Partial evaluation of metaprograms in a “multiple worlds” logic language

This paper describes a partial evaluation system specifically designed to be used as an automatic compilation tool for metaprograms in a KBMS (EPSILON) based on Prolog. EPSILON main underlying concepts are the extension of Prolog with theories (“multiple worlds”) and the use of metaprogramming as the basic technique to define new inference engines and tools. Our partial evaluator is oriented towards theories and metainterpreter specialization. Being designed to be used as an automatic compiler, it does not require declarations from the user to control the unfolding process. It handles full Prolog and provides also an elegant solution to the problem of the partial evaluation of incomplete and self-modifying programs, by exploiting the multiple worlds feature added to Prolog. EPSILON partial evaluation system turned out to be a very useful and powerful tool to combine the low cost and the flexibility of metaprogramming with the performance requirements of a practical knowledge based system.     

A methodological approach to optimizing RFID deployment

The interest of adopting RFID continues to grow in many industries, ranging from supply chain automation to healthcare management. However, dynamics of the operating environment is one of the major challenges that impede RFID deployment. Even though numerous researchers focus on controlled laboratory experiments to enhance the success of deployment, it is found that system performance in the actual production environment may differ significantly from that conducted in a controlled laboratory, resulting in poor deployment result. To cope with this situation, this paper proposes an RFID Deployment Optimizer (RFIDDO), which is a generic methodology for optimizing the RFID configuration to provide objective, quantifiable data about the data capture performance of RFID readers for comparing and optimizing RFID applications in a scientific manner. A case study has also been conducted in a logistics company to demonstrate the implementation of RFIDDO and provide contextual details to help other firms in coping with the environmental dynamics in the journey of RFID deployment.     

Prolog-ELF incorporating fuzzy logic

Prolog-ELF incorporating fuzzy logic and several useful functions into Prolog has been implemented as a basic language for building knowledge systems with uncertainty or fuzziness. Prolog-ELF inherits all the desirable basic features of Prolog. In addition to assertions with truth-values between 1.0 and 0.5 (0 for exceptional cases), fuzzy sets can be very easily manipulated. An application of fuzzy logical database is illustrated.     

Design and simulation of a sequential Prolog machine

Prolog-X is an implemented portable interactive sequential Prolog system in which clauses are incrementally compiled for a virtual machine called the ZIP Machine. At present, the ZIP Machine is emulated by software, but it has been designed to permit easy implementation in microcode or hardware. Prolog-X running on the software-based emulator provides performance comparable with existing Prolog interpreters. To demonstrate its efficiency, compatibility, and comprehensiveness of implementation, Prolog-X has been used to compile and run several large applications programs. Several novel techniques are used in the implementation, particularly in the areas of the representation of therecordx database, the selection of clauses, and the compilation of arithmetic expressions.     

Multiwalled carbon nanotube-polyimide nanocomposite for MEMS piezoresistive pressure sensor applications

Multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT)-polyimide (PI) nanocomposite was prepared with different MWCNT concentrations and characterized for their piezoresistive response. The morphology and mechanical behavior of the nanocomposite was investigated by scanning electron microscopy and force–displacement spectroscopy respectively. The surface conductivity of the nanocomposite was determined by atomic force microscopy in current mode. Studies reveal that this nanocomposite will be useful for strain-sensing element in micro electro mechanical system (MEMS)/nano electro mechanical system (NEMS) based piezoresistive pressure sensor applications. The study shows that the nanocomposite with 2 % MWCNT content is a unique piezoresistive sensing element for MEMS/NEMS pressure sensor.     

How to invent a Prolog machine

In this paper we study the compilation of Prolog by making visible hidden operations (especially unification), and then optimizing them using well-known partial evaluation techniques. Inspection of straightforward partially evaluated unification algorithms gives an idea how to design special abstract machine instructions which later form the target language of our compilation. We handle typical compiler problems like representation of terms explicitly. This work gives a logical reconstruction of abstract Prolog machine code, and represents an approach of constructing a correct compiler from Prolog to such a code. As an example, we are explaining the unification principles of Warren’s New Prolog Engine within our framework.     

