Information Retrieval List Digest 068 (June 16, 1991) URL = http://hegel.lib.ncsu.edu/stacks/serials/irld/irld-068 ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 16 Jun 91 21:41:23 PST Date: Sun, 16 Jun 91 21:41:23 PST Reply-To: Information Retrieval List Sender: Information Retrieval List From: IRLIST Subject: IRLIST Digest, Vol. VIII, No. 25, Issue 68 IRLIST Digest June 16, 1991 Volume VIII, Number 25 Issue 68 ********************************************************** I. NOTICES C. Miscellaneous 1. Cheap IJCAI'91 Airfares II. QUERIES B. Requests for Information 1. Using Associative Memories for Retrieval IV. PROJECT WORK B. Bibliographies 1. Selected IR-Related Dissertation Abstracts 1. Selected IR-Related Dissertation Abstracts ********************************************************** I. NOTICES I.C.1. Fr: mostow@cs.rutgers.edu Re: CHEAP IJCAI91 Airfares Available But Not for Long For those of you planning to attend IJCAI-91 in Sydney, Australia, it may be important to know that there are extremely discounted round-trip airfares to/from the US and Sydney available right now. Both Continental and Northwest are offering $685 (+ tax = $703) round-trip fares from JFK and Newark. Both these fares *expire soon* (Continental on June 7th and Northwest the following week) so, if you're interested in taking advantage of the savings, call your travel agent immediately! Your local travel agent should have further details and be able to make the arrangements for you. I DON'T HAVE ANY OTHER INFORMATION, SO PLEASE DO ***NOT*** CONTACT ME. ********************************************************** II. QUERIES II.B.1. II.B.1. Fr: Sandeep Shahi Re: Using Assosiative Memories for Retrieval Associative memories (Content Addressable Memories) are often cited as being a powerful tool for searching. However not much literature is available on their use. Does anybody know as to where these memories stand in the present day computer architecture? Since it appears that CAMs are not a very popular topic of research these days, it would be interesting to note if there is anybody out there doing something in this area. Sandeep ********************************************************** IV. PROJECT WORK IV.B.1. Fr: Susanne Humphrey Re: Selected IR-Related Dissertation Abstracts The following are citations selected by title and abstract as being related to Information Retrieval (IR), resulting from a computer search, using BRS Information Technologies, of the Dissertation Abstracts Online database produced by University Microfilms International (UMI). Included are UMI order number, title, author, degree, year, institution; number of pages, one or more Dissertation Abstracts International (DAI) subject descriptors chosen by the author, and abstract. Unless otherwise specified, paper or microform copies of dissertations may be ordered from University Microfilms International, Dissertation Copies, Post Office Box 1764, Ann Arbor, MI 48106; telephone for U.S. (except Michigan, Hawaii, Alaska): 1-800-521-3042, for Canada: 1-800-268-6090. Price lists and other ordering and shipping information are in the introduction to the published DAI. An alternate source for copies is sometimes provided. Dissertation titles and abstracts contained here are published with permission of University Microfilms International, publishers of Dissertation Abstracts International (copyright by University Microfilms International), and may not be reproduced without their prior permission. AN University Microfilms Order Number ADG90-23802. AU PYUN, JISURK. TI A DEMPSTER-SHAFER MODEL FOR INDEXING AND BROWSING BIBLIOGRAPHICAL DATABASE SYSTEM. IN New York University, Graduate School of Business Administration Ph.D. 1990, 197 pages. SO DAI V51(07), SecA, pp2452. DE Business Administration, Management. Information Science. Computer Science. AB Subject searches in a bibliographical database system (BDS) generally have been considered as difficult to conduct successfully. The difficulties stem from uncertainty that underlies classification and browsing activities. We present a model to deal with uncertainty in the classification and browsing processes in a BDS. The model is based on the Dempster-Shafer theory of evidence. The semantics of the Dempster-Shafer theory is investigated in the context of a BDS. Different schools of thought in statistics are based on different representations of uncertainty and different modes of inference. The questionable superiority of the Dempster-Shafer theory over the other schools in improving document classification and browsing processes is explored. Concepts like