Intersection type theories (itt’s) and filter models, i.e. λ-calculus models generated by itt’s, are reviewed in full generality. In this framework, which subsumes most λ-calculus models in the literature based on Scott-continuous functions, we discuss the interpretation of unsolvable terms. We give a necessary, but not sufficient, condition on an itt for the interpretation of some unsolvable term to be non-trivial in the filter model it generates. This result is obtained building on a type theoretic characterisation of the fine structure of unsolvables.

Abstract We show that the principal types of the closed terms of the affine fragment of λ-calculus, with respect to a simple type discipline, are structurally isomorphic to their interpretations, as partial involutions, in a natural Geometry of Interaction model à la Abramsky. This permits to explain in elementary terms the somewhat awkward notion of linear application arising in Geometry of Interaction, simply as the resolution between principal types using an alternate unification algorithm. As a consequence, we provide an answer, for the purely affine fragment, to the open problem raised by Abramsky of characterizing those partial involutions which are denotations of combinatory terms.

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We introduce the Delta-framework, LF-Delta, a dependent type theory based on the Edinburgh Logical Framework LF, extended with the strong proof-functional connectives, i.e. strong intersection, minimal relevant implication and strong union. Strong proof-functional connectives take into account the shape of logical proofs, thus reflecting polymorphic features of proofs in formulae. This is in contrast to classical or intuitionistic connectives where the meaning of a compound formula depends only on the truth value or the provability of its subformulae. Our framework encompasses a wide range of type disciplines. Moreover, since relevant implication permits to express subtyping, LF-Delta subsumes also Pfenning's refinement types. We discuss the design decisions which have led us to the formulation of LF-Delta, study its metatheory, and provide various examples of applications. Our strong proof-functional type theory can be plugged in existing common proof assistants.

In 2005, S. Abramsky introduced various universal models of computation based on Affine Combinatory Logic, consisting of partial involutions over a suitable formal language of moves, in order to discuss reversible computation in a game-theoretic setting. We investigate Abramsky’s models from the point of view of the model theory of λ-calculus, focusing on the purely linear and affine fragments of Abramsky’s Combinatory Algebras. Our approach stems from realizing a structural analogy, which had not been hitherto pointed out in the literature, between the partial involution interpreting a combinator and the principal type of that term, with respect to a simple types discipline for λ-calculus. This analogy allows for explaining as unification between principal types the somewhat awkward linear application of involutions arising from Geometry of Interaction (GoI). Our approach provides immediately an answer to the open problem, raised by Abram- sky, of characterising those finitely describable partial involutions which are denotations of combinators, in the purely affine fragment. We prove also that the (purely) linear combinatory algebra of partial involutions is a (purely) linear λ-algebra, albeit not a combinatory model, while the (purely) affine combinatory algebra is not. In order to check the complex equations involved in the definition of affine λ-algebra, we implement in Erlang the compilation of λ-terms as involutions, and their execution.

We present two extensions of theLFconstructive type theory featuring monadiclocks. A lock is a monadic type construct that captures the effect of anexternal call to an oracle. Such calls are the basic tool forplugging-inand gluing together, different metalanguages and proof development environments. Oracles can be invoked either to check that a constraint holds or to provide a witness. The systems are presented in thecanonical styledeveloped by the ‘CMU School.’ The first system,CLLF𝒫, is the canonical version of the systemLLF𝒫, presented earlier by the authors. The second system,CLLF𝒫?, features the possibility of invoking the oracle to obtain also a witness satisfying a given constraint. In order to illustrate the advantages of our new frameworks, we show how to encode logical systems featuring rules that deeply constrain the shape of proofs. The locks mechanisms ofCLLF𝒫andCLLF𝒫?permit to factor out naturally the complexities arising from enforcing these ‘side conditions,’ which severely obscure standardLFencodings. We discuss Girard's Elementary Affine Logic, Fitch–Prawitz set theory, call-by-value λ-calculi and functions, both total and even partial.

