Describes the development of a method for the evaluation and comparison of interactive information retrieval systems, which are based on the concept of a simulated work-task situation and the involvement of real end users. Highlights include real and simulated information needs; relevance assessments; and the dynamic nature of information needs.…

Describes a simulation method for estimating recall and fallout in a document retrieval system. Earlier research on simulating document retrieval systems is reviewed, examples are presented of the current method, a probabilistic justification of the method is given, theoretical concerns dealing with retrieval precision are discussed, and further…

Discusses the evaluation of search engines and uses neural networks in stochastic simulation of the number of rejected Web pages per search query. Topics include the iterative radial basis functions (RBF) neural network; precision; response time; coverage; Boolean logic; regression models; crawling algorithms; and implications for search engine…