hierarchy of classes, ambiguous relevance, inexact classification, and pooled classification, are discussed using the nomenclature of belief functions and Dempster's rule. The model thus gives a normative framework in which one can describe and address many problematic phenomena which characterize the way people classify and retrieve documents. This model is incorporated in a prototype computer system. Our system is tested against an alternative system in a laboratory experiment. The test results showed that our system outperformed the alternative system in user acceptance, effectiveness, and external validity. Aside from its practical merit, our model is interesting on theoretical grounds because it gives a canonical example in which the Dempster-Shafer theory "makes sense". AN University Microfilms Order Number ADG90-33476. AU CROCKETT, HENRY DAVID. TI THE DYNAMIC OBJECT-ORIENTED MODEL: A CRITERIA-DRIVEN APPROACH TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF A CONCEPTUAL DATA MODEL. IN The University of Texas at Arlington Ph.D. 1990, 426 pages. SO DAI V51(07), SecB, pp3450. DE Computer Science. Business Administration, General. AB The ability of conceptual data modeling methodologies to capture the semantics of an enterprise is an important factor in the development of an enterprise information base. Through the examination of the conceptual data modeling paradigm a set of criteria is developed. This set of criteria is used to examine and compare ten current data modeling techniques. The criteria are then used to form the framework for the development of a new dynamic object oriented modeling (DOOM) technique. The DOOM methodology is subsequently used to model a standardized Universe of Discourse. AN University Microfilms Order Number ADG90-34549. AU YOO, HYUCK. TI QUERY OPTIMIZATION BY INTELLIGENT SEARCH. IN The University of Michigan Ph.D. 1990, 158 pages. SO DAI V51(07), SecB, pp3464. DE Computer Science. AB Query optimization is a crucial part in relational database management systems because it can make a significant improvement in the overall performance of these systems. As the need for relational database management systems to handle larger amounts of data and more complex queries increases, it is of paramount importance that an optimal and efficient solution is found to answer a given query. Traditionally, dynamic programming or exhaustive search has been used to guarantee optimality, but these approaches are not effective for complex queries with large search spaces. In this dissertation, we investigate the problem of finding an optimal solution to the query optimization problem without having to search all the possibilities. The savings result from the idea of intelligently predicting future processing costs. Specifically, four query optimization problems are addressed: query optimization by semijoins, join query optimization, multiple query optimization, and semijoins, join query optimization, multiple query optimization, and query optimization for fragmented databases. For each problem, a new query optimization method is developed in light of the goal of enhancing the search efficiency while preserving optimality. Simulation experiments are carried out to show that substantial improvements can indeed be achieved. Another advantage of our approach is its modularity, in that different query processing strategies can be easily incorporated into the methods and general cost functions can be used for the optimization. Modularity is achieved because the methods developed consist of four well-defined and unrelated modules so that one module can be modified without affecting the others. AN University Microfilms Order Number ADG90-34682. AU BURGIN, ROBERT EDWARD. TI IMPROVED SYNTACTIC DISAMBIGUATION IN THE FASIT AUTOMATIC INDEXING ENVIRONMENT. IN The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Ph.D. 1990, 221 pages. SO DAI V51(07), SecA, pp2183. DE Information Science. Computer Science. Library Science. AB The development, implementation, and evaluation of an improved disambiguation mechanism within the FASIT automatic indexing system are examined in this dissertation. The enhanced disambiguation mechanism relies on a recursive transition network to improve the indexing representation produced by FASIT by enhancing the system's ability to disambiguate syntactic tags assigned to the words of a text and thereby to improve retrieval results. FASIT with the recursive transition network was compared with FASIT alone and with single-term indexing on retrieval effectiveness in experiments with two databases. Both versions of FASIT