We extend the constructive dependent type theory of the Logical Framework $\mathsf{LF}$ with monadic, dependent type constructors indexed with predicates over judgements, called Locks. These monads capture various possible proof attitudes in establishing the judgment of the object logic encoded by an $\mathsf{LF}$ type. Standard examples are factoring-out the verification of a constraint or delegating it to an external oracle, or supplying some non-apodictic epistemic evidence, or simply discarding the proof witness of a precondition deeming it irrelevant. This new framework, called Lax Logical Framework, $\mathsf{LLF}_{\cal P}$, is a conservative extension of $\mathsf{LF}$, and hence it is the appropriate metalanguage for dealing formally with side-conditions in rules or external evidence in logical systems. $\mathsf{LLF}_{\cal P}$ arises once the monadic nature of the lock type-constructor, ${\cal L}^{\cal P}_{M,\sigma}[\cdot]$, introduced by the authors in a series of papers, together with Marina Lenisa, is fully exploited. The nature of the lock monads permits to utilize the very Lock destructor, ${\cal U}^{\cal P}_{M,\sigma}[\cdot]$, in place of Moggi's monadic $let_T$, thus simplifying the equational theory. The rules for ${\cal U}^{\cal P}_{M,\sigma}[\cdot]$ permit also the removal of the monad once the constraint is satisfied. We derive the meta-theory of $\mathsf{LLF}_{\cal P}$ by a novel indirect method based on the encoding of $\mathsf{LLF}_{\cal P}$ in $\mathsf{LF}$. We discuss encodings in $\mathsf{LLF}_{\cal P}$ of call-by-value $\lambda$-calculi, Hoare's Logic, and Fitch-Prawitz Naive Set Theory. Comment: Accepted for publication in LMCS

The LF P Framework is an extension of the Harper–Honsell–Plotkin's Edinburgh Logical Framework LF with external predicates , hence the name Open Logical Framework . This is accomplished by defining lock type constructors , which are a sort of ⋄ -modality constructors , releasing their argument under the condition that a possibly external predicate is satisfied on an appropriate typed judgement. Lock types are defined using the standard pattern of constructive type theory, i . e . via introduction , elimination and equality rules . Using LF P , one can factor out the complexity of encoding specific features of logical systems, which would otherwise be awkwardly encoded in LF, e . g . side-conditions in the application of rules in Modal Logics, and sub-structural rules, as in non-commutative Linear Logic . The idea of LF P is that these conditions need only to be specified, while their verification can be delegated to an external proof engine, in the style of the Poincaré Principle or Deduction Modulo . Indeed such paradigms can be adequately formalized in LF P . We investigate and characterize the meta-theoretical properties of the calculus underpinning LF P : strong normalization, confluence and subject reduction. This latter property holds under the assumption that the predicates are well-behaved , i . e . closed under weakening, permutation , substitution and reduction in the arguments. Moreover, we provide a canonical presentation of LF P , based on a suitable extension of the notion of βη - long normal form , allowing for smooth formulations of adequacy statements.

Joyal's categorical construction on (well-founded) Conway games and winning strategies provides a compact closed category, where tensor and linear implication are defined via Conway disjunctive sum (in combination with negation for linear implication). The equivalence induced on games by the morphisms coincides with the contextual closure of the equideterminacy relation w.r.t. the disjunctive sum. Recently, the above categorical construction has been generalized to non-wellfounded games. Here we investigate Joyal's construction for a different notion of sum, i.e. selective sum. While disjunctive sum reflects the interleaving semantics, selective sum accommodates a form of parallelism, by allowing the current player to move in different parts of the board simultaneously. We show that Joyal's categorical construction can be successfully extended to selective sum, when we consider alternating games, i.e. games where each position is marked as Left player (L) or Right player (R), that is only L or R can move from that position, R starts, and L/R positions strictly alternate. Alternating games typically arise in the context of Game Semantics. This category of well-founded games with selective sum is symmetric monoidal closed, and it induces exactly the equideterminacy relation. Generalizations to non-wellfounded games give linear categories, i.e. models of Linear Logic. Our game models, providing a certain level of parallelism, may be situated halfway between traditional sequential alternating game models and the concurrent game models by Abramsky and Mellies. We work in a context of coalgebraic games, whereby games are viewed as elements of a final coalgebra, and game operations are defined as final morphisms.

