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378 points todsacerdoti | 1 comments | 22 Aug 25 07:08 UTC | HN request time: 0.329s | source
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mensetmanusman ◴[22 Aug 25 13:18 UTC] No.44984308[source]▶
Not being a programmer, I have a question.

Can any program be broken down into functions and functions of functions that have inputs and outputs so that they can be verified if they are working?

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1. Arainach ◴[22 Aug 25 13:38 UTC] No.44984549[source]▶
Not without extraordinary cost that no one (save NASA, perhaps) is willing to pay.

Even if you can formally verify individual methods, what you're actually looking for is if we can verify systems. Because systems, even ones made of of pieces that are individually understood, have interactions and emergent behaviors which are not expected.