Evaluation of a Semi-Automated Theorem Prover (Part II)

This report describes a pilot study of the Barnacle interface to the Clam automated theorem prover. The intent is to gather information about the usability of Barnacle for inductive theorem proving. This information is intended to guide further development of the Barnacle interface to Clam. The focus is on the utility of Barnacle in allowing users to spot toiling proofs and to intervene to rectify such proofs, usually by overriding Clam’s choice of induction schema. The results tentatively indicate that Barnacle does facilitate user interaction with Clam to avoid unproductive proof steps. Opinions gathered from the subjects show a favourable reaction to the Barnacle interface and provide some pointers to future work on the interface. The results also show the potential benefits of providing interactivity to fully-automated theorem provers via an effective interface.