An automated retrieval system for reference works was constructed as a prototype in order to illustrate the capabilities and potentialities of future retrieval systems. More than 170 biographical works were indexed and stored in a computer disk to form a biographical data base, and a computer program was written to match patron queries. Consistent…

PROBE, a batch-mode information retrieval program used to search the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) data base, was developed by Indiana University. To evaluate the effectiveness of the program, questionnaires were given to the users of 200 consecutive searches during February 1973. Relevance ratios were computed by comparing the…

The purpose of this guide is to give an up-to-date presentation of the information service offered by the documentation center at the Royal Institute of Technology (RIT) and to facilitate the utilization of the service. The guide gives a general account of the multidisciplinary computerized current awareness service (SDI) and a detailed…

The transfer of information through space and time in communication systems is often accompanied by significant delays which give rise to meaningful storage problems. Mathematical models have been developed for the study of these kinds of problems which are applicable to the design of manual, library-type, or mechanized information storage and…

A correlation between recall (the retrieval of all available relevant documents) and quantity of text which served as a source of index terms on input can reasonably be expected. Specifically, recall should decrease as the quantity of text serving as a source of index terms is restricted. On the other hand, the time for indexing and therefore the…

Discusses science and engineering students' reactions and attitudes toward the use of on-line bibliographic information retrieval and major search systems vs manual searching in a course dealing with information resources. Problems encountered and the relevance to student needs of the on-line component of the course are included. (Author/CWM)

Briefly reviews various methodologies for constructing enhanced document representations, discusses their general lack of usefulness, and describes a method of document indexing which uses title words taken from bibliographically related items. Evaluation of this process indicates that it is not sufficiently reliable to warrant incorporation into…

Provides an overview of methods for improving the effectiveness of Boolean retrieval systems, including document clustering, relevance feedback, weighted term searching, ranked output, and fuzzy set theory. The discussion of experimental studies with the SMART and SIRE systems focuses on the implementation and results of these methods. (69…

Results of field study measuring end-user perceptions of sources of information (computer-based, libraries, individuals) suggest that accessibility is multidimensional concept encompassing physical access to source, interface with source, ability to physically retrieve potentially relevant information; and perceptions of accessibility are…

Describes a system for identifying and retrieving relevant citations on a monthly basis which can be accomplished with any microcomputer and printer possessing capability of telecommunication and downloading. Procedures for comprehensive search, downloading, formatting of information for printing, printing file cards and abstracts, and…

Results of comparison of online and manual searching of same subject favor online searching, which found 87 percent of relevant titles versus 33 percent for manual search. A simple search strategy produced nearly as many citations as complex search, and over two-thirds of records came from two of 13 files searched. (EJS)

Examines usefulness of DIALOG as legal research tool through use of DIALOG's DIALINDEX database to identify those databases among almost 200 available that contain large numbers of records related to federal securities regulation. Eight databases selected for further study are detailed. Twenty-six footnotes, database statistics, and samples are…

Explores potential of mathematical theory of communication for information science and examines question of how to encode a message at time it is encountered for subsequent recall. Examples of problem, a prototype computer program and experiment, coding as embedding in associational nets, and nature of information are discussed. (Nine references.)…

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…

The mathematical model proposed describes a computerized bibliographic information system which includes a method--document learning--of improving the set of index terms assigned to a document representative. Inputs to the information system (index terms and query), relevance feedback, and assumptions concerning the model are discussed.…