Bounded-wait merge in Shapiro’s Concurrent Prolog

InA Subset of Concurrent Prolog and Its Interpreter (1983), E. Y. Shapiro introduces the language Concurrent Prolog. In his presentation, the problem of guaranteeing bounded-waiting during a merge operation is used as a programming example. Solutions are proposed for binary and n-ary merges. The solutions are, however, completely dependent on specific operational characteristics of a Concurrent Prolog machine or interpreter. This paper presents an alternate approach in which the property of bounded-waiting is incorporated into the semantics of the programs, demonstrable given only the computational model of the language. The solution strategy is to utilize the familiar systems programming techniques of block-on-input and busy-wait. This approach requires that the language be augmented with a metalogical predicate analogous to thevar(_) predicate of Sequential Prolog. The resultant programs are interesting and illustrative examples of Concurrent Prolog as a programming language.     

A Prolog-based natural language front-end system

A Prolog-based natural language front-end system is described with the following major issues of discussion: Domain independence of the syntax analyser was achieved by the ‘generate-and-test’ notion and the domain independent semantic representation; Determiners were treated as higher order predicates; A technique called ‘syntactic feature’ was employed to write a readable parser in Prolog.     

An efficient mutual authentication RFID scheme based on elliptic curve cryptography

Radio frequency identification (RFID) tags have been widely deployed in many applications, such as supply chain management, inventory control, and traffic card payment. However, these applications can suffer from security issues or privacy violations when the underlying data-protection techniques are not properly designed. Hence, many secure RFID authentication protocols have been proposed. According to the resource usage of the tags, secure RFID protocols are classified into four types: full-fledged, simple, lightweight, and ultra-lightweight. In general, non-full-fledged protocols are vulnerable to desynchronization, impersonation, and tracking attacks, and they also lack scalability. If the tag resources allow more flexibility, full-fledged protocols seem to be an attractive solution. In this study, we examine full-fledged RFID authentication protocols and discuss their security issues. We then design a novel RFID authentication protocol based on elliptic curve cryptography, to avoid these issues. In addition, we present a detailed security analysis and a comparison with related studies; the results show that our scheme is more resistant to a variety of attacks and that it has the best scalability, while maintaining competitive levels of efficiency.     

Temporal logic based hardware description and its verification with Prolog

Techniques of hierarchical specification and verification of hardware with temporal logic and Prolog are presented by example. Both hardware designs in gates and state-diagrams are translated into a relation between the present and the next state, which is represented in Prolog.¹⁾ Specifications are constructed by temporal logic that can express state sequences (e.g. timing diagrams) easily and also are translated into a relation between the present and the next state in Prolog. The verification method is based upon the temporal logic decision procedure in Ref. 2) and, referring to the relation tables between the present state and the next state, the verifier can reason in both directions—forward and backward in temporal sequences. Prolog has very powerful pattern matching, and its automatic backtracking capabilities facilitate easy-to-write verifier programs. It is concluded that a total verification system handling various design levels can be constructed with temporal logic and Prolog.     

Fabrication of gold nanoparticle pattern using imprinted hydrogen silsesquioxane pattern for surface-enhanced Raman scattering

This is the first report of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate fabrication using a combination of imprinted hydrogen silsesquioxane (HSQ: HSiO_3/2) patterns and self-assembly of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). To assemble the AuNPs inside the imprinted HSQ pattern, it is important to understand the interactions between AuNPs and AuNPs, and those between AuNPs and HSQ. The authors investigated the effects HSQ surface charges on the self-assembly of AuNPs. It was found that the negatively charged AuNPs were successfully assembled according to the geometry of the negatively charged HSQ pattern. In addition, it was shown that the SERS substrate fabricated from an HSQ consisting of an inorganic polymer was suitable for organic chemical analysis, by comparing it with a substrate fabricated using an organic polymer.     

SAM meets MEMS: reliable fabrication of stable Au-patterns embedded in PDMS using dry peel-off process

This paper describes a reliable method for fabrication of stable gold patterns embedded in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) using a direct peel-off process. Two different surface modifications with self-assembled monolayers were carried out for easy and reliable transfer of Au micro-patterns to the PDMS: (1) perfluorodecyltrichlorosilane on a Si substrate for easy release of the Au patterns from the Si substrate, and (2) (3-mercaptopropyl)trimethoxysilane on the Au patterns to promote the adhesion between the Au patterns and PDMS. Au features as small as 2 μm, in shapes of line and dots, were successfully transferred from the Si substrate to the PDMS over a 3-inch wafer. Transfer of Au patterns to PDMS using the dry peel-off process did not cause any contamination of PDMS, typically seen in wet chemical methods. Finally, the stability of the Au patterns embedded in PDMS was confirmed by the Scotch-tape adhesion test.     

