Musings on Encodings and Expressiveness

TL;DR

This paper introduces a formal definition of encoding between system description languages to compare their expressive power, illustrated through a case study contrasting CCS and CSP.

Contribution

It provides a new formal framework for defining and comparing the expressiveness of different system description languages.

Findings

Proposes a formal definition of encoding and expressiveness.

Compares CCS and CSP using the new framework.

Highlights differences in expressive power between CCS and CSP.

Abstract

This paper proposes a definition of what it means for one system description language to encode another one, thereby enabling an ordering of system description languages with respect to expressive power. I compare the proposed definition with other definitions of encoding and expressiveness found in the literature, and illustrate it on a case study: comparing the expressive power of CCS and CSP.