Chapter 27: Formal-Relational Query

Languages

Database System Concepts, 7th Ed.

©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
See www.db-book.com for conditions on re-use
 Outline

 Tuple Relational Calculus

 Domain Relational Calculus
 Datalog

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.2 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Tuple Relational Calculus

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.3 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Tuple Relational Calculus

 A nonprocedural query language, where each query is of the form

{t | P (t ) }
 It is the set of all tuples t such that predicate P is true for t
 t is a tuple variable, t [A ] denotes the value of tuple t on attribute A
 t ∈ r denotes that tuple t is in relation r
 P is a formula similar to that of the predicate calculus

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.4 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Predicate Calculus Formula

1. Set of attributes and constants

2. Set of comparison operators: (e.g., <, ≤, =, ≠, >, ≥)
3. Set of connectives: and (∧), or (v)‚ not (¬)
4. Implication (⇒): x ⇒ y, if x if true, then y is true
x ⇒ y ≡ ¬x v y
5. Set of quantifiers:
 ∃ t ∈ r (Q (t )) ≡ ”there exists” a tuple in t in relation r
such that predicate Q (t ) is true
 ∀t ∈ r (Q (t )) ≡ Q is true “for all” tuples t in relation r

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.5 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Example Queries

 Find the ID, name, dept_name, salary for instructors whose

salary is greater than $80,000

{t | t ∈ instructor ∧ t [salary ] > 80000}

Notice that a relation on schema (ID, name, dept_name, salary) is implicitly
defined by the query
 As in the previous query, but output only the ID attribute value

{t | ∃ s ∈ instructor (t [ID ] = s [ID ] ∧ s [salary ] > 80000)}

Notice that a relation on schema (ID) is implicitly defined by the query

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.6 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Example Queries

 Find the names of all instructors whose department is in the Watson

building

{t | ∃s ∈ instructor (t [name ] = s [name ]

∧ ∃u ∈ department (u [dept_name ] = s[dept_name] “
∧ u [building] = “Watson” ))}

 Find the set of all courses taught in the Fall 2009 semester, or in
the Spring 2010 semester, or both

{t | ∃s ∈ section (t [course_id ] = s [course_id ] ∧

s [semester] = “Fall” ∧ s [year] = 2009
v ∃u ∈ section (t [course_id ] = u [course_id ] ∧
u [semester] = “Spring” ∧ u [year] = 2010 )}

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.7 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Example Queries
 Find the set of all courses taught in the Fall 2009 semester, and in
the Spring 2010 semester

{t | ∃s ∈ section (t [course_id ] = s [course_id ] ∧

s [semester] = “Fall” ∧ s [year] = 2009
∧ ∃u ∈ section (t [course_id ] = u [course_id ] ∧
u [semester] = “Spring” ∧ u [year] = 2010 )}

 Find the set of all courses taught in the Fall 2009 semester, but not in
the Spring 2010 semester

{t | ∃s ∈ section (t [course_id ] = s [course_id ] ∧

s [semester] = “Fall” ∧ s [year] = 2009
∧ ¬ ∃u ∈ section (t [course_id ] = u [course_id ] ∧
u [semester] = “Spring” ∧ u [year] = 2010 )}

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.8 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Universal Quantification
 Find all students who have taken all courses offered in the
Biology department
• {t | ∃ r ∈ student (t [ID] = r [ID]) ∧
(∀ u ∈ course (u [dept_name]=“Biology” ⇒
∃ s ∈ takes (t [ID] = s [ID ] ∧
s [course_id] = u [course_id]))}

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.9 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Safety of Expressions

 It is possible to write tuple calculus expressions that generate

infinite relations.
 For example, { t | ¬ t ∈ r } results in an infinite relation if the
domain of any attribute of relation r is infinite
 To guard against the problem, we restrict the set of allowable
expressions to safe expressions.
 An expression {t | P (t )} in the tuple relational calculus is safe if
every component of t appears in one of the relations, tuples, or
constants that appear in P
• NOTE: this is more than just a syntax condition.
 E.g. { t | t [A] = 5 ∨ true } is not safe --- it defines an infinite
set with attribute values that do not appear in any relation or
tuples or constants in P.

