## Constraint-based type inference for guarded algebraic data types

Constraint-based type inference for guarded algebraic data types

Guarded algebraic data types subsume the concepts known in the literature as indexed types, guarded recursive datatype constructors, and first-class phantom types, and are closely related to inductive types. They have the distinguishing feature that, when typechecking a function defined by cases, every branch may be checked under different assumptions about the type variables in scope. This mechanism allows exploiting the presence of dynamic tests in the code to produce extra static type information.

We propose an extension of the constraint-based type system HM(X) with deep pattern matching, guarded algebraic data types, and polymorphic recursion. We prove that the type system is sound and that, provided recursive function definitions carry a type annotation, type inference may be reduced to constraint solving. Then, because solving arbitrary constraints is expensive, we further restrict the form of type annotations and prove that this allows producing so-called tractable constraints. Last, in the specific setting of equality, we explain how to solve tractable constraints.

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first generic and comprehensive account of type inference in the presence of guarded algebraic data types.

## Inverse typechecker and theorem proving in intuitionistic and classical logics

Another cool demonstration from Oleg:

I'd like to point out a different take on Djinn:

http://cvs.sourceforge.net/viewcvs.py/kanren/kanren/mini/logic.scm

The first defines the Hindley-Milner typechecking relation for a
language with polymorphic let, sums and products. We use the Scheme
notation for the source language (as explained at the beginning of the
first file); ML or Haskell-like notations are straightforward. The
notation for type terms is infix, with the right-associative arrow.

The typechecking relation relates a term and its type: given a term we
obtain its type. The relation is pure and so it can work in reverse: given a type, we can obtain terms that have this type. Or, we can give a term with blanks and a type with blanks, and ask the relation to fill in the blanks.

As an example, the end of the file type-inference.scm shows the derivation for the terms call/cc, shift and reset from their types in the continuation monad. Given the type

(((a -> . ,(cont 'b 'r)) -> . ,(cont 'b 'b)) -> . ,(cont 'a 'b))

we get the expression for shift:

   (lambda (_.0) (lambda (_.1)
((_.0 (lambda (_.2) (lambda (_.3) (_.3 (_.1 _.2)))))
(lambda (_.4) _.4))))


It took only 2 milli-seconds.

More interesting is using the typechecker for proving theorems in
intuitionistic logic: see logic.scm. We formulate the proposition in types, for example:

  (,(neg '(a * b)) -> . ,(neg (neg (,(neg 'a) + ,(neg 'b)))))

This is one direction of the deMorgan law. In intuitionistic logic,
deMorgan law is more involved:

	NOT (A & B) == NOTNOT (NOT A | NOT B)

The system gives us the corresponding term, the proof:

(lambda (_.0)
(lambda (_.1)
(_.1 (inl (lambda (_.2)
(_.1 (inr (lambda (_.3) (_.0 (cons _.2 _.3))))))))))


The de-typechecker can also prove theorems in classical logic,
via double-negation (aka CPS) translation. The second part of
logic.scm demonstrates that. We can formulate a proposition:

(neg (neg (,(neg 'a) + ,(neg (neg 'a)))))

and get a (non-trivial) term

	(lambda (_.0) (_.0 (inr (lambda (_.1) (_.0 (inl _.1))))))

It took only 403 ms. The proposition is the statement of the Law of
Excluded Middle, in the double-negative translation.

So, programming languages can help in the study of logic.

## Exceptional syntax

A nice paper apropos of tail calls and exceptions:
Nick Benton and Andrew Kennedy. 2001. Exceptional syntax. Journal of Functional Programming 11(4): 395-410.

From the points of view of programming pragmatics, rewriting and operational semantics, the syntactic construct used for exception handling in ML-like programming languages, and in much theoretical work on exceptions, has subtly undesirable features. We propose and discuss a more well-behaved construct.

## Module Mania: A Type-Safe, Separately Compiled, Extensible Interpreter

Module Mania: A Type-Safe, Separately Compiled, Extensible Interpreter

To illustrate the utility of a powerful modules language, this paper presents the embedded interpreter Lua-ML. The interpreter combines extensibility and separate compilation without compromising type safety. Its types are extended by applying a sum constructor to built-in types and to extensions, then tying a recursive knot using a two-level type; the sum constructor is written using an ML functor. The initial basis is extended by composing initialization functions from individual extensions, also using ML functors.

This is an excellent example of how the ML module language doesn't merely provide encapsulation but also strictly adds expressive power. It also demonstrates how a dynamic language (Lua) can be embedded in the statically-typed context of ML. Finally, it demonstrates that none of this need come at the expense of separate compilation or extensibility. Norman Ramsey's work is always highly recommended.

## ClassicJava in PLT Redex

Classic Java

This collection is an implementation of (most of) ClassicJava, as defined
in "A Programmer's Reduction Semantics for Classes and Mixins," by Matthew
Flatt, Shriram Krishnamurthi, and Matthias Felleisen; in _Formal Syntax and
Semantics of Java_, Springer-Verlag LNCS 1523, pp. 241-269, 1999. A
tech-report version of the paper is also available at
<http://www.ccs.neu.edu/scheme/pubs/#tr97-293. The implementation is
written in PLT Redex, also available through PLaneT. Please consult that
package's documentation for further details.

This might be interesting to folks curious about how to formalize a real language, or about how PLT Redex works in practice.

## Generalized Algebraic Data Types and Object-Oriented Programming

Generalized Algebraic Data Types and Object-Oriented Programming. Andrew Kennedy and Claudio Russo. OOPSLA, October 2005, San Diego, California.

