A Practical Approach for Dynamic Taint Tracking with Control-flow Relationships

Dynamic taint tracking, a technique that traces relationships between values as a program executes, has been used to support a variety of software engineering tasks. Some taint tracking systems only consider data flows and ignore control flows. As a result, relationships between some values are not reflected by the analysis. Many applications of taint tracking either benefit from or rely on these relationships being traced, but past works have found that tracking control flows resulted in over-tainting, dramatically reducing the precision of the taint tracking system. In this article, we introduce Conflux , alternative semantics for propagating taint tags along control flows. Conflux aims to reduce over-tainting by decreasing the scope of control flows and providing a heuristic for reducing loop-related over-tainting. We created a Java implementation of Conflux and performed a case study exploring the effect of Conflux on a concrete application of taint tracking, automated debugging. In addition to this case study, we evaluated Conflux ’s accuracy using a novel benchmark consisting of popular, real-world programs. We compared Conflux against existing taint propagation policies, including a state-of-the-art approach for reducing control-flow-related over-tainting, finding that Conflux had the highest F1 score on 43 out of the 48 total tests.

Alternative Semantics for Normative Reasoning with an Application to Regret and Responsibility

We provide a fine-grained analysis of notions of regret and responsibility (such as agent-regret and individual responsibility) in terms of a language of multimodal logic. This language undergoes a detailed semantic analysis via two sorts of models: (i) relating models, which are equipped with a relation of propositional pertinence, and (ii) synonymy models, which are equipped with a relation of propositional synonymy. We specify a class of strictly relating models and show that each synonymy model can be transformed into an equivalent strictly relating model. Moreover, we define an axiomatic system that captures the notion of validity in the class of all strictly relating models.

On Vendler’s freedom of choice

In this short essay, we will provide some contemporary remarks to Vendler (1962 and 1974). We will propose that his characterization of the Free Choice Item any can be properly explained if we take into account an alternative semantics framework. We will assume with Menéndez-Benito (2010) that it is a universal indeterminate pronoun, and with Aloni (2007) that it involves an exhaustification operator to explain its behavior. We will show that, if we take into account this approach, we will be able to explain what Vendler called freedom of choice, lack of existential import, lawlike propositions, among other characteristics. In addition, we will try to do some linguistics in philosophy, and try to explain how a proper understanding of FCI may help to better understand some reference related problems. Finally, we will show that if we take into account a speech act theory, as the one proposed by Searle (1985), we may account for some of the FCI particular behavior with regard to free choice.

Focus and Intensification in the Semantics of Brow Raise

We argue that in American Sign Language (ASL), Brow Raise has two sorts of functions that can be distinguished by timing: it may serve well-known information-theoretic functions that can, among others, realize focus; but it may also intensify gradable constructions – a far less well-known observation. While Brow Raise on an expression can fulfill both functions, Brow Raise right before an expression preferentially has an information-theoretic function. The main findings are replicated on some examples from LSF (French Sign Language). Strikingly, these two functions mirror those found for 'stress' (= emphasis) by Bergen 2016, who argued for a unified analysis of information-theoretic effects and of intensificational effects. We sketch a unified analysis within Alternative Semantics, and discuss a further possibility within a simplified version of Bergen's own theory of 'noise-reduction' (Bergen 2016). An extension of our ASL data shows that related generalizations hold when Brow Raise is applied to a highly iconic construction (here involving a helicopter path): depending on timing, Brow Raise may serve to evoke alternatives or to intensify part of the construction.

A Description Logic for Analogical Reasoning

Ontologies formalise how the concepts from a given domain are interrelated. Despite their clear potential as a backbone for explainable AI, existing ontologies tend to be highly incomplete, which acts as a significant barrier to their more widespread adoption. To mitigate this issue, we present a mechanism to infer plausible missing knowledge, which relies on reasoning by analogy. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first paper that studies analogical reasoning within the setting of description logic ontologies. After showing that the standard formalisation of analogical proportion has important limitations in this setting, we introduce an alternative semantics based on bijective mappings between sets of features. We then analyse the properties of analogies under the proposed semantics, and show among others how it enables two plausible inference patterns: rule translation and rule extrapolation.

