A Heuristic for Deriving Loop Functions.
Abstract
The problem of analyzing an initialized loop and verifying that the program computes some particular function of its inputs is addressed. A heuristic technique for solving these problems is proposed which appears to work well in many commonly occurring cases. The use of the technique is illustrated with a number of applications. A hierarchy of initialized loops is suggested which is based on the 'effort' required to apply this methodology in a deterministic (i.e. guaranteed to succeed) manner. It is explained that in any case, the success of the proposed heuristic relies on the loop exhibiting a 'reasonable' form of behavior. An informal categorization of such programs is made which is based on two opposing problem solving strategies. It is suggested that our heuristic is naturally suited for use on programs in one of these categories. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 1981
- Accession Number
- ADA108660
Entities
People
- Douglas D. Dunlop
- Victor Basili
Organizations
- University of Maryland