Intersection Type System Research Articles

Imperative Compositional Programming: Type Sound Distributive Intersection Subtyping with References via Bidirectional Typing

Compositional programming is a programming paradigm that emphasizes modularity and is implemented in the CP programming language. The foundations for compositional programming are based on a purely functional variant of System F with intersection types, called Fi+, which includes distributivity rules for subtyping. This paper shows how to extend compositional programming and CP with mutable references, enabling a modular, imperative compositional programming style. A technical obstacle solved in our work is the interaction between distributive intersection subtyping and mutable references. Davies and Pfenning [2000] studied this problem in standard formulations of intersection type systems and argued that, when combined with references, distributive subtyping rules lead to type unsoundness. To recover type soundness, they proposed dropping distributivity rules in subtyping. CP cannot adopt this solution, since it fundamentally relies on distributivity for modularity. Therefore, we revisit the problem and show that, by adopting bidirectional typing, a more lightweight and type sound restriction is possible: we can simply restrict the typing rule for references. This solution retains distributivity and an unrestricted intersection introduction rule. We present a first calculus, based on Davies and Pfenning's work, which illustrates the generality of our solution. Then we present an extension of Fi+ with references, which adopts our restriction and enables imperative compositional programming. We implement an extension of CP with references and show how to model a modular live-variable analysis in CP. Both calculi and their proofs are formalized in the Coq proof assistant.

Quantitative Inhabitation for Different Lambda Calculi in a Unifying Framework

We solve the inhabitation problem for a language called λ!, a subsuming paradigm (inspired by call-by-push-value) being able to encode, among others, call-by-name and call-by-value strategies of functional programming. The type specification uses a non-idempotent intersection type system, which is able to capture quantitative properties about the dynamics of programs. As an application, we show how our general methodology can be used to derive inhabitation algorithms for different lambda-calculi that are encodable into λ!.

On type-cases, union elimination, and occurrence typing

We extend classic union and intersection type systems with a type-case construction and show that the combination of the union elimination rule of the former and the typing rules for type-cases of our extension encompasses occurrence typing . To apply this system in practice, we define a canonical form for the expressions of our extension, called MSC-form. We show that an expression of the extension is typable if and only if its MSC-form is, and reduce the problem of typing the latter to the one of reconstructing annotations for that term. We provide a sound algorithm that performs this reconstruction and a proof-of-concept implementation.

From Semantics to Types: the Case of the Imperative lambda-Calculus

We propose an intersection type system for an imperative lambda-calculus based on a state monad and equipped with algebraic operations to read and write to the store. The system is derived by solving a suitable domain equation in the category of omega-algebraic lattices; the solution consists of a filter-model generalizing the well-known construction for ordinary lambda-calculus. Then the type system is obtained out of the term interpretations into the filter-model itself. The so obtained type system satisfies the "type-semantics" property, and it is sound and complete by construction.

Solvability = Typability + Inhabitation

We extend the classical notion of solvability to a lambda-calculus equipped with pattern matching. We prove that solvability can be characterized by means of typability and inhabitation in an intersection type system P based on non-idempotent types. We show first that the system P characterizes the set of terms having canonical form, i.e. that a term is typable if and only if it reduces to a canonical form. But the set of solvable terms is properly contained in the set of canonical forms. Thus, typability alone is not sufficient to characterize solvability, in contrast to the case for the lambda-calculus. We then prove that typability, together with inhabitation, provides a full characterization of solvability, in the sense that a term is solvable if and only if it is typable and the types of all its arguments are inhabited. We complete the picture by providing an algorithm for the inhabitation problem of P.

The untyped computational λ-calculus and its intersection type discipline

We study a Curry style type assignment system for untyped λ-calculi with effects, based on Moggi's monadic approach. Moving from the abstract definition of monads, we introduce a version of the call-by-value computational λ-calculus based on Wadler's variant, without let, and with unit and bind operators. We define a notion of reduction for the calculus and prove it confluent.We then introduce an intersection type system inspired by Barendregt, Coppo and Dezani system for ordinary untyped λ-calculus, establishing type invariance under conversion.Finally, we introduce a notion of convergence, which is precisely related to reduction, and characterize convergent terms via their types.

