Introduction to GAP

(Groups, Algorithms, Programming)

Henry Hutasoit, SSE –RWTH Aachen

Seminar Language in Scientific Computing
24.01.2013

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 1

 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 2

 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 3

 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 4

 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 5

 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 6

 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 7

 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 8

 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 9

 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 10

 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 11

 What is GAP?
GAP is:

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 What is GAP?
GAP is:
• a system for computational discrete algebra
(Computational Group Theory)–that provides:

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 What is GAP?
GAP is:
• a system for computational discrete algebra
(Computational Group Theory)–that provides:
– a language;

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 What is GAP?
GAP is:
• a system for computational discrete algebra
(Computational Group Theory)–that provides:
– a language;
– a library;

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 What is GAP?
GAP is:
• a system for computational discrete algebra
(Computational Group Theory)–that provides:
– a language;
– a library;
– a data library

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 What is GAP?
GAP is:
• a system for computational discrete algebra
(Computational Group Theory)–that provides:
– a language;
– a library;
– a data library

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 What is GAP?
GAP is:
• a system for computational discrete algebra
(Computational Group Theory)–that provides:
– a language;
– a library;
– a data library
• A symbolic computation/ computer algebra/ algebraic
computation tool

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 What is GAP?
Capabilities:
• Forming lists, records, domains
• Handling objects and elements, Booleans, orderings,
mappings, and relations
• Computing integers, rational numbers, cyclotomic
numbers(Gaussian numbers), finite fields, p-adic
numbers, polynomials, rational functions, group
elements, permutation, matrices, abstract words
• etc

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 Symbolic Mathematics/ Computing vs
Numerical Mathematics/ Computing
• Symbolic Computing – Definition:
Wikipedia: scientific area that refers to the study and development
of algorithms and software for manipulating mathematical
expressions and other mathematical objects

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 Symbolic Mathematics/ Computing vs
Numerical Mathematics/ Computing
• Symbolic Computing – Definition:
Wikipedia: scientific area that refers to the study and development
of algorithms and software for manipulating mathematical
expressions and other mathematical objects
• Numerical Computing – Definition:
Wikipedia: the study of algorithms that use numerical
approximation for the problems of mathematical analysis

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 21

 Symbolic Mathematics/ Computing vs
Numerical Mathematics/ Computing
• Symbolic Computing – Definition:
Wikipedia: scientific area that refers to the study and development
of algorithms and software for manipulating mathematical
expressions and other mathematical objects
• Numerical Computing – Definition:
Wikipedia: the study of algorithms that use numerical
approximation for the problems of mathematical analysis
• What can be considered as of symbolic computing:
– symbolic mathematical operation (integration, summation,
solution of differential equation, ..)
– Polynomial factorisation
– etc
24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 22
 Symbolic Mathematics/ Computing vs
Numerical Mathematics/ Computing
• Symbolic Computing – Definition:
Wikipedia: scientific area that refers to the study and development
of algorithms and software for manipulating mathematical
expressions and other mathematical objects
• Numerical Computing – Definition:
Wikipedia: the study of algorithms that use numerical
approximation for the problems of mathematical analysis
• What can be considered as of symbolic computing:
– symbolic mathematical operation (integration, summation, solution of
differential equation, ..)
– Polynomial factorisation
– etc
• Good for teaching mathematics!
24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 23
 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 24

 Group theory

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 Group theory
• Studies algebraic structures known as group

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 Group theory
• Studies algebraic structures known as group
• Groups like: rings, fields, vector spaces – with their
operations and axioms

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 Group theory
• Studies algebraic structures known as group
• Groups like: rings, fields, vector spaces – with their
operations and axioms
• More focused disciplines: Linear algebraic groups, Lie
groups

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 Group theory
• Studies algebraic structures known as group
• Groups like: rings, fields, vector spaces – with their
operations and axioms
• More focused disciplines: Linear algebraic groups, Lie
groups
• Applications in:
– Chemistry;
– Physics;
– Cryptography, etc

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 Group theory
• Studies algebraic structures known as group
• Groups like: rings, fields, vector spaces – with their
operations and axioms
• More focused disciplines: Linear algebraic groups, Lie
groups
• Applications in:
– Chemistry;
– Physics;
– Cryptography, etc

