The Deductive Foundations of Computer Programming [Paperback]

Zohar Manna (Author), Richard Waldinger (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Logic plays a fundamental role in computer science analogous to that played by calculus in physics and traditional engineering. In software engineering, systems with the ability to perform logical deduction are being applied to the synthesis, verification and transformation of computer programs. In artificial intelligence, such systems are applied to the understanding of natural language and the formation of commonsense and robotic plans. Expert systems, deductive databases, and logic-programming systems may be regarded as rudimentary applications of this new deductive technology.

This book provides a carefully paced introduction to the logical underpinnings of these applications. Exceptionally clear and laced with examples, this book requires no prior knowledge of logic or programming. It interleaves a basic treatment of logic with a discussion of its application in automated deduction. This work provides most readable introduction to the logical concepts and techniques underlying computer programming.

0201548860B04062001

Product Details

• Paperback: 736 pages
• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional (March 10, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0201548860
• ISBN-13: 978-0201548860
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.7 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,099,033 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Good Start Toward Automated Reasoning, July 8, 2000

By 

S. Wuest (Tucson, AZ United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Deductive Foundations of Computer Programming (Paperback)

This book is a good introductory catalog of automated reasoning concepts and methods. But I believe that programmers who are going to write automated reasoning systems should augment their computer knowledge (of logic) by learning a full- blown (serial, not tree) logical notation for both 1st and 2nd order predicate calculus.

Solving the inference problem is NP-Complete, and computational cycles explode as the number of premisses increase. Automated methods of solving the inference problem are often O(n^2) and often infeasible, for "real-world" problems. Most programmers don't have a broad enough horizon in formal logic to quickly recognize WHEN a certain automated technique will be useful.

I suggest a symbolic logic text such as Copi's Symbolic Logic, 5th ed., and then aggressively read about optimizing methods which are currently being developed (ex. Optimization Methods for Logical Inference, Chandru et alia).

However, as an introduction, the reviewed book is excellent.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Textbook for a First Logic Course in CS, May 4, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Deductive Foundations of Computer Programming (Paperback)

I really liked this book. It is full of examples, and the explanations are clear and concise. The book guides you through predicate logic and first order logic and procedures for automated deductive systems for them. No previous knowledge is assumed. The book is also full of exercises and problems.

I do recommend this book for students of Computer Science and Mathematics who want to start learning about automated deductive systems and axiomatic theories.