The Larch family of formal specification languages are intended for the precise specification of computing systems. They allow the clean specification of computer programs and the formulation of proofs about program behavior.
The Larch family was developed primarily in the United States in the 1980s and 1990s, involving researchers at Xerox PARC, DEC/SRC, MIT, and other places. Unlike the Z notation, the Larch family has one language for algebraic specification of abstract data types (LSL, the Larch Shared Language), and a separate interface language tailored to each language in which programs are to be written (Modula-3, C, Smalltalk, etc.). The Larch project also developed tools to support the use of formal specifications, including LP, the Larch Prover.
Famous quotes containing the word family:
“In the years of the Roman Republic, before the Christian era, Roman education was meant to produce those character traits that would make the ideal family man. Children were taught primarily to be good to their families. To revere gods, one’s parents, and the laws of the state were the primary lessons for Roman boys. Cicero described the goal of their child rearing as “self- control, combined with dutiful affection to parents, and kindliness to kindred.””
—C. John Sommerville (20th century)