We extend the coalgebraic account of specification and refinement of objects and classes in object-oriented programming given by Reichel and Jacobs to(generalised) binary methods. These are methods that take more than one parameter of a class type. Class types include products, sums and powerset type constructors. To allow for classconstructors, we model classes asbialgebras. We study and compare two solutions for modelling generalised binary methods, which use purely covariant functors. In the first solution, which applies when we already have a class implementation, we reduce the behaviour of a generalised binary method to that of a bunch of unary methods. These are obtained byfreezingthe types of the extra class parameters to constant types. If all parameter types arefinitary, thebisimilarity equivalenceinduced on objects by this model yields thegreatest congruencewith respect to method application. In the second solution, we treat binary methods asgraphsinstead of functions, thus turning contravariant occurrences in the functor into covariant ones. We show the existence offinal coalgebrasin both cases.

The Theory of Contexts is a type-theoretic axiomatization aiming to give a metalogical account of the fundamental notions of variable and context as they appear in Higher Order Abstract Syntax. In this paper, we prove that this theory is consistent by building a model based on functor categories . By means of a suitable notion of forcing , we prove that this model validates Classical Higher Order Logic, the Theory of Contexts, and also (parametrised) structural induction and recursion principles over contexts. Our approach, which we present in full detail, should also be useful for reasoning on other models based on functor categories. Moreover, the construction could also be adopted, and possibly generalized, for validating other theories of names and binders.

We characterize those type preorders which yield complete intersection-type assignment systems for λ-calculi, with respect to the three canonical set-theoretical semantics for intersection-types: the inference semantics, the simple semantics, and the F-semantics. These semantics arise by taking as interpretation of types subsets of applicative structures, as interpretation of the preorder relation , ≤, set-theoretic inclusion, as interpretation of the intersection constructor , ∩, set-theoretic intersection, and by taking the interpretation of the arrow constructor , → à la Scott, with respect to either any possible functionality set , or the largest one, or the least one.These results strengthen and generalize significantly all earlier results in the literature, to our knowledge, in at least three respects. First of all the inference semantics had not been considered before. Second, the characterizations are all given just in terms of simple closure conditions on the preorder relation , ≤, on the types, rather than on the typing judgments themselves. The task of checking the condition is made therefore considerably more tractable. Last, we do not restrict attention just to λ-models, but to arbitrary applicative structures which admit an interpretation function. Thus we allow also for the treatment of models of restricted λ-calculi. Nevertheless the characterizations we give can be tailored just to the case of λ-models.

In this paper we prove that many intersection type theories of interest (including those which induce as filter models, Scott's and Park's D∞ models, the models studied in Barendregt Coppo Dezani, Abramsky Ong, and Honsell Ronchi) satisfy an Approximation Theorem with respect to a suitable notion of approximant. This theorem implies that a λ‐term has a type if and only if there exists an approximant of that term which has that type. We prove this result uniformly for all the intersection type theories under consideration using a Kripke version of stable sets where bases correspond to worlds.

In this paper we investigate, in the context of functional prototype-based languages, objects which might extend themselves upon receiving a message. The possibility for an object of extending its own "self", referred to by Cardelli, as a self-inflicted operation, is novel in the context of typed object-based languages. We present a sound type system for this calculus which guarantees that evaluating a well-typed expression will never yield a message-not-found run-time error. We give several examples which illustrate the increased expressive power of our system with respect to existing calculi of objects. The new type system allows also for a flexible width-subtyping, still permitting sound method override, and a limited form of object extension. The resulting calculus appears to be a good starting point for a rigorous mathematical analysis of class-based languages.

