题目：Lambda Calculus as a Workflow Model

演讲人：Dr. Andrew Wendelborn，澳大利亚Adelaide大学

地点：东五楼二楼210学术报告厅

时间：6月4日上午9：20-10：30

演讲摘要：

Data-oriented workflows are often used in scientific applications for executing a set of dependent tasks across multiple computers. We discuss how these can be modeled using lambda calculus, and how ideas from functional programming are applicable in the design of workflows. Such an approach avoids the restrictions often found in workflow languages, permitting the implementation of complex application logic and data manipulation. This talk explains why lambda calculus is an appropriate model for workflow representation, and how a suitably efficient implementation can provide a wide range of capabilities to developers. The presented approach also permits high-level workflow features to be implemented at user level, in terms of a small set of low-level primitives provided by the language implementation.

演讲人简历及研究背景：

Dr. Andrew Wendelborn is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Computer Science, University of Adelaide, and a researcher with e-Research SA. He received his PhD from the University of Adelaide in 1986. He joined the faculty of University of Adelaide in 1985. Before joining academia, he was a software engineer for ICL in Australia and the UK, and an application developer for the Government of South Australia. He has had visiting positions at the City University of Hong Kong, the Asian Institute of Technology (Bangkok), University of Southern California, and, on several occasions, at INRIA Sophia Antipolis / University of Nice (France), where he was an IUF invited professor in 2005. His principal current research interest is programming notations for grid computing, a heterogeneous system of networks, computers, and other devices that collectively act as a single geographically distributed "virtual" computer.

Research background:

He utilizes a formalism known as Kahn Process Networks, a well-defined high-level semantic model for the composition of streams of data. He has a particular interest in reconfiguration of a PN to adapt to the highly dynamic changing environment typical of a grid, and the use of reflective (metalevel) programming as the basis for the architecture of such adaptive software. They have designed and implemented (in Java) a prototype Geographic Information System (GIS) demonstrating these principles. They are now conducting experiments in the use of a metalevel programming to provide adaptation in the presence of changes in network parameters. He has a general interest in middleware infrastructure for distributed high performance computing. This involves several interdisciplinary projects, especially improved data access and utilization for users of synchrotron-based instruments. He also participates in a research group in parallel functional programming, especially data flow computation and multithreaded run-time systems. In collaboration with EU researchers, he is investigating component-based design in object-based distributed systems, the relationship of such design to grid workflows and web services, and in particular the efficient processing of information streams in such an environment.