Abstract
A semantic characterisation of the partial evaluation of Prolog programs is presented. An algebraic semantics for Prolog which models Prolog’s depth-first left-to-right control scheme is first outlined. This semantics is written in Milner’s Calculus of Communicating Systems (CCS) [14]. This CCS semantics can be used to analyse how logic program control affects partial evaluation transformations of Prolog programs. Partial evaluation of a source program is accomplished by applying transforms onto a program’s semantic representation. Correctness and completeness are preserved when such transformations respect the source program’s semantic integrity. Because the semantic bisimilarities of Prolog control preserve behavioural equivalence, the semantic modelling of the basic control component of the partial evaluation process is possible. Conversely, the CCS semantics can determine whether particular partial evaluation transformations violate program completeness.
Current address: Computer Science Department, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada V8W 3P6 (email bjr@csr.uvic.ca).
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© 1992 Springer-Verlag London
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Ross, B.J. (1992). Semantics—based Partial Evaluation of Prolog Programs. In: Clement, T.P., Lau, KK. (eds) Logic Program Synthesis and Transformation. Workshops in Computing. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-3494-7_16
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-3494-7_16
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