In this paper we give a big-step Structured Operational Semantics (SOS), in the style of Plotkin, Kahn and Milner, of a significant fragment of the functional programming language Scheme , including quote, eval, quasiquote and unquote. The SOS formalism allows us to discuss incrementally the various features of the language and to keep a low mathematical overhead, thus producing a rigorous account of the semantics of a ‘real’ programming language, which nonetheless has a pedagogical value. More specifically, we formalize four strictly increasing fragments of Scheme, using a number of formal systems which express the evaluation of expressions, the display of output results, and the handling of errors.

We propose a general theory of partial n-place operations based solely on the primitive notion of the application of a (possibly partial) operation to n objects. This theory is strongly selfdescriptive in that the fundamental manipulations of operations, that is, application, composition, abstraction, union, intersection and so on, are themselves internal operations. We give several applications of this theory, including implementations of partial n-ary λ-calculus, and other operation description languages. We investigate the issue of extensionality and give weakly extensional models of the theory.

In this paper we introduce a variable typed logic of effects inspired by the variable type systems of Feferman for purely functional languages. VTLoE (Variable Typed Logic of Effects) is introduced in two stages. The first stage is the first-order theory of individuals built on assertions of equality (operational equivalence à la Plotkin), and contextual assertions. The second stage extends the logic to include classes and class membership. The logic we present provides an expressive language for defining and studying properties of programs including program equivalences, in a uniform framework. The logic combines the features and benefits of equational calculi as well as program and specification logics. In addition to the usual first-order formula constructions, we add contextual assertions. Contextual assertions generalize Hoare′s triples in that they can be nested, they can be used as assumptions, and their free variables can be quantified. They are similar in spirit to program modalities in dynamic logic. We use the logic to establish the validity of the Meyer Sieber examples in an operational setting. The theory allows for the construction of inductively defined sets and derivation of the corresponding induction principles. We hope that classes may serve as a starting point for studying semantic notions of type. Naive attempts to represent ML types as classes fail in the sense that ML inference rules are not valid.

An untyped lambda calculus, extended with object primitives that reflect the capabilities of so-called delegation-based object-oriented languages, is presented. A type inference system allows static detection of errors, such as message not understood, while at the same time allowing the type of an inherited method to be specialized to the type of the inheriting object. Type soundness, in the form of a subject-reduction theorem, is proved, and examples illustrating the expressiveness of the pure calculus are presented.>

The Edinburgh Logical Framework (LF) provides a means to define (or present) logics. It is based on a general treatment of syntax, rules, and proofs by means of a typed λ-calculus with dependent types. Syntax is treated in a style similar to, but more general than, Martin-Lof's system of arities. The treatment of rules and proofs focuses on his notion of a judgment. Logics are represented in LF via a new principle, the judgments as types principle, whereby each judgment is identified with the type of its proofs. This allows for a smooth treatment of discharge and variable occurrence conditions and leads to a uniform treatment of rules and proofs whereby rules are viewed as proofs of higher-order judgments and proof checking is reduced to type checking. The practical benefit of our treatment of formal systems is that logic-independent tools, such as proof editors and proof checkers, can be constructed.

T. Jech [4] and M. Takahashi [7] proved that given any partial ordering R in a model of ZFC there is a symmetric submodel of a generic extension of where R is isomorphic to the injective ordering on a set of cardinals. The authors raised the question whether the injective ordering of cardinals can be universal, i.e. whether the following axiom of “cardinal universality” is consistent: CU. For any partially ordered set (X, ≼) there is a bijection f:X → Y such that (i.e. x ≼ y iff ∃g: f(x) → f(y) injective). (See [1].) The consistency of CU relative to ZF0 (Zermelo-Fraenkel set theory without foundation) is proved in [2], but the transfer method of Jech-Sochor-Pincus cannot be applied to obtain consistency with full ZF (including foundation), since CU apparently is not boundable. In this paper the authors define a model of ZF + CU as a symmetric submodel of a generic extension obtained by forcing “à la Easton” with a class of conditions which add κ generic subsets to any regular cardinal κ of a ground model satisfying ZF + V = L.