It is well known that interpolation properties of logics underlying specification formalisms play an important role in the study of structured specifications, they have also many other useful logical consequences. In this paper, we solve the interpolation problem for Grothendieck institutions which have recently emerged as an important mathematical structure underlying heterogenous multi-logic specification. Our main result can be used in the applications in several different ways. It can be used to establish interpolation properties for multi-logic Grothendieck institutions, but also to lift interpolation properties from unsorted logics to their many sorted variants. The importance of the latter resides in the fact that, unlike other structural properties of logics, many sorted interpolation is a non-trivial generalisation of unsorted interpolation. The concepts, results, and the applications discussed in this paper are illustrated with several examples from conventional logic and algebraic specification theory.

theory, categorical logic. model theory that emerged in computer science studies of software specification and semantics. To handle proof theory, our institutions use an extension of traditional categorical logic with sets of sentences as objects instead of single sentences, and with morphisms representing proofs as usual. A natural equivalence relation on institutions is defined such that its equivalence classes are logics. Several invariants are defined for this equivalence, including a Lindenbaum

: Although modularisation is basic to modern computing, it has been little studied for logic-based programming. We treat modularisation for equational logic programming using the institution of category-based equational logic in three different ways: (1) to provide a generic satisfaction condition for equational logics; (2) to give a category-based semantics for queries and their solutions; and (3) as an abstract definition of compilation from one (equational) logic programming language to another. Regarding (2), we study soundness and completeness for equational logic programming queries and their solutions. This can be understood as ordinary soundness and completeness in a suitable "non-logical" institution. Soundness holds for all module imports, but completeness only holds for conservative module imports. Categorybased equational signatures are seen as modules, and morphisms of such signatures as module imports. Regarding (3), completeness corresponds to compiler correc...

Generalizations of Craig interpolation are investigated for equational logic. Our approach is to do as much as possible at a categorical level, before drawing out the concrete implications.

model theory that emerged in computer science studies of software specification and semantics. To handle proof theory, our institutions use an extension of traditional categorical logic with sets of sentences as objects instead of single sentences, and with morphisms representing proofs as usual. A natural equivalence relation on institutions is defined such that its equivalence classes are logics. Several invariants are defined for this equivalence, including a Lindenbaum

In this paper we develop an axiomatic approach to structured specifications in which both the underlying logical system and corresponding institution of the structured specifications are treated as abstract institutions, which means two levels of institution independence. This abstract axiomatic approach provides a uniform framework for the study of structured specifications independently from any actual choice of specification building operators, and moreover it unifies the theory and the model oriented approaches. Within this framework we develop concepts and results about ‘abstract structured specifications ’ such as co-limits, model amalgamation, compactness, interpolation, sound and complete proof theory, and pushout-style parameterization with sharing, all of them in a top down manner dictated by the upper level of institution independence. 1.

model theoretic framework of the theory of institutions. For this semantics we develop a generic interpolation result which can be easily applied to various concrete situations from the theory and practice of specification and programming. Our study of interpolation is motivated by a number of important applications to computing science especially in the area of structured specifications. 1.

We present a generic method for establishing interpolation properties by ‘borrowing ’ across logical systems. The framework used is that of the so-caled ‘institution theory ’ which is a categorical abstract model theory providing a formal definition for the informal concept of ‘logical system ’ and a mathematical concept of ‘homomorphism ’ between logical systems. We develop three different styles or patterns to apply the proposed borrowing interpolation method. These three ways are illustrated by the development of a series of concrete interpolation results for logical systems that are used in mathematical logic or in computing science, most of these interpolation properties apparently being new results. These logical systems include fragments of (classical many sorted) first order logic with equality, preordered algebra and its Horn fragment, partial algebra, higher order logic. Applications are also expected for many other logical systems, including membership algebra, various types of order sorted algebra, the logic of predefined types, etc., and various combinations of the logical systems discussed here. 1.