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 30

 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 31

 History of GAP (1)
• 1986: developed first by Lehrstuhl D für Mathematik,
RWTH Aachen: Joachim Neubüser, Johannes Meier,
Alice Niemayer, Werner Nickel, Martin Schönert
• 1988: first publicly released version: GAP 2.4
• 1997: development in CIRCA, St Andrews, Scotland ,
UK
• 2008: awarded the ACM/SIGSAM Richard Dimick
Jenks Memorial Prize for Excellence in Software
Engineering applied to Computer Algebra

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 History of GAP (2)
• 2012: Latest version GAP 4.5.7
• Originally supported by DFG (since 1992)
• Developed now by a group of researchers in:

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 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 34

 The GAP systems

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 The GAP systems
• Language GAP: C language

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 The GAP systems
• Language GAP: C language
• Packages: ca 100 packages, act as algorithms or methods or
libraries

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 The GAP systems
• Language GAP: C language
• Packages: ca 100 packages, act as algorithms or methods or
libraries
• Data Library:

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 The GAP systems
• Language GAP: C language
• Packages: ca 100 packages, act as algorithms or methods or
libraries
• Data Library
• Interactive Environment (GUI)

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 The GAP systems
• Language GAP: C language
• Packages: ca 100 packages, act as algorithms or methods or
libraries
• Data Library
• Interactive Environment (GUI)
• Documentation

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 The GAP systems
• Language GAP: C language
• Packages: ca 100 packages, act as algorithms or methods or
libraries
• Data Library:
• Interactive Environment (GUI)
• Documentation

• The kernel is written in C!

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 GAP codes

libraries

Kernel – C codes
GMP

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 Kernel – C codes

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 Implemented in GAP
language

Kernel – C codes

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 Implemented in GAP Interactive environment in
language developing and using GAP

Kernel – C codes

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 Implemented in GAP Interactive environment in
language developing and using GAP

Kernel – C codes

Memory
management

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 Implemented in GAP Interactive environment in
language developing and using GAP

Kernel – C codes

fast versions of time critical operations

for various data types Memory
management

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 GAP codes

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 GAP codes

• Pascal dialect
• using streams, lists, and records
• automatic memory management, garbage collection!

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 GAP codes

• Pascal dialect
• using streams, lists, and records
• automatic memory management, garbage collection!

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 GAP codes

• Pascal dialect
• using streams, lists, and records
• automatic memory management, garbage collection!

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 GMP:
GNU Multiple Precision
Arithmetic Library

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 GMP:
GNU Multiple Precision
Arithmetic Library

GMP

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 GMP:
GNU Multiple Precision
Arithmetic Library

GMP

Floating Points
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 GMP:
GNU Multiple Precision
Arithmetic Library

GMP

Floating Points
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 GMP:
GNU Multiple Precision
Arithmetic Library

GMP

Floating Points
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 GMP:
GNU Multiple Precision
Arithmetic Library
• free library

GMP

Floating Points
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 GMP:
GNU Multiple Precision
Arithmetic Library
• free library
• basic interface is for C, but also supports
C#, Ocaml, Perl, PHP, Python

GMP

Floating Points
24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 58
 GMP:
GNU Multiple Precision
Arithmetic Library
• free library
• basic interface is for C, but also supports
C#, Ocaml, Perl, PHP, Python

GMP

Floating Points
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 libraries

• Support mathematical operations: basic algebra,

group theory, etc

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 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 61

 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 62

 Bibliography
• http://www.gap-system.org/gap.html
overview, installation, documentation, downloads, …
• Ogilvie, J. F., „Teaching and doing Mathematics with Symbolic
Computation“, www.cecm.sfu.ca/CAG/papers/OgilMathAsia.pdf
• „Symbolic Computation (An Editorial)“, Journal of Symbolic
Computation, Volume 1, Number 1-6, 1985
•

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 Outline
• What is GAP?
• Symbolic computation
• Group theory
• History
• The GAP System
• Demo & Functionality
• Bibliography
•Q&A

24.01.2013 Henry Hutasoit 64

 Q&A

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 Thanks to…
• Prof. Dr. Paolo Bientinessi and his team
for giving opportunity to present this seminar
• Danan Wicaksono, M.Sc
for introducing the importance of symbolic computing
• Dr. Frank Lübeck
for providing further information on GAP
• Prof. Dr. Klaus Lux
for providing further information on GAP

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