A simplified problem reduction format

We introduce new proof systems for propositional logic, simple deduction Frege systems, general deduction Frege systems, and nested deduction Frege systems, which augment Frege systems with variants of the deduction rule. We give upper bounds on the lengths of proofs in Frege proof systems compared to lengths in these new systems. As applications we give near-linear simulations of the propositional Gentzen sequent calculus and the natural deduction calculus by Frege proofs. The length of a proof is the number of lines (or formulas) in the proof.A general deduction Frege proof system provides at most quadratic speedup over Frege proof systems. A nested deduction Frege proof system provides at most a nearly linear speedup over Frege system where by “nearly linear” is meant the ratio of proof lengths is O(α(n)) where α is the inverse Ackermann function. A nested deduction Frege system can linearly simulate the propositional sequent calculus, the tree-like general deduction Frege calculus, and the natural deduction calculus. Hence a Frege proof system can simulate all those proof systems with proof lengths bounded by O(n . α(n)). Also we show that a Frege proof of n lines can be transformed into a tree-like Frege proof of O(n log n) lines and of height O(log n). As a corollary of this fact we can prove that natural deduction and sequent calculus tree-like systems simulate Frege systems with proof lengths bounded by O(n log n).

Full classical S5 in natural deduction with weak normalization

The classical representation of a clause is a disjunction of literals. However, any such clause can be rewritten, with no loss of equivalence, as a sentence in conditional format having the form disjunction of literals if conjunction of literals Thus a clause such as A or B or ,C or ,D or ,E can be rewritten, for example, in this conditional format or B if C&D&E Starting with the classical format, we obtained this new format by disjoining, on the left of an ‘if’, all the positive literals and by conjoining, on the right of the ‘if’, all the atomic parts of the negative literals. That the two versions are equivalent is owed solely to the logical interpretations of the connectives:

This is a companion to a paper by the authors entitled “Godel on deduction”, which examined the links between some philosophical views ascribed to Godel and general proof theory. When writing that other paper, the authors were not acquainted with a system of natural deduction that Godel presented with the help of Gentzen’s sequents, which amounts to Jaśkowski’s natural deduction system of 1934, and which may be found in Godel’s unpublished notes for the elementary logic course he gave in 1939 at the University of Notre Dame. Here one finds a presentation of this system of Godel accompanied by a brief reexamination in the light of the notes of some points concerning his interest in sequents made in the preceding paper. This is preceded by a brief summary of Godel’s Notre Dame course, and is followed by comments concerning Godel’s natural deduction system.

Logic programming is a language paradigm based on logic, more specifically on resolution theorem proving in the predicate calculus as proposed in Robinson [1965]. Robinson had the foresight to distinguish the importance of two components in automatic theorem proving: a single inference rule called resolution and the testing for equality of trees called unification. Resolution is an inference step used to prove the validity of predicate calculus formulas expressed as clauses. In its simplest version: P ~ Q and -P ~ R imply Q ~ R, which is called the resolvant. Unification is the matching of terms used in a resolution step. It consists of testing the satisfiability of the equality of terms (i.e., labeled trees) whose leaves may contain variables. For example, the unification of the terms p(X, q(Z, a)) and p(b, q(a, Y)) succeeds, yielding the bindings X 5 b, Z 5 a, and Y 5 a. Prolog, the main representative of LP, consists of a sequence of Horn clauses. A Horn clause is one containing (at most) one positive literal. The term definite clause is used to denote a clause with exactly one positive literal. Prolog programs can be viewed as a set of definite clauses in which the positive literal is the head of the rule and the negative literals constitute the body or tail of the rule. From a procedural point of view, a head corresponds to the definition of a Boolean function whose body consists of conjunctions of calls to the Boolean functions representing the tail [Kowalski 1979]. A quintessential example of a Prolog program is that of append. It consists of two Horn clauses specifying that list L3 is the concatenation of two lists, L1 and L2:

First Order String Calculus (FOSC), introduced in this paper, is a generalization of First Order Predicate Calculus (FOPC). The generalization step consists in treating the unrestricted strings, which may contain variable symbols and a nesting structure, similarly to the predicate symbols in FOPC. As a logic programming technology, FOSC, combined with a string unification algorithm and the resolution principle, eliminates the need to invent logical atoms. An important aspect of the technology is the possibility to apply a matching of the text patterns immediately in logical reasoning. In this way the semantics of a text can be defined by string examples, which only demonstrate the concepts, rather than by a previously formalized mathematical knowledge. The advantages of avoiding this previous formalization are demonstrated. We investigate the knowledge representation aspects, the algorithmic properties, the brain simulation aspects, and the application aspects of FOSC theories in comparison with those of FOPC theories. FOSC is applied as a formal basis of logic programming language Sampletalk, introduced in our earlier publications.

