Programming Languages

CSD PL research is concerned with a comprehensive science of programming that encompasses not only language design and implementation as ordinarily conceived, but also specification, verification, implementation, evaluation, and validation of programs. We believe that programming is fundamentally an explanatory activity, which requires that a program be codified in a form that not only supports execution on a computer, but also manifests its design so that they can be understood by developers and maintainers, and subjected to mechanical verification and validation.

Our work comprises a broad spectrum of research, ranging from abstract theories of programming concepts to large-scale implementations of these ideas in working software systems. It is precisely this broad scope of investigation that distinguishes us from our competitors. Over the last two decades we have repeatedly demonstrated that fundamental theory is essential for building robust and reliable systems, and that enduring and elegant theories arise from meeting the demands of building such systems.

Our success in advancing an integrated view of Computer Science encourages us to take on even greater challenges, and opens up many new possibilities for us to explore. We envision that future languages will have fully formal definitions with fully checked proofs of their safety and security properties as a matter of course.