Bertrand Meyer's technology+ blog

Actually it is not a musical but an extensive survey. I have long been fascinated by the notion of loop invariant, which describes the essence of a loop. Considering a loop without its invariant is like conducting an orchestra without a score.

In this submitted survey paper written with Sergey Velder and Carlo Furia [1], we study loop invariants in depth and describe many algorithms from diverse areas of computer science through their invariants. For simplicity and clarity, the specification technique uses the Domain Theory technique described in an earlier article on this blog [2] (see also [3]). The invariants were verified mechanically using Boogie, a sign of how much more realistic verification technology has become in recent years.

The survey was a major effort (we worked on it for a year and a half); it is not perfect but we hope it will prove useful in the understanding, teaching and verification of important algorithms.

Here is the article’s abstract:

At the heart of every loop, and hence of all significant algorithms, lies a loop invariant: a property ensured by the initialization and maintained by every iteration so that, when combined with the exit condition, it yields the loop’s final effect. Identifying the invariant of every loop is not only a required step for software verification, but also a key requirement for understanding the loop and the program to which it belongs. The systematic study of loop invariants of important algorithms can, as a consequence, yield insights into the nature of software.

We performed this study over a wide range of fundamental algorithms from diverse areas of computer science. We analyze the patterns according to which invariants are derived from postconditions, propose a classification of invariants according to these patterns, and present its application to the algorithms reviewed. The discussion also shows the need for high-level specification and invariants based on “domain theory”. The included invariants and the corresponding algorithms have been mechanically verified using an automatic program prover. Along with the classification and applications, the conclusions include suggestions for automatic invariant inference and general techniques for model-based specification.

References

[1] Carlo Furia, Bertrand Meyer and Sergey Velder: Loop invariants: analysis, classification, and examples, submitted for publication, December 2012, draft available here.

[2] Domain Theory: the Forgotten Step in Program Verification, article from this blog, 11 April 2012, available here.

[3] Domain Theory: Precedents, article from this blog, 11 April 2012, available here