Larch Prover

Larch Prover, or LP for short, is an interactive theorem proving system for multisorted first-order logic. It was used at MIT and elsewhere during the 1990s to reason about designs for circuits, concurrent algorithms, hardware, and software. Unlike most theorem provers, which attempt to find proofs automatically for correctly stated conjectures, LP is intended to assist users in finding and correcting flaws in conjectures — the predominant activity in the early stages of the design process. Larch Prover, or LP for short, is an interactive theorem proving system for multisorted first-order logic. It was used at MIT and elsewhere during the 1990s to reason about designs for circuits, concurrent algorithms, hardware, and software. Unlike most theorem provers, which attempt to find proofs automatically for correctly stated conjectures, LP is intended to assist users in finding and correcting flaws in conjectures — the predominant activity in the early stages of the design process. LP works efficiently on large problems, has many important user amenities, and can be used by relatively naïve users. It was developed by Stephen J. Garland and John V. Guttag at the MIT Laboratory for Computer Science.