Knowledge information processing language: ShapeUp

A new logic programming language, ShapeUp, is developed. ShapeUp is an expanded Prolog system with string matching facilities. The language has been developed to give programmers a new computer programming environment, especially for knowledge information processing. This area includes natural language comprehension and intelligent text processing systems with better man-machine interfaces. For this kind of application, character string data play a principal part rather than conventional numerical data. In ShapeUp, string patterns are introduced as Prolog ‘terms’. Their matching process is performed inside the unification. Thus, a program is far simpler and easier to write and read in ShapeUp, than in conventional Prolog systems, and program size is extremely reduced.     

Uses of Prolog in implementation of expert systems

Prolog is becoming a popular language in A. I. applications and particularly in the implementation of knowledge based expert systems. We have identified three different uses of Prolog: (1) building expert systems directly in ordinary Prolog, (2) using Prolog as the implementation language for an higher level of interpretation, and (3) extending Prolog with suitable features and directly using it. In this paper, we define the three uses in more details, compare them, and cite some concrete examples.     

The Aurora or-parallel Prolog system

Aurora is a prototype or-parallel implementation of the full Prolog language for shared-memory multiprocessors, developed as part of an informal research collaboration known as the “Gigalips Project”. It currently runs on Sequent and Encore machines. It has been constructed by adapting Sicstus Prolog, a fast, portable, sequential Prolog system. The techniques for constructing a portable multiprocessor version follow those pioneered in a predecessor system, ANL-WAM. The SRI model was adopted as the means to extend the Sicstus Prolog engine for or-parallel operation. We describe the design and main implementation features of the current Aurora system, and present some experimental results. For a range of benchmarks, Aurora on a 20-processor Sequent Symmetry is 4 to 7 times faster than Quintus Prolog on a Sun 3/75. Good performance is also reported on some large-scale Prolog applications.     

Specialisation of Prolog and FCP programs using abstract interpretation

This paper presents an approach to specialising logic programs which is based on abstract interpretation. Program specialisation involves two stages, the construction of an abstract computation tree and a program construction stage. For the tree construction stage, abstract OLDT resolution is defined and used to construct a complete and finite tree corresponding to a given logic program and a goal. In the program construction stage, a specialised program is extracted from this tree. We focus on two logic programming languages: sequential Prolog and Flat Concurrent Prolog. Although the procedural reading of concurrent logic programs is very different from that of sequential programs, the techniques presented provide a uniform approach to the specialisation of both languages. We present the results for Prolog rigorously, and extend them less formally to Flat Concurrent Prolog. There are two main advantages of basing program specialisation on abstract interpretation. Firstly, termination can be ensured by using abstract interpretations over finite domains, while performing a complete flow analysis of the program. Secondly, correctness of the specialised program is closely related to well-defined consistency conditions on the concrete and abstract interpretations.     

RFID-based intelligent shopping environment: a comprehensive evaluation framework with neural computing approach

This research proposes a radio frequency identification (RFID)-based intelligent shopping environment and its distributed reading capability to raise quality of service through improving the automation of product presentation, inventory monitor, billing procedures, manpower logistics, and customer lifetime value prediction. This research also uses RFID to successfully create a smart-shelf-enabled system as an advanced decision-making mechanism for managers. A case study based on a well-known fashion retailing company is used to demonstrate how the proposed system can significantly improve daily business operations. In addition, this research also used artificial neural network to predict the VIP member classification and customer retention rate. The experimental results figure out that the artificial intelligence approach would be outperformed the statistical and decision tree methods. Finally, a questionnaire was administered to 120 customers and investigated their degree of RFID usage willingness and purchase intention based on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology model. The empirical results of our study present the easy-to-use and social influence factors that would be most influenced the customers’ usage willing and purchase intention with RFID technology.     

A Prolog technology theorem prover

An extension of Prolog, based on the model elimination theorem-proving procedure, would permit production of a logically complete Prolog technology theorem prover capable of performing inference operations at a rate approaching that of Prolog itself.