in algebra, students find them intuitive, even
obvious.  Students learning type systems, however, have to
confront an entirely different notation with a different
semantics that many find difficult to understand.

In this thesis, I begin to build the theoretical underpinnings for
treating type checking in a manner like the operational semantics
of execution. Intuitively, each term is incrementally rewritten to its
type. For example, each basic constant rewrites directly to its type
and each lambda expression rewrites to an arrow type whose domain is
the type of the lambda's formal parameter and whose range is the body
of the lambda expression which, in turn, rewrites to the range
type.

I first introduce the idea for the simply-typed lambda calculus, and
follow up with type inference and let-bound polymorphism. For the
latter two systems I start with a simple, intuitive model that, if
implemented directly, would be tremendously inefficient. Then, I
refine those models and show how to handle them efficiently, all
without leaving the basic operational model. Finally, I describe a
machine formulation for the rewrite systems and
the proofs of soundness and completeness using these machines.

Advisor:  Prof. David MacQueen

A draft copy of George Kuan's MS Paper is available in Ry 161A.


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Margaret P. Jaffey                             margaret at cs.uchicago.edu
Department of Computer Science
Student Support Rep (Ry 161A)        (773) 702-6011
The University of Chicago                  http://www.cs.uchicago.edu
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