Automated Deduction and its Application to Mathematics (11w2170)

The goal of researchers in automated deduction is to develop methods and tools to assist mathematicians, scientists, and engineers with some of the deductive aspects of their work. In contrast to other symbolic computation systems, the core methods in automated deduction focus on searching for proofs and counterexamples. Automated deduction can be applied to wide-ranging problems in nearly any formal language. However, for problems in abstract mathematics and logic, it has been most successful to date when applied to problems stated in first-order and equational logic. This workshop was the continuation of a series of yearly workshops that began in the summer of 2001 (http://www.cs.unm.edu/ ̃veroff/ADAM/). The workshops have provided an opportunity to bring together researchers and students from both the mathematics and automated deduction communities to consider the application of automated deduction to problems in mathematics and logic. The objectives of the workshops include: collaborations on specific math and logic problems; expanding the community of mathematicians interested in applying automated deduction methods to their own research problems; and the continued development of automated deduction tools and strategies. This year’s workshop was dedicated to the memory of Bill McCune, whose untimely passing in May 2011 shocked and saddened his many friends and colleagues. Bill is perhaps best known for his expertise in the design and implementation of automated reasoning programs. His programs, including Otter [8], Prover9 and Mace4 [9], have been used to solve numerous open questions in mathematics and logic and continue to be used by researchers from various disciplines. Indeed, many of the presentations and discussions in this workshop were directly or indirectly influenced by Bill’s work.