Rule Workshop Proposal

Program-Transformation.Org: The Program Transformation Wiki
Name of the workshop

Workshop on Rule Based Programming (RULE)

Associated with PPDP

The goals of the workshop

The rule-based programming paradigm is characterized by the repeated, localized transformation of a shared data object such as a term, graph, proof, or constraint store. The transformations are described by rules which separate the description of the sub-object to be replaced (the pattern) from the calculation of the replacement. Optionally, rules can have further conditions that restrict their applicability. The transformations are controlled by explicit or implicit strategies.

The basic concepts of rule-based programming appear throughout computer science, from theoretical foundations to practical implementations. Term rewriting is used in semantics in order to describe the meaning of programming languages, as well as in the implementation of program transformation systems. It is used implicitly or explicitly to perform computations, e.g., in Mathematica, OBJ, or ELAN, or to perform deductions, e.g., by using inference rules to describe or implement a logic, theorem prover or constraint solver. Extreme examples of rule-based programming include the mail system in Unix which uses rules in order to rewrite mail addresses to canonical forms, or the transition rules used in model checkers.

Rule-based programming is currently experiencing a renewed period of growth with the emergence of new concepts and systems that allow a better understanding and better usability. On the theoretical side, after the in-depth study of rewriting concepts during the eighties, the nineties saw the emergence of the general concepts of rewriting logic and of the rewriting calculus. On the practical side, new languages such as ASM, ASF+SDF, Claire, ELAN, Maude, and Stratego, new systems such as LRR and commercial products such as Ilog Rules and Eclipse have shown that rules are a useful programming tool.

The practical application of rule-based programming prompts research into the algorithmic complexity and optimization of rule-based programs as well as into the expressivity, semantics and implementation of rules-based languages. Here, a particular focus is the use and specification of strategies as a high-level control flow concept for the application of the rules.

The purpose of this workshop is to bring together researchers from the various communities working on rule-based programming to foster fertilisation between theory and practice, as well as to favour the growth of this programming paradigm.

Topics

  • Languages for rule-based programming
    • Expressivity
    • Semantics
    • Implementation techniques
  • Applications of rule-based programming
    • Analysis of rule-based programs
    • Programming methods
  • System descriptions

Names and addresses of organizers

  • Bernd Fischer
    Automated Software Engineering Group, USRA/RIACS, NASA Ames Research Center, M/S 269-2
    Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
    Phone: +1(650)604-2977
    mail:fisch@email.arc.nasa.gov
    http://ase.arc.nasa.gov/people/fischer

  • Eelco Visser
    Institute of Information and Computing Sciences, Universiteit Utrecht
    P.O. Box 80089, 3508 TB Utrecht, The Netherlands
    Phone: +31-30-253 4592
    Fax: +31-30-251 3791
    mail:visser@acm.org
    http://www.cs.uu.nl/~visser/

Names of potential participants, such as program committee members

Plans for call for participation (e.g., call for papers)

  • Preliminary call for papers: December 2001 / January 2002
  • Call for papers: February 2002
  • Call for participation / Final call for papers: June 1, 2002
  • Submission deadline: June 15, 2002
  • Notification of acceptance: August 15, 2002
  • Camera-ready version: September 15, 2002

Important related dates

ICFP:

  • Submission deadline: 21 March 2002
  • Notification of acceptance or rejection: 14 May 2002
  • Conference: October 4-6, 2002

PPDP:

  • Submission deadline: 21 March 2002
  • Notification of acceptance or rejection: 30 May 2002
  • Conference: October 6-8, 2002

Invited Speaker

Workshop-Schedule

Expected number of attendees

  • 20-25

Plans for publicity

mailinglists

  • amast
  • eapls
  • seworld
  • list of former RULE participants / PC-members
  • list of former RCoRP? participants / PC-members

newsgroups

  • comp.ai
  • comp.compilers
  • comp.lang.functional
  • comp.lang.prolog
  • comp.software-eng

Plans for a proceedings

  • Printed participants proceedings (Utrecht University Technical Report)
  • Post-conference publication in ENTCS

Past Events

RULE'01

RULE'00

URL address of the workshop description