Research Interests

I am interested in investigating ways in which Mathematical Logic and formal proof theory can be applied to various areas of Computing Science. I have been working on applications of set theory to programming language semantics, and developing a language, called SetLog, which extends the traditional logic programming by providing (real) set abstractions. My goals are to study the applications of SetLog to databases.

I am very interested in the techniques of Data Mining and more specifically in the discovery of temporal patterns. I am currently participating in a small group that is working on an efficient method for discovering sequential patterns that involve time constraints.

I am also interested in software specification/verification. I am currently working on developing a logical language based also on set theory that will be useful for software requirements specification and analysis. The syntax of this formal language is very similar to Z, a notation that is successfully used for this purpose. The new theory would provide formal semantics for Z and the basis for formal analysis of Z specifications.

Finally, I am interested in the use of multimedia technology in the design of courses or supplemental course material for university students. Ian Cavers and I are leading a project that investigates the use of Web-based technology for effective design and delivery of courses. Our lab is currently offering a series of interactive, self-paced, hyper-media courses that provide a comprehensive introduction to the computing resources available on campus.

Affiliated Web Page(s)

Database Systems Laboratory: http://www.cs.ubc.ca/nest/dbsl/dbsl.html