Handbook of Practical Logic and Automated Reasoning

A one-stop reference, self-contained, with theoretical topics presented in conjunction with implementations for which code is supplied.

John Harrison (Author)

9780521899574, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 12 March 2009

702 pages, 10 tables 155 exercises
25.5 x 17.4 x 3.7 cm, 1.39 kg

'John Harrison … has written what clearly will be the book about automation in theorem proving. People often ask me whether they should buy this book. My answer … always is: yes, of course you should buy this book. It is a masterpiece.' Journal of Automated Reasoning

The sheer complexity of computer systems has meant that automated reasoning, i.e. the ability of computers to perform logical inference, has become a vital component of program construction and of programming language design. This book meets the demand for a self-contained and broad-based account of the concepts, the machinery and the use of automated reasoning. The mathematical logic foundations are described in conjunction with practical application, all with the minimum of prerequisites. The approach is constructive, concrete and algorithmic: a key feature is that methods are described with reference to actual implementations (for which code is supplied) that readers can use, modify and experiment with. This book is ideally suited for those seeking a one-stop source for the general area of automated reasoning. It can be used as a reference, or as a place to learn the fundamentals, either in conjunction with advanced courses or for self study.

Preface
Ideological orientation
Acknowledgements
How to read this book
1. Introduction
2. Propositional logic
3. First-order logic
4. Equality
5. Decidable problems
6. Interactive theorem proving
7. Limitations
Appendix 1. Mathematical background
Appendix 2. OCaml made light of
Appendix 3. Parsing and printing of formulas
References
Index.

Subject Areas: Artificial intelligence [UYQ], Computer architecture & logic design [UYF]