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.10 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Safety of Expressions (Cont.)
 Consider again that query to find all students who have taken
all courses offered in the Biology department
• {t | ∃ r ∈ student (t [ID] = r [ID]) ∧
(∀ u ∈ course (u [dept_name]=“Biology” ⇒
∃ s ∈ takes (t [ID] = s [ID ] ∧
s [course_id] = u [course_id]))}
 Without the existential quantification on student, the above
query would be unsafe if the Biology department has not
offered any courses.

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.11 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Domain Relational Calculus

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.12 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Domain Relational Calculus

 A nonprocedural query language equivalent in power to the tuple

relational calculus
 Each query is an expression of the form:

{ < x1, x2, …, xn > | P (x1, x2, …, xn)}

• x1, x2, …, xn represent domain variables

• P represents a formula similar to that of the predicate calculus

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.13 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Example Queries

 Find the ID, name, dept_name, salary for instructors whose salary
is greater than $80,000
• {< i, n, d, s> | < i, n, d, s> ∈ instructor ∧ s > 80000}
 As in the previous query, but output only the ID attribute value
• {< i> | < i, n, d, s> ∈ instructor ∧ s > 80000}
 Find the names of all instructors whose department is in the
Watson building
{< n > | ∃ i, d, s (< i, n, d, s > ∈ instructor
∧ ∃ b, a (< d, b, a> ∈ department ∧ b = “Watson” ))}

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.14 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Example Queries
 Find the set of all courses taught in the Fall 2009 semester, or in
the Spring 2010 semester, or both

{<c> | ∃ a, s, y, b, r, t ( <c, a, s, y, b, r, t > ∈ section ∧

s = “Fall” ∧ y = 2009 )
v ∃ a, s, y, b, r, t ( <c, a, s, y, b, r, t > ∈ section ] ∧
s = “Spring” ∧ y = 2010)}

This case can also be written as

{<c> | ∃ a, s, y, b, r, t ( <c, a, s, y, b, r, t > ∈ section ∧
( (s = “Fall” ∧ y = 2009 ) v (s = “Spring” ∧ y = 2010))}

 Find the set of all courses taught in the Fall 2009 semester, and in
the Spring 2010 semester

{<c> | ∃ a, s, y, b, r, t ( <c, a, s, y, b, r, t > ∈ section ∧

s = “Fall” ∧ y = 2009 )
∧ ∃ a, s, y, b, r, t ( <c, a, s, y, b, r, t > ∈ section ] ∧
s = “Spring” ∧ y = 2010)}

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.15 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Safety of Expressions

The expression:
{ < x1, x2, …, xn > | P (x1, x2, …, xn )}

is safe if all of the following hold:

1. All values that appear in tuples of the expression are values
from dom (P ) (that is, the values appear either in P or in a tuple
of a relation mentioned in P ).
2. For every “there exists” subformula of the form ∃ x (P1(x )), the
subformula is true if and only if there is a value of x in dom (P1)
such that P1(x ) is true.
3. For every “for all” subformula of the form ∀x (P1 (x )), the subformula
is true if and only if P1(x ) is true for all values x from dom (P1).

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.16 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Universal Quantification

 Find all students who have taken all courses offered in the Biology
department
• {< i > | ∃ n, d, tc ( < i, n, d, tc > ∈ student ∧
(∀ ci, ti, dn, cr ( < ci, ti, dn, cr > ∈ course ∧ dn =“Biology”
⇒ ∃ si, se, y, g ( <i, ci, si, se, y, g> ∈ takes ))}
• Note that without the existential quantification on student, the
above query would be unsafe if the Biology department has not
offered any courses.

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.17 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 Datalog

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.18 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan
 End of Chapter 27

Database System Concepts - 7th Edition 27.19 ©Silberschatz, Korth and Sudarshan