Examines online search results of sample questions in several databases covering linguistics, cultural anthropology, and physical anthropology in order to determine if and where any overlap in results might occur, and which files have greatest number of relevant hits. Search results by database are given for each subject area. (EJS)

The experimental best match information retrieval system described is based on serial file organization. Documents and queries are characterized by fixed length bit strings (generated by automatic and manual methods) and character-by-character term match is preceeded by bit string search to eliminate documents which cannot satisfy query.…

An iterative method for information retrieval is presented using searchonyms found from previously retrieved set of documents in query expansion. Large operational bibliographic databases are used to simulate behavior of this method which selects most informative features as searchonyms to be used in query reformulation. Ten references are listed.…

Results of an experimental study of the retrieval effectiveness of computer-recognized citing statements indicate that average recall for eight retrieval requests by search of indexing and abstract text words was 50 percent. Addition of words from citing statements referring to papers to be retrieved increased average recall to 70 percent.…

Describes research which measured the efficiency of role operators through frequency of appearances in PRECIS input strings for 200 abstracts related to taxation, genetic psychology, and Shakespearian drama. Frequencies of appearance of major categories of role operators, role operators in different subjects, individual main line operators, and…

The low rate of relevant titles (fewer than 50 percent) retrieved by online searching of keywords in titles in study conducted at the Mechanized Information Center, Ohio State University, is attributed to three sources: titles themselves, user ignorance of subject vocabulary, and general language problems. Eight references are cited. (EJS)

Implementation of relevance feedback explored here demonstrates feasibility of query reformulation for boolean retrievals from online databases. Improvements to a term prevalence formula used in earlier research are presented, along with experimental results that confirm crucial role of term weights in relevance feedback. Seven references are…

Relative effectiveness of indexing using full-text or less than full-text was tested using non-Boolean, chaining type of file structure and searching method. Indexing was done using titles, abstracts, full-text, references, and various combinations; Goffman's indirect method of information retrieval was used to structure and search file.…

Online seaches of sample topics in the area of forensic medicine were conducted in the following life science databases: Biosis Previews, Excerpta Medica, Medline, Scisearch, and Chemical Abstracts Search. Search outputs analyzed according to criteria of recall, uniqueness, overlap, and utility reveal the need for a cross-database approach to…

Describes design and development of a thesaurus based on lexical-semantic relations, and compares results of experiments with queries enhanced using thesauri based on several different groups of relations against performance with original queries run on IRS information retrieval system developed at Illinois Institute of Technology. Twenty-one…

Summarizes the results of a study accessing music coverage in 11 databases--ABI/INFORM, AMERICA--HISTORY AND LIFE, ERIC, HISTORICAL ABSTRACTS, INSPEC, MAGAZINE INDEX, MLA BIBLIOGRAPHY, NATIONAL NEWSPAPER INDEX, PUBLIC AFFAIRS INFORMATION SERVICE INTERNATIONAL, PSYCHINFO, and SOCIOLOGICAL ABSTRACTS. Selection of search terms and relevance of items…

This study of 4,506 journal articles reveals that 4.4% of psychology article titles and 33.4% of mathematics article titles contained at least one eponym each (expression consisting of individuals's name plus word denoting idea associated with person). Twenty-two references, sample eponyms and citations, statistical tests, and source journals are…

Discussion of the information-seeking behavior of humanists focuses on a study that investigated the efficacy of following bibliographic references from documents already known. Topics include the nature of humanities research; vocabulary control and indexing; subject-based literature searches; seed documents; relevance; retrieval based on…

This study surveyed abstracting policies and guidelines used by producers of bibliographic databases that aim to enhance free-text retrieval. Results indicate editors consider content of abstracts and their language as primary factors in retrieval enhancement. Most recommend that concepts and form be coordinated with controlled vocabulary…

Presents and discusses the results of research into similarity measures for search request formulations which employ Boolean combinations of index terms. The use of a weighting mechanism to indicate the importance of attributes in a search formulation is described. A 16-item reference list is included. (JL)