Editing Prolog (section)

=== Compilation ===
For efficiency, Prolog code is typically compiled to abstract machine code, often influenced by the register-based [[Warren Abstract Machine]] (WAM) instruction set.<ref>David H. D. Warren. [http://www.ai.sri.com/pubs/files/641.pdf "An abstract Prolog instruction set"]. Technical Note 309, [[SRI International]], Menlo Park, CA, October 1983.</ref> Some implementations employ [[abstract interpretation]] to derive type and mode information of predicates at compile time, or compile to real machine code for high performance.<ref>{{Cite journal |doi=10.1109/2.108055 |last1=Van Roy |first1=P. |last2=Despain |first2=A. M. |title=High-performance logic programming with the Aquarius Prolog compiler |journal=Computer |volume=25 |pages=54–68 |year=1992 |s2cid=16447071}}</ref> Devising efficient implementation methods for Prolog code is a field of active research in the logic programming community, and various other execution methods are employed in some implementations. These include [[clause binarization]] and [[stack machines|stack-based virtual machines]].{{Citation needed|date=November 2010}}