KEYWORD-IN-CONTEXT (KWIC) INDEXING: BACKGROUND, