Program verification: the very idea

The notion of program verification appears to trade upon an equivocation. Algorithms, as logical structures, are appropriate subjects for deductive verification. Programs, as causal models of those structures, are not. The success of program verification as a generally applicable and completely reli...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Communications of the ACM 1988-09, Vol.31 (9), p.1048-1063
Main Author: FETZER, J. H
Format: Magazinearticle
Language:English
Subjects:
Algorithms
Applied sciences
Computer science
control theory
systems
Exact sciences and technology
Software
Software engineering
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Summary:The notion of program verification appears to trade upon an equivocation. Algorithms, as logical structures, are appropriate subjects for deductive verification. Programs, as causal models of those structures, are not. The success of program verification as a generally applicable and completely reliable method for guaranteeing program performance is not even a theoretical possibility.
ISSN:0001-0782
1557-7317
DOI:10.1145/48529.48530