A Modular Hierarchy of Logical Frameworks

Abstract

We present a method for defining logical frameworks as a collection of features which are defined and behave independently of one another. Each feature is a set of grammar clauses and rules of deduction such that the result of adding the feature to a framework is a conservative extension of the framework itself. We show how several existing logical frameworks can be so built, and how several much weaker frameworks defined in this manner are adequate for expressing a wide variety of object logics.