Abstract
We present a novel and uniform technique for normal logic program declarative error diagnosis. We lay down the foundations on a general approach to diagnosis using logic programming, and bring out the close relationship between debugging and fault-finding.
Diagnostic debugging can be enacted by contradiction removal methods. It relies on a simple program transformation to provide a contradiction removal approach to debugging, based on revising the assumptions about predicates' correctness and completeness.
The contradiction removal method is justified in turn in terms of well-founded semantics. The loop detection properties of well-founded semantics will allow in the future for a declarative treatment of otherwise endless derivations. The debugging of programs under well-founded semantics with explict negation is also foreseen.
Here, we apply our techniques to finite SLDNF derivations, whose meaning coincides with the well-founded model, for which our contradiction removal method and algorithm is sound and complete. Several examples illustrate the algorithm at work.
We thank JNICT and Esprit BR project Compulog 2 (no 6810) for their support.
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Pereira, L.M., Damásio, C.V., Alferes, J.J. (1993). Debugging by diagnosing assumptions. In: Fritzson, P.A. (eds) Automated and Algorithmic Debugging. AADEBUG 1993. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 749. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/BFb0019400
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BFb0019400
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