Understanding Logic Programming: Concepts and Principles
Table of Contents
- Logic Programming Concepts
- What is logic programming? drill logic_programming
- Prolog drill logic_programming
- Facts in Prolog drill logic_programming
- Rules in Prolog drill logic_programming
- Queries in Prolog drill logic_programming
- Unification in Logic Programming drill logic_programming
- Cut Operator in Prolog drill logic_programming
- Negation as Failure drill logic_programming
- List in Prolog drill logic_programming
Logic Programming Concepts
What is logic programming? drill logic_programming
Front
What is logic programming?
Back
Logic programming is a programming paradigm based on formal logic. Programs are sets of logical statements, and computation is performed by making logical inferences.
Prolog drill logic_programming
Front
What is Prolog?
Back
Prolog is a logic programming language. It is based on first-order predicate calculus and is particularly suited for problems involving symbolic reasoning and database queries.
Facts in Prolog drill logic_programming
Front
What are facts in Prolog?
Back
Facts are basic assertions about the problem domain. They are unconditionally true statements, typically represented as predicates. For example: `parent(john, mary).`
Rules in Prolog drill logic_programming
Front
What are rules in Prolog?
Back
Rules in Prolog define relationships or inferences based on other facts or rules. They have a head and a body, separated by `:-`. For example: `grandparent(X, Y) :- parent(X, Z), parent(Z, Y).`
Queries in Prolog drill logic_programming
Front
How do queries work in Prolog?
Back
Queries in Prolog are used to ask questions about the knowledge base. They are evaluated against facts and rules to determine if they are true or to find variable bindings that make them true. Example: `?- parent(john, X).`
Unification in Logic Programming drill logic_programming
Front
What is unification in logic programming?
Back
Unification is the process of making two terms identical by finding a substitution for variables. It's a fundamental operation in logic programming used for pattern matching and inference.
Cut Operator in Prolog drill logic_programming
Front
What is the cut operator (!) in Prolog?
Back
The cut operator (!) is used for controlling backtracking in Prolog. It commits to the choices made so far in the resolution of a goal, preventing backtracking beyond that point.
Negation as Failure drill logic_programming
Front
What is "negation as failure" in logic programming?
Back
Negation as failure is a non-monotonic inference rule used in logic programming. It assumes that any statement that cannot be proved true is false. In Prolog, it's typically implemented using the `\+` operator.
List in Prolog drill logic_programming
Front
How are lists represented in Prolog?
Back
Lists in Prolog are represented as sequences of elements enclosed in square brackets, separated by commas. The empty list is []. A list can be split into its head and tail, like [Head|Tail].