Program-to-Model Extractor

Extract high-level mathematical models from functional code for formal reasoning in Isabelle/HOL.

Overview

This skill transforms functional programs (Haskell, OCaml, F#) into abstract mathematical models suitable for formal verification in Isabelle/HOL. The extraction focuses on the algorithm's mathematical essence—capturing core properties, invariants, and structural patterns while abstracting away language-specific implementation details.

Extraction Workflow

1. Analyze the Source Code

Identify key elements:

• Data structures: Algebraic types, lists, trees, custom types
• Core functions: Main computational logic
• Recursion patterns: Structural, tail, mutual recursion
• Properties: What should be true about inputs/outputs?

2. Extract Data Types

Convert source language types to Isabelle datatypes:

-- Haskell
data Tree a = Leaf | Node a (Tree a) (Tree a)

(* Isabelle *)
datatype 'a tree = Leaf | Node "'a" "'a tree" "'a tree"

3. Model Functions

Choose the appropriate Isabelle construct:

For primitive recursion (terminates obviously):

fun length :: "'a list ⇒ nat" where
  "length [] = 0" |
  "length (x # xs) = 1 + length xs"

For general recursion (needs termination proof):

function gcd :: "nat ⇒ nat ⇒ nat" where
  "gcd m n = (if n = 0 then m else gcd n (m mod n))"
by pat_completeness auto
termination by (relation "measure snd") auto

For non-recursive definitions:

definition compose :: "('b ⇒ 'c) ⇒ ('a ⇒ 'b) ⇒ ('a ⇒ 'c)" where
  "compose f g = (λx. f (g x))"

4. State Properties

Extract and formalize key properties as lemmas:

lemma length_append: "length (xs @ ys) = length xs + length ys"
lemma quicksort_permutes: "mset (quicksort xs) = mset xs"
lemma quicksort_sorted: "sorted (quicksort xs)"

5. Identify Invariants

For stateful or accumulator-based functions, state what holds during computation:

fun sum_acc :: "int ⇒ int list ⇒ int" where
  "sum_acc acc [] = acc" |
  "sum_acc acc (x # xs) = sum_acc (acc + x) xs"

lemma sum_acc_correct: "sum_acc acc xs = acc + sum_list xs"

Common Extraction Patterns

List Processing

Source: Recursive list operations Model: Isabelle list functions with length/permutation properties See: extraction_patterns.md

Sorting Algorithms

Source: Comparison-based sorting Model: Functions with

sorted

and

mset

(permutation) properties See: extraction_patterns.md

Tree Operations

Source: Recursive tree traversals and folds Model: Isabelle datatypes with structural recursion See: extraction_patterns.md

Higher-Order Functions

Source: map, filter, fold, composition Model: Isabelle higher-order definitions with fusion lemmas See: extraction_patterns.md

Partial Functions

Source: Functions that may fail (division, lookup) Model: Option types with case analysis See: extraction_patterns.md

Tail Recursion

Source: Accumulator-based functions Model: Functions with accumulator correctness lemmas See: extraction_patterns.md

Abstraction Guidelines

Focus on high-level mathematical essence:

✓ Do extract:

• Core algorithm structure
• Mathematical properties (sorted, permutation, etc.)
• Invariants and pre/post-conditions
• Structural recursion patterns
• Type relationships

✗ Don't extract:

• Performance optimizations
• Language-specific syntax details
• Implementation tricks
• Memory layout concerns
• Specific evaluation strategies

Example: Complete Extraction

Source (Haskell):

quicksort :: Ord a => [a] -> [a]
quicksort [] = []
quicksort (p:xs) = quicksort lesser ++ [p] ++ quicksort greater
  where lesser  = filter (< p) xs
        greater = filter (>= p) xs

Extracted Model (Isabelle):

fun quicksort :: "'a::linorder list ⇒ 'a list" where
  "quicksort [] = []" |
  "quicksort (p # xs) =
     quicksort (filter (λx. x < p) xs) @ [p] @
     quicksort (filter (λx. x ≥ p) xs)"

(* Key properties *)
lemma quicksort_permutes: "mset (quicksort xs) = mset xs"
lemma quicksort_sorted: "sorted (quicksort xs)"
lemma quicksort_correct:
  "sorted (quicksort xs) ∧ mset (quicksort xs) = mset xs"

Explanation:

• Converted type constraint

  Ord a

  to

  'a::linorder

• Preserved structural recursion pattern
• Extracted two key properties: permutation and sortedness
• Combined into correctness specification

References

• extraction_patterns.md: Detailed patterns for common functional programming constructs
• isabelle_syntax.md: Quick reference for Isabelle/HOL syntax

Tips

• Start with the simplest functions first to build up the model incrementally
• Use

  mset

  (multisets) to express permutation properties elegantly
• For complex recursion, explicitly state the termination measure
• Group related lemmas together (e.g., all properties of a single function)
• Use meaningful names that reflect mathematical concepts, not implementation details