On the Horizontal Dimension of Software Architecture in Formal Specifications of Reactive Systems

In order to provide better alignment between conceptual requirements and aspect-oriented implementations, formal specification methods should enable the encapsulation of logical abstractions of systems. In this paper we argue that horizontal architectures, consisting of such logical abstractions, can provide better separation of concerns over conventional ones while supporting incremental development for more common units of modularity such as classes. We base our arguments on our experiences with the DisCo method, where logical abstractions are composed using the superposition principle.