A more abstract bounded exploration postulate

TL;DR

This paper introduces a more abstract version of the bounded exploration postulate for sequential algorithms, aligning it more closely with the abstract state postulate and demonstrating its equivalence to the original under certain conditions.

Contribution

The paper presents a more abstract formulation of the bounded exploration postulate, enhancing the theoretical framework for sequential algorithms.

Findings

The new postulate is equivalent to the original when combined with sequential time and abstract state postulates.

It provides a more abstract and unified way to characterize sequential algorithms.

The approach improves the theoretical understanding of the axiomatization of algorithms.

Abstract

In article "Sequential abstract state machines capture sequential algorithms", one of us axiomatized sequential algorithms by means of three postulates: sequential time, abstract state, and bounded exploration postulates. Here we give a more abstract version of the bounded exploration postulate which is closer in spirit to the abstract state postulate. In the presence of the sequential time and abstract state postulates, our postulate is equivalent to the original bounded exploration postulate.