Describes a prototype natural language text knowledge system (TKS) that was used to organize 50 pages of a handbook on artificial intelligence as an inferential knowledge base with natural language query and command capabilities. Representation of text, database navigation, query systems, discourse structuring, and future research needs are…

This discussion of various ways of looking at information argues that it is important for media specialists to think about the concepts and ethics of information in order to assist students to become effective information users. Ten references are listed. (MES)

InfoQUEST is a microcomputer-based online public access catalog, designed for the small library handling file sizes up to 25,000 records. Based on the IBM-PC, or compatible machines, the system will accept downloading, in batch mode, of records from the library's file on the UTLAS Catalog Support System. (Author/EJS)

Explains the link between educational broadcasting and information technology. Some aspects of knowledge organization for information retrieval are explored and illustrated with reference to the University of Aberdeen's Educational Broadcasting Database. A pilot exercise includes communication of user-selected data from the database to…

Presents the advantages and disadvantages of free text and controlled vocabulary retrieval techniques and a methodology to assist in deciding on the optimal technique for a particular purpose. The relevance of the techniques for expert systems and full text contexts is also discussed and recommendations for further research are made. (Author/EM)

Reviews a wide range of retrieval problems that arose with the implementation of an online catalog in an academic library, especially the problem of retrieving uniform titles coded as authors. The need for changes in the underlying format of coding uniform titles as a universal solution is discussed. (Author/CLB)

Discusses the inability of the standard Boolean logic model of information retrieval to deal effectively with the inherent fallibility of retrieval decisions. Recent advances in information retrieval research are reviewed, and their practical potential for overcoming the deficiencies of the Boolean model is examined. (45 references) (Author/CLB)

Reviews previous investigations of how best to determine whether a user should continue to display output from an online retrieval system, and presents a model for providing the user with the estimated number of relevant records remaining in a retrieved set ranked by a retrieval status value. (40 references) (Author/CLB)

Describes the use of dBase II at the Centre of Studies in Resources Engineering of India to develop a microcomputer based database. The effectiveness of the system in bibliographic data storage and management, data selection and retrieval, and report preparation is discussed. (7 references) (CLB)

Describes the holdings and services provided by the Roper Center, the largest archive of survey data in the world. Explains the structure of and topics included in the online database, and discusses fees, membership opportunities, and future plans for the center. A sidebar by Burns W. Roper is included. (CLB)

Guidelines presented for the design of instruction using interactive technologies are based on theory and research in learning, instruction, and/or media development. Also explained is a meta-model, ROPES, which highlights retrieval of information, orienting activities, presentation, encoding in the cognitive structure, and the sequencing of…

Examined preschool and first-grade children's recall and recognition memory for two types of atypical actions: irrelevancies and disruptions, and for script actions (schemata). Children recalled disruptions better than irrelevancies in stories about familiar events, especially with delayed recall. Script actions were least well recalled. (SKC)

Describes a study that examined the ability of the dBase database management system to perform secondary key retrieval on multivalued data items. The results are presented as time cost relative to the number of matching records, and situations in which a different management system might be appropriate are identified. (CLB)

Summarizes earlier research in the theory of information flow and its application to practical situations and to the relationship between information and the user's knowledge state. A model for creating information profiles is presented which mathematically represents changes in decision making effectiveness as a function of specific documents.…

Presents a model of human information needs which classifies information need types by their inherent properties. The influence of information needs on human behavior, and the need to incorporate this concept into information storage and retrieval systems, are discussed. (15 references) (CLB)