Remarks on Algebraic Reconstruction of Types and Effects

Abstract

In their 1991 paper "Algebraic Reconstruction of Types and Effects," Pierre Jouvelot and David Gifford presented a type-and-effect reconstruction algorithm based on an algebraic structure of effects. Their work is considered a milestone in the development of type-and-effect systems, and has inspired numerous subsequent works in the area of static analysis. However, unlike the later research it spawned, the original algorithm considered a language with higher-rank polymorphism, a feature which is challenging to implement correctly. In this note, we identify subtle bugs related to variable binding in their approach to this feature. We revisit their type system and reconstruction algorithm, and describe the discovered issues.