showed noticeable improvement over single-term indexing with a database of articles on cystic fibrosis, and both showed material improvement over single-term indexing with a subset of the Inspec database. However, in neither case did FASIT with the enhanced disambiguation mechanism provide even noticeable improvement over FASIT alone. The failure of FASIT with the recursive transition network to improve upon the retrieval results of FASIT alone appeared to be due primarily to the interaction of two factors: the inability of the recursive transition network to correctly disambiguate more than 40 per cent of the sentences requiring further disambiguation; and the stepwise reduction of the effectiveness of further disambiguation in the FASIT environment. A retrieval experiment using a complete manual disambiguation of a sample of documents from the cystic fibrosis database produced no noticeable difference between FASIT alone and FASIT with the manual disambiguation. These results suggest that retrieval performance is not noticeably affected by improvements to FASIT's disambiguation process due to the diminution of the effectiveness of disambiguation caused by FASIT's flexibility in allowing ambiguous tags to be parts of tag combinations selected as index terms. These experiments provide evidence that little improvement in retrieval performance can be expected, regardless of the degree to which FASIT's disambiguation mechanism alone is enhanced. Therefore, it may be more promising to explore improvements to FASIT apart from enhancements to the disambiguation process, such as changes in the way FASIT selects index terms and the incorporation of linguistic considerations beyond the syntactic information now used by the program. AN University Microfilms Order Number ADG90-33933. AU ERCEGOVAC, ZORANA. TI RESEARCH ON KNOWLEDGE-BASED DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGING OF CARTOGRAPHIC PUBLICATIONS: AN EXPERIMENTAL ADVICE-GIVING SYSTEM--MAPPER. IN University of California, Los Angeles Ph.D. 1990, 295 pages. SO DAI V51(07), SecA, pp2186. DE Library Science. Information Science. Computer Science. AB The main objective of this study is to understand how an experimental, semi-automatic cataloging advisor (Mapper) could be designed to assist the intermittent user in the descriptive cataloging of certain U.S. produced single-sheet maps. The first part of the study uses a multiple-observation approach to identify and analyze instances of expert judgment in solving a set of nontrivial cataloging tasks. Attention is on examining the questions of map authorship and the degree of significance to which various authorial responsibilities participate in the process of map-making. The study empirically derived a working definition of a "map author" for the maps under investigation. With respect to the degree of significance of responsibilities that participate in the creation of the map, the study has suggested rank order of responsibilities that are represented in the content of the examined maps. The second part formalizes experts' judgment into a set of rules which were then used to design Mapper's knowledge base. We examine the questions of user modeling and human-computer compatibility to propose a set of user interface characteristics related to Mapper's design. Mapper is implemented using the Apple HyperCard system. In the third part we evaluated Mapper's performance on accuracy and affective measures in a controlled environment. This study has shown that library students can produce significantly better cataloging answers when helped by the Mapper than those who were not assisted by the Mapper. The term "better" is operationalized in terms of statistically significant higher mean scores on the cataloging tasks under study. Mapper students expressed favorable general opinion of the system and found it easy to understand and use. ********************************************************** IRLIST Digest is distributed from the University of California, Division of Library Automation, 300 Lakeside Drive, Oakland, CA. 94612-3550. Send subscription requests to: LISTSERV@UCCVMA.BITNET Send submissions to IRLIST to: IR-L@UCCVMA.BITNET Editorial Staff: Clifford Lynch lynch@postgres.berkeley.edu or calur@uccmvsa.bitnet Nancy Gusack ncgur@uccmvsa.bitnet Mary Engle engle@cmsa.berkeley.edu or meeur@uccmvsa.bitnet The IRLIST Archives will be set up for anonymous FTP, and the address will be announced in future issues. To access back issues presently, send the message INDEX IR-L to LISTSERV@UCCVMA.BITNET. 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