ion in Programming --- working definition by John N. Shutt Computer Science Technical Report Series WORCESTER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE Computer Science Department 100 Institute Road, Worcester, Massachusetts 01609-2280 Abstraction in Programming --- working definition John N. Shutt jshutt@cs.wpi.edu Computer Science Department Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester, MA 01609 December 1999 Abstract This paper investigates the nature of the process in programming by which a new level of abstraction is constructed by building upon an existing one. The process is called abstraction. The purpose of the investigation is to provide an informal characterization of abstraction, as a conceptual foundation for subsequent development of a mathematical theory of abstraction. Contents 1 Introduction 1 2 Other senses of `abstraction' 1 2.1 Metaphysics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2.1.1 Universals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....