The negation of cualquier NP

Even though the interpretation of Free Choice Items such as any has been on debate for more than 50 years (Vendler, 1974, Dayal, 1998, Horn, 2000, etc.), it is relatively more recent in Spanish (Menéndez-Benito, 2005, Giannakidou and Quer, 2013, among others). Some have analyzed it as a universal quantifier, neither taking its free choiceness into account nor contexts which seem to be problematic for the universal account (see, for instance, Etxepare and Uribe-Etxebarria, 2011). In this article, we defend that cualquier is a universal indeterminate pronoun which involves freedom of choice (as in the original proposal by Vendler, 1974). We will take into account data (taken from https://www.corpusdelespanol.org/web-dial) which has not been properly considered. We will analyze the interaction of negation and cualquier in Rioplantese Spanish in the subject position of negative generic statements, in the object position in negative episodic statements, and in a non argumental position. We will combine an alternative semantics approach to the analysis of the FCI cualquier, inspired in Menéndez-Benito (2010) and Aloni (2019), with a syntactic approach to negation inspired in Etxepare and Uribe-Etxebarria (2011).

Indefinites and free choice

Indefinites display a great functional variety and they give rise to different pragmatic effects. We focus on free choice indefinites and in particular on the Italian qualsiasi. Our aim is to reconstruct the grammaticalization path of this item and understand how diachronic data might shed some light on existing semantic theories of free choice. We employ corpus-based tools to build a database containing occurrences of qualsiasi from its origin and early forms to its current usage. We show that qualsiasi emerged from a particular unconditional construction and we outline the different stages which led to its grammaticalization. We analyze the compatibility of our diachronic study with formal accounts of free choice inferences, with a focus on Alternative Semantics analyses for indefinite pronouns and so-called grammatical theories of free choice. Our work shows that an integration between formal semantics and historical linguistics is fruitful and worth pursuing.

Simplification is not Scalar Strengthening

We show that Simplification of Disjunctive antecedents is not a scalar inference. The argument exploits information-sensitive modals, like epistemic "probably" and deliberative "ought". When items of this sort are the main modal of a conditional, we can have that: (i) If A or B, Mod C is true; (ii) the basic meaning computed via classical semantics for conditionals and disjunction is false. This combination is impossible on any scalar account of Simplification: scalar inferences are strengthenings, hence the output of scalar inferences must entail the basic meaning of a sentence. We suggest an account of Simplification based on alternative semantics, and show how this account can be made compatible with old and new counterexamples to Simplification.

Prosodically-conditioned factive inferences in Korean: An experimental study

Much work has been done to capture the systematic variation in projective behaviors of factive inferences. However, not as much has been said about variation in factivity below the level of projection. This paper presents an experimental study which probes and confirms that Korean showcases patterns of variation in this vein: Factive inferences systematically arise from certain V+CPs, but only under certain prosody, even in unembedded contexts. Characterizing this pattern as 'prosodically-conditioned factive inferences', the paper proposes a pragmatic analysis of it couched in alternative semantics. The analysis motivates and defends a new interpretive principle which governs how alternatives come into contrast with each other, and re-examines the ontological status of factivity.

Algebraic Quantitative Semantics for Efficient Online Temporal Monitoring

We investigate efficient algorithms for the online monitoring of properties written in metric temporal logic (MTL). We employ an abstract algebraic semantics based on semirings. It encompasses the Boolean semantics and a quantitative semantics capturing the robustness of satisfaction, which is based on the max-min semiring over the extended real numbers. We provide a precise equational characterization of the class of semirings for which our semantics can be viewed as an approximation to an alternative semantics that quantifies the distance of a system trace from the set of all traces that satisfy the desired property.