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Science of Computer Programming,
Submission deadline: October 14, 2013
Most academic disciplines emphasize the importance of their
general theories. Examples of general theories include the Big
Bang theory, Maxwell’s equations, the theory of the cell,
the theory of evolution, the theory of demand and supply, but
among the general theories are also found theories with names such
as the general theory of crime and the theory of marriage, both
well-established within their respective fields. Few
general theories of software engineering have, however, been
proposed, and none have achieved significant recognition. The
main consequence of a lack of theory is a craft, limited to
problem solving by trial-and-error and rules-of-thumb and in most
cases only related to a limited area of relevance. Its knowledge
base cannot be used for other than the most rudimentary
predictions. This, in turn, means that its innovations can only be
tested in vivo, which in addition to providing only little general
insight can be both expensive and painful. The long list of
well-known software failures is a testament to the tradition
of trial-and-error. Theory addresses this problem, because a
theory is a system of rules that explain the real world at some
appropriate level of abstraction, but cheaply and without pain.
Theory can provide answers to questions that otherwise might be
prohibitively expensive or impossible to give. A general theory of
software engineering would ideally advise against costly error
before the trial begins.
This special issue, organized by the SEMAT initiative, aims to
provide a forum for discussing the concept of a general theory
of software engineering. The topics considered include
the benefits, the desired qualities, the core components and the
form of a general theory. Explicit proposals of general theories
of software engineering are equally welcome. The special
issue follows the publication of an article with the title “Where
is the Theory for Software Engineering?” in September/October 2012
issue of IEEE Software, as well as two SEMAT Workshops on
a General Theory of Software Engineering (GTSE 2012 [
http://semat.org/?page_id=561]
and 2013 [
http://semat.org/?page_id=760]), the
most recent in conjunction with the ICSE.
Manuscripts can be submitted in pdf format online at
https://www.easychair.org/conferences/?conf=sigtse2013. All
papers will be reviewed by at least three expert reviewers. For
the subsequent copy-ready formatting, Elsevier
strongly prefers LaTeX. However, MS WORD of ASCII documents can
also be processed. Further information is available at the journal
homepage,
http://www.journals.elsevier.com/science-of-computer-programming/.
Science of Computer Programming is indexed in all major databases.
Its 5-year impact factor is currently 0.982.
For more information, please contact one of the guest editors:
Pontus Johnson (main contact)
KTH Royal Institute of Technology
Stockholm, Sweden
pontus@ics.kth.se
Michael Goedicke
University of Duisburg-Essen
Essen, Germany
michael.goedicke@paluno.uni-due.de
Mathias Ekstedt
KTH Royal Institute of Technology
Stockholm, Sweden
mathiase@ics.kth.se
Ivar Jacobson
Ivar Jacobson International
Verbier, Switzerland
ivar@ivarjacobson.com