This book is the first comprehensive survey of the field of constraint databases. Constraint databases are a fairly new and active area of database research. The key idea is that constraints, such as linear or polynomial equations, are used to represent large, or even infinite, sets in a compact way. The ability to deal with infinite sets makes constraint databases particularly promising as a technology for integrating spatial and temporal data with standard re lational databases. Constraint databases bring techniques from a variety of fields, such as logic and model theory, algebraic and...

This volume contains the 13 best of the 18 papers presented at the first MFDBS conference held in Dresden, GDR, January 19-23, 1987. A short summary of the two panel discussions is also included. The volume is intended to be a reflection of the current state of knowledge and a guide to further development in database theory. The main topics covered are: theoretical fundaments of the relational data model (dependency theory, design theory, null values, query processing, complexity theory), and of its extensions (graphical representations, NF2-models), conceptual modelling of distributed...

This volume is the proceedings of the second International Conference on Database Theory (ICDT) held in Bruges, Belgium, August 31 - September 2, 1988. ICDT intends to provide a European forum for the international research community working on theoretical issues related to database and knowledge base systems. The proceedings of this conference contain all invited and accepted papers, which represent the latest results obtained in ongoing research in database theory worldwide. Most major themes of research in database theory are covered in ICDT '88: the relational model, logic and databases,...

Advanced information technology is pervasive in any kind of human activity - science, business, finance, management and others - and this is particularly true for database systems. Both database theory and database applications constitute a very important part of the state of the art of computer science. Meanwhile there is some discrepancy between different aspects of database activity. Theoreticians are sometimes not much aware of the real needs of business and industry; software specialists not always have the time or the apportunity to get acquainted with the most recent theoretical ideas...

This book is the first comprehensive survey of the field of constraint databases. Constraint databases are a fairly new and active area of database research. The key idea is that constraints, such as linear or polynomial equations, are used to represent large, or even infinite, sets in a compact way. The ability to deal with infinite sets makes constraint databases particularly promising as a technology for integrating spatial and temporal data with standard re lational databases. Constraint databases bring techniques from a variety of fields, such as logic and model theory, algebraic and...

This book presents an overview of the most fundamental aspects of the theory that underlies the Relational Database Model. As such it is self-contained though experience with formal models and abstract data manipulating on the one hand and with the practical use of a relational system on the other hand can help the reader. Such experience will offer the reader a better understanding of and a motivation for the different concepts, theories and results mentioned in the book. We have focussed on the most basic concepts and aspects of the relational model, without trying to give a complete...

This book is intended as a text for a course in programming languages. The pre requisites for such a course are insight in structured programming and knowledge as well as practical experience of at least one (e.g., Pascal) of the programming languages treated in the book. The emphasis is on language concepts rather than on syntactic details. The book covers a number of important language concepts that are related to data struc tures. The comparison of the programming languages Pascal, Algol 68, PL/1 and Ada consists in investigating how these concepts are supported by each of these languages....