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Aggregate Programming: From Foundations to Applications

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Formal Methods for the Quantitative Evaluation of Collective Adaptive Systems (SFM 2016)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNPSE,volume 9700))

Abstract

We live in a world with an ever-increasing density of computing devices, pervading every aspect of our environment. Programming these devices is challenging, due to their large numbers, potential for frequent and complex network interactions with other nearby devices, and the open and evolving nature of their capabilities and applications. Aggregate programming addresses these challenges by raising the level of abstraction, so that a programmer can operate in terms of collections of interacting devices. In particular, field calculus provides a safe and extensible model for encapsulation, modulation, and composition of services. On this foundation, a set of resilient “building block” operators support development of APIs that can provide resilience and scalability guarantees for any service developed using them. We illustrate the power of this approach by discussion of several recent applications, including crowd safety at mass public events, disaster relief operations, construction of resilient enterprise systems, and network security.

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Acknowledgment

This work has been partially supported by the EU FP7 project “SAPERE - Self-aware Pervasive Service Ecosystems” under contract No. 256873 (Viroli), by the Italian PRIN 2010/2011 project “CINA: Compositionality, Interaction, Negotiation, Autonomicity” (Viroli), and by the United States Air Force and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency under Contract No. FA8750-10-C-0242 (Beal). The U.S. Government is authorized to reproduce and distribute reprints for Governmental purposes notwithstanding any copyright notation thereon. The views, opinions, and/or findings contained in this article are those of the author(s)/presenter(s) and should not be interpreted as representing the official views or policies of the Department of Defense or the U.S. Government. Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Raytheon BBN Technologies, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA

    Jacob Beal

  2. Alma Mater Studiorum–Università di Bologna, Cesena, Italy

    Mirko Viroli

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  1. Jacob Beal
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Correspondence to Jacob Beal .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Sci. Pure e Applicate, Università di Urbino "Carlo Bo", Urbino, Italy

    Marco Bernardo

  2. IMT - School for Advanced Studies, Lucca, Italy

    Rocco De Nicola

  3. School of Informatics, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom

    Jane Hillston

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Beal, J., Viroli, M. (2016). Aggregate Programming: From Foundations to Applications. In: Bernardo, M., De Nicola, R., Hillston, J. (eds) Formal Methods for the Quantitative Evaluation of Collective Adaptive Systems. SFM 2016. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 9700. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-34096-8_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-34096-8_8

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