A natural deduction system NI, for the full propositional intuitionistic logic, is proposed. The operational rules of NI are obtained by the translation from Gentzen’s calculus LJ and the normalization is proved, via translations from sequent calculus derivations to natural deduction derivations and back.

Prawitz proved a theorem, formalising ‘harmony’ in Natural Deduction systems, which showed that, corresponding to any deduction there is one to the same effect but in which no formula occurrence is both the consequence of an application of an introduction rule and major premise of an application of the related elimination rule. As Gentzen ordered the rules, certain rules in Classical Logic had to be excepted, but if we see the appropriate rules instead as rules for Contradiction, then we can extend the theorem to the classical case. Properly arranged there is a thoroughgoing ‘harmony’, in the classical rules. Indeed, as we shall see, they are, all together, far more ‘harmonious’ in the general sense than has been commonly observed. As this paper will show, the appearance of disharmony has only arisen because of the illogical way in which natural deduction rules for Classical Logic have been presented.

In 1994 Herbelin started and partially achieved the programme of showing that, for intuitionistic implicational logic, there is a Curry-Howard interpretation of sequent calculus into a variant of the λ-calculus, specifically a variant which manipulates formally “applicative contexts” and inverts the associativity of “applicative terms”. Herbelin worked with a fragment of sequent calculus with constraints on left introduction. In this paper we complete Herbelin’s programme for full sequent calculus, that is, sequent calculus without the mentioned constraints, but where permutative conversions necessarily show up. This requires the introduction of a lambda-like calculus for full sequent calculus and an extension of natural deduction that gives meaning to “applicative contexts” and “applicative terms”. Such extension is a calculus with modus ponens and primitive substitution that refines von Plato’s natural deduction; it is also a “coercion calculus”, in the sense of Cervesato and Pfenning. The proof-theoretical outcome is noteworthy: the puzzling relationship between cut and substitution is settled; and cut-elimination in sequent calculus is proven isomorphic to normalisation in the proposed natural deduction system. The isomorphism is the mapping that inverts the associativity of applicative terms.KeywordsReduction RuleNatural DeductionSequent CalculusApplicative ContextTyping RuleThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.

Boolean contact algebras constitute a suitable algebraic theory for qualitative spatial reasoning. They are Boolean algebras with an additional contact relation grasping the topological aspect of spatial entities. In this paper we present a logic that combines propositional logic, relevance logic, and modal logic to reason about Boolean contact algebras. This is done in two steps. First, we use the relevance logic operators to obtain a logic suitable for Boolean algebras. Then we add modal operators that are based on the contact relation. In both cases we present axioms that are equivalent to requirement that every frame for the logic is indeed a Boolean algebra resp. Boolean contact algebra. We also provide a natural deduction system for this logic by defining introduction and eliminations rules for each logical operator. The system is shown to be sound. Furthermore, we sketch an implementation of the natural deduction system in the functional programming language and interactive theorem prover Coq.

A modification of natural deduction system for intuitionistic predicate logic, the extension of natural deduction system, will be defined. The main result of such modification will be that each conversion from the set of conversions of a cut-elimination procedure in the system of sequents has the corresponding conversion in the set of conversions of a normalization procedure in that extension of natural deduction.

A decision procedure revisited: notes on direct logic, linear logic and its implementation

This paper is concerned with the relationship of the termination problem for programs and abstract programs to the validity of certain formulas in the first-order predicate calculus. By exploiting this relationship, subclasses of abstract programs for which the termination problem is decidable can be isolated. Moreover, known proof procedures for the first-order predicate calculus (e.g. resolution) can be applied to prove the termination of both programs and abstract programs. The correctness and equivalence problems of abstract programs are shown to be reducible to the termination problem.

We define the notions of a canonical inference rule and a canonical constructive system in the framework of strict single-conclusion Gentzen-type systems (or, equivalently, natural deduction systems), and develop a corresponding general non-deterministic Kripke-style semantics. We show that every constructive canonical system induces a class of non-deterministic Kripke-style frames, for which it is strongly sound and complete. This non-deterministic semantics is used to show that such a system always admits a strong form of the cut-elimination theorem, and for providing a decision procedure for such systems.

There is an interesting logical/semantic issue with some mathematical languages and theories. In the language of (pure) complex analysis, the two square roots of −1 are indiscernible: anything true of one of them is true of the other. So how does the singular term ‘i’ manage to pick out a unique object? This is perhaps the most prominent example of the phenomenon, but there are some others. The issue is related to matters concerning the use of definite descriptions and singular pronouns, such as donkey anaphora and the problem of indistinguishable participants. Taking a cue from some work in linguistics and the philosophy of language, I suggest thatifunctions like a parameter in natural deduction systems. This may require some rethinking of the role of singular terms, at least in mathematical languages.