Pre-grammars and Inhabitation for a Subset of Rank 2 Intersection Types

In this paper, we identify a subset of types in the rank 2 intersection type system, where types do not contain positive occurrences of intersections. We extend the notion of pre-grammar of a type and address the type-inhabitation problem for types in this subset, as well as their intersections.

Natural Deduction and Normalization Proofs for the Intersection Type Discipline

Refining and extending previous work by Retor\'e, we develop a systematic approach to intersection types via natural deduction. We show how a step of beta reduction can be seen as performing, at the level of typing derivations, Prawitz reductions in parallel. Then we derive as immediate consequences of Subject Reduction the main theorems about normalization for intersection types: for system D, strong normalization, for system Omega, the leftmost reduction termination for terms typable without Omega.

Intersection Subtyping with Constructors

We study the question of extending the BCD intersection type system with additional type constructors. On the typing side, we focus on adding the usual rules for product types. On the subtyping side, we consider a generic way of defining a subtyping relation on families of types which include intersection types. We find back the BCD subtyping relation by considering the particular case where the type constructors are intersection, omega and arrow. We obtain an extension of BCD subtyping to product types as another instance. We show how the preservation of typing by both reduction and expansion is satisfied in all the considered cases. Our approach takes benefits from a "subformula property" of the proposed presentation of the subtyping relation.

Towards a Semantic Measure of the Execution Time in Call-by-Value lambda-Calculus

We investigate the possibility of a semantic account of the execution time (i.e. the number of beta-steps leading to the normal form, if any) for the shuffling calculus, an extension of Plotkin's call-by-value lambda-calculus. For this purpose, we use a linear logic based denotational model that can be seen as a non-idempotent intersection type system: relational semantics. Our investigation is inspired by similar ones for linear logic proof-nets and untyped call-by-name lambda-calculus. We first prove a qualitative result: a (possibly open) term is normalizable for weak reduction (which does not reduce under abstractions) if and only if its interpretation is not empty. We then show that the size of type derivations can be used to measure the execution time. Finally, we show that, differently from the case of linear logic and call-by-name lambda-calculus, the quantitative information enclosed in type derivations does not lift to types (i.e. to the interpretation of terms). To get a truly semantic measure of execution time in a call-by-value setting, we conjecture that a refinement of its syntax and operational semantics is needed.

Nominal essential intersection types

Nominal systems are an alternative approach for the treatment of variables in computational systems, where first-order syntax is generalised to provide support for the specification of binding operators. In this work, an intersection type system is presented for nominal terms. The subject reduction property is shown to hold for a specialised notion of typed nominal rewriting, thus ensuring preservation of types under computational execution.

Polyadic approximations, fibrations and intersection types

Starting from an exact correspondence between linear approximations and non-idempotent intersection types, we develop a general framework for building systems of intersection types characterizing normalization properties. We show how this construction, which uses in a fundamental way Melliès and Zeilberger's ``type systems as functors'' viewpoint, allows us to recover equivalent versions of every well known intersection type system (including Coppo and Dezani's original system, as well as its non-idempotent variants independently introduced by Gardner and de Carvalho). We also show how new systems of intersection types may be built almost automatically in this way.

Execution time of λ-terms via denotational semantics and intersection types

The multiset-based relational model of linear logic induces a semantics of the untyped λ-calculus, which corresponds with a non-idempotent intersection type system, System R. We prove that, in System R, the size of type derivations and the size of types are closely related to the execution time of λ-terms in a particular environment machine, Krivine's machine.

