UWSpace is currently experiencing technical difficulties resulting from its recent migration to a new version of its software. These technical issues are not affecting the submission and browse features of the site. UWaterloo community members may continue submitting items to UWSpace. We apologize for the inconvenience, and are actively working to resolve these technical issues.
 

Adding Reference Immutability to Scala

Thumbnail Image

Files

Zhao_Yaoyu.pdf (519.89 KB)

Date

2023-07-10

Authors

Zhao, Yaoyu

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

University of Waterloo

Abstract

Scala is a multi-paradigm programming language combining the power of functional and object-oriented programming. While Scala has many features promoting immutability, it lacks a built-in mechanism for controlling and enforcing reference immutability. Reference immutability means the state of an object and all other objects reachable from it cannot be mutated through an immutable reference. This thesis presents a system for reference immutability in Scala, along with a simple implementation in the Dotty (Scala 3) compiler. By extending the Scala type system and encoding mutability as types within annotations, my system enables tracking and enforcing reference immutability for any type. It addresses challenges such as the complexities of the Scala type system and context sensitivity with nested classes and functions. The design offers binary compatibility with existing Scala code, and promotes predictable object behavior, reducing the risk of bugs in software development.

Description

Keywords

compiler, type system, Scala, immutability

LC Keywords

Citation

URI

http://hdl.handle.net/10012/19601

Collections

Theses
Computer Science