Generalized algebraic data types (GADTs) have received much attention recently in the functional programming community. They generalize the type-parameterized datatypes of ML and Haskell by permitting constructors to produce different type-instantiations of the same datatype. GADTs have a number of applications, including strongly-typed evaluators, generic pretty-printing, generic traversals and queries, and typed LR parsing. We show that existing object-oriented programming languages such as Java and C# can express GADT definitions, and a large class of GADT-manipulating programs, through the use of generics, subclassing, and virtual dispatch. However, some programs can be written only through the use of redundant run-time casts. We propose a generalization of the type constraint mechanisms of C# and Java to avoid the need for such casts, present a Visitor pattern for GADTs, and describe a switch construct as an alternative to virtual dispatch on datatypes. We formalize both extensions and prove a type soundness result.

I've been waiting for awhile for this paper to be available online.

This paper is, of course, related to the other items posted here about GADTs. The examples in the introduction might be somewhat relevant to the recent discussion about the static versus dynamic features of Java, and its type system.

## What good is Strong Normalization in Programming Languages?

There's a neat thread about strong normalization happening on The Types Forum.

If you've ever wondered Why is it useful to have {type systems,reductions,operations,...} that always terminate? this may Illuminate you.
Here are some snippets to give you a feel for the discussion:

I think it is clearer to split GÃ©rard's original question in two:

1. Is strong normalization useful for programming languages ?
2. Is the proof of strong normalization via type systems applicable for programming languages?

Termination is good:

If a program is a solution to a problem then knowing that it terminates
for any input is an important aspect of it being a solution. Often the
best way to see that it is terminating is expressing it in a language
where all programs terminate. The programming language Epigram is an
example of an experimental language which is intended to be terminating
(even though not all conditions are enforced in the current version), see

-- Thorsten Altenkirch

Termination is good!

I think the moral sense of strong normalization is that a program
in a strictly-typed language can only diverge as a result of some
programming construct, which _explicitly_ permits looping, like
iteration, recursion etc. My favourite example here is that the
"big Omega" can be written in Algol 60, because procedure types
in this language are not fully specified.

-- Pawel Urzyczyn

Termination is good and with fixpoints is turing complete?

Another way to put this is that data structures should be definable in a
strongly-normalising language so that data access, etc. is guaranteed to
terminate. Then add fixpoints or loops to describe arbitrary computations.

-- Barry Jay

Terminating reductions allows exhaustive applications of optimizations:

In a compiler, if a set of reductions is strongly normalizing, then the compiler can apply them exhaustively to an intermediate-language term without fear of looping. (We rely on this in the MLj and SML.NET compilers' "simplify" compilation phases, which apply simple reductions and directed commuting conversions until a normal form is reached. Though it has to be said that it's not the classical SN results that are relevant here, but something more specific to our intermediate language and the simplifying reductions that we employ).

-- Andrew Kenney

Rene Vestergaard also gave a link to a 2004 discussion of strong normalization on the rewriting list.

## Extensible Records With Scoped Labels

Extensible Records With Scoped Labels
Daan Leijen
Records provide a safe and flexible way to construct data structures. We describe a natural approach to typing polymorphic and extensible records that is simple, easy to use in practice, and straightforward to implement. A novel aspect of this work is that records can contain duplicate labels, effectively introducing a form of scoping over the labels. Furthermore, it is a fully orthogonal extension to existing type systems and programming languages...
Last time one of Daan's papers was mentioned, there was a very positive response (after Frank reminded us a couple of times). This is equally good: clever, elegant, and clearly presented.

(Between this and the Sheard paper, it's a good week for practical type systems...)

## Putting Curry-Howard to Work

via LtU forums:
The Curry-Howard isomorphism states that types are propositions and that programs are proofs. This allows programmers to state and enforce invariants of programs by using types. Unfortunately, the type systems of today's functional languages cannot directly express interesting properties of programs. To alleviate this problem, we propose the addition of three new features to functional programming languages such as Haskell: Generalized Algebraic Datatypes, Extensible Kind Systems, and the generation, propagation, and discharging of Static Propositions. These three new features are backward compatible with existing features, and combine to enable a new programming paradigm for functional programmers. This paradigm makes it possible to state and enforce interesting properties of programs using the type system, and it does this in manner that leaves intact the functional programming style, known and loved by functional programmers everywhere.
The paper is short and reasonably easy to read, also the examples are very realistic - check section 13 as a starter.

Getting half through the paper made we willing to play with implementation, getting to the last page made my hands itching to implement my own PL with a similar type system.

You are warned :)

## Just What is it that Makes Martin-Lof's Type Theory so Different, so Appealing?

Martin-LÃ¶f's Type Theory (M-LTT) was developed by Per Martin-LÃ¶f in the early 1970s, as a constructive foundation for mathematics. The theory is clear and simple. Because of this it has been used for everything from program derivation to handling donkey sentences.

In this talk we will present and give a flavour of Martin-LÃ¶f's Type Theory. We will highlight the use of proof theoretical justification of the rules, without explaining this in full detail. We will present the rules for various types, emphasising the uniformity of the presentation. The types that we will present will include those needed to express the logical constants falsum, or, and, not, implies, for all, and there exists.

Yet another propositions-as-types tutorial.

It seems pretty easy to follow, and it is quite short (16 pages).

P.S

Why all the theory on LtU these days? Because the editors who keep posting are into theory. The other editors should be nudged to start posting cool hands-on stuff...