Detecting determinate computations by bottom-up abstract interpretation

Abstract

One of the most interesting characteristics of logic programs is the ability of expressing nondeterminism in an elegant and concise way. On the other hand, implementation of nondeterminism poses serious problems both in the sequential and in the concurrent case. If determinate computations are detected through a static analysis, a noticeable reduction of the execution time may be obtained. This work describes a static analysis to detect determinate computations. The analysis does not require the knowledge of the activating modes of the predicate and it derives determinacies which may be inferred from the success set of the program.