Extract

The ideal of verified software has long been the goal of research in Computer Science. This article argues that the time is ripe to embark on a Grand Challenge project to construct a program verifier, based on a sound and complete theory of programming, and evaluated by experimental application to a large and representative sample of useful computer software.

INTRODUCTION

Computer Science owes its existence to the invention of the stored-program digital computer. It derives continuously renewed inspiration from the constant stream of new computer applications, which are still being opened up by half a century of continuous reduction in the cost of computer chips, and by spectacular increases in their reliability, performance and capacity. The science of programming has made comparable advances with the discovery of faster and more general algorithms, and with the development of a wide range of specific application programs, spreading previously unimaginable benefits into almost all aspects of human life.

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