Intersection type calculi of bounded dimension

A notion of dimension in intersection typed λ-calculi is presented. The dimension of a typed λ-term is given by the minimal norm of an elaboration (a proof theoretic decoration) necessary for typing the term at its type, and, intuitively, measures intersection introduction as a resource. Bounded-dimensional intersection type calculi are shown to enjoy subject reduction, since terms can be elaborated in non-increasing norm under β-reduction. We prove that a multiset interpretation (corresponding to a non-idempotent and non-linear interpretation of intersection) of dimensionality corresponds to the number of simultaneous constraints required during search for inhabitants. As a consequence, the inhabitation problem is decidable in bounded multiset dimension, and it is proven to be EXPSPACE-complete. This result is a substantial generalization of inhabitation for the rank 2-fragment, yielding a calculus with decidable inhabitation which is independent of rank. Our results give rise to a new criterion (dimensional bound) for subclasses of intersection type calculi with a decidable inhabitation problem, which is orthogonal to previously known criteria, and which should have immediate applications in synthesis. Additionally, we give examples of dimensional analysis of fragments of the intersection type system, including conservativity over simple types, rank 2-types, and normal form typings, and we provide some observations towards dimensional analysis of other systems. It is suggested (for future work) that our notion of dimension may have semantic interpretations in terms of of reduction complexity.

Strong Normalization through Intersection Types and Memory

We characterize β-strongly normalizing λ-terms by means of a non-idempotent intersection type system. More precisely, we first define a memory calculus K together with a non-idempotent intersection type system K, and we show that a K-term t is typable in K if and only if t is K-strongly normalizing. We then show that β-strong normalization is equivalent to K-strong normalization. We conclude since λ-terms are strictly included in K-terms.

Typing Classes and Mixins with Intersection Types

We study an assignment system of intersection types for a lambda-calculus with records and a record-merge operator, where types are preserved both under subject reduction and expansion. The calculus is expressive enough to naturally represent mixins as functions over recursively defined classes, whose fixed points, the objects, are recursive records. In spite of the double recursion that is involved in their definition, classes and mixins can be meaningfully typed without resorting to neither recursive nor F-bounded polymorphic types. We then adapt mixin construct and composition to Java and C#, relying solely on existing features in such a way that the resulting code remains typable in the respective type systems. We exhibit some example code, and study its typings in the intersection type system via interpretation into the lambda-calculus with records we have proposed.

Indexed linear logic and higher-order model checking

In recent work, Kobayashi observed that the acceptance by an alternating tree automaton A of an infinite tree T generated by a higher-order recursion scheme G may be formulated as the typability of the recursion scheme G in an appropriate intersection type system associated to the automaton A. The purpose of this article is to establish a clean connection between this line of work and Bucciarelli and Ehrhard's indexed linear logic. This is achieved in two steps. First, we recast Kobayashi's result in an equivalent infinitary intersection type system where intersection is not idempotent anymore. Then, we show that the resulting type system is a fragment of an infinitary version of Bucciarelli and Ehrhard's indexed linear logic. While this work is very preliminary and does not integrate key ingredients of higher-order model-checking like priorities, it reveals an interesting and promising connection between higher-order model-checking and linear logic.

Liquid Intersection Types

We present a new type system combining refinement types and the expressiveness of intersection type discipline. The use of such features makes it possible to derive more precise types than in the original refinement system. We have been able to prove several interesting properties for our system (including subject reduction) and developed an inference algorithm, which we proved to be sound.

Uniform Proofs of Normalisation and Approximation for Intersection Types

We present intersection type systems in the style of sequent calculus, modifying the systems that Valentini introduced to prove normalisation properties without using the reducibility method. Our systems are more natural than Valentini's ones and equivalent to the usual natural deduction style systems. We prove the characterisation theorems of strong and weak normalisation through the proposed systems, and, moreover, the approximation theorem by means of direct inductive arguments. This provides in a uniform way proofs of the normalisation and approximation theorems via type systems in sequent calculus style.

Explicit substitution calculi with de Bruijn indices and intersection type systems

Explicit substitution calculi with de Bruijn indices and intersection type systems