Wide-spectrum language
Encyclopedia
A wide-spectrum language (WSL) is a programming language
designed to be simultaneously a low-level
and a high-level
language—possibly a non-executable specification language
. Wide-spectrum languages are designed to support a programming methodology based on program refinement.
The concept was introduced by F. L. Bauer et al. in 1978:
The advantage of a single language rather than separate specification, high-level, and low-level languages is that the program can be incrementally refined, with intermediate versions retaining some higher-level and some lower-level constructs.
Bauer's group developed the CIP-L wide-spectrum language and the CIP-S program transformation system.
Programming language
A programming language is an artificial language designed to communicate instructions to a machine, particularly a computer. Programming languages can be used to create programs that control the behavior of a machine and/or to express algorithms precisely....
designed to be simultaneously a low-level
Low-level programming language
In computer science, a low-level programming language is a programming language that provides little or no abstraction from a computer's instruction set architecture. Generally this refers to either machine code or assembly language...
and a high-level
High-level programming language
A high-level programming language is a programming language with strong abstraction from the details of the computer. In comparison to low-level programming languages, it may use natural language elements, be easier to use, or be from the specification of the program, making the process of...
language—possibly a non-executable specification language
Specification language
A specification language is a formal language used in computer science.Unlike most programming languages, which are directly executable formal languages used to implement a system, specification languages are used during systems analysis, requirements analysis and systems design.Specification...
. Wide-spectrum languages are designed to support a programming methodology based on program refinement.
The concept was introduced by F. L. Bauer et al. in 1978:
...The program should then be developed step by step applying correctness
preserving transformations.... The development process
thus involves usually multiple reshapings....
Since most current programming languages do not contain
all the concepts needed for the formulation of the different
versions, the programmer is nowadays forced to
use different languages. To avoid the transition from
one language to another, it seems appropriate to have
one coherent language frame covering the whole spectrum
outlined above, i.e. a wide spectrum language.
The advantage of a single language rather than separate specification, high-level, and low-level languages is that the program can be incrementally refined, with intermediate versions retaining some higher-level and some lower-level constructs.
Bauer's group developed the CIP-L wide-spectrum language and the CIP-S program transformation system.
See also
- Extended MLExtended MLExtended ML is a wide-spectrum language covering both specification and implementation and based on the ML programming language. It extends the syntax of ML to include axioms, which need not be executable but can rigorously specify the behavior of the program...
, a wide-spectrum language based on ML - RAISE Specification LanguageRAISE specification languageRAISE was developed as part of the European ESPRIT II LaCoS project in the 1990s, led by Dines Bjørner. It consists of a set of tools based around a specification language for software development...
, described as a wide-spectrum specification language