Programming with algebraic structures: design of the MAGMA language

  • Authors:
  • Wieb Bosma;John Cannon;Graham Matthews

  • Affiliations:
  • Univ. of Sydney, Sydney, Australia;Univ. of Sydney, Sydney, Australia;Univ. of Sydney, Sydney, Australia

  • Venue:
  • ISSAC '94 Proceedings of the international symposium on Symbolic and algebraic computation
  • Year:
  • 1994

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Abstract

MAGMA is a new software system for computational algebra, number theory and geometry whose design is centred on the concept of algebraic structure (magma). The use of algebraic structure as a design paradigm provides a natural strong typing mechanism. Further, structures and their morphisms appear in the language as first class objects. Standard mathematical notions are used for the basic data types. The result is a powerful, clean language which deals with objects in a mathematically rigorous manner. The conceptual and implementation ideas behind MAGMA will be examined in this paper. This conceptual base differs significantly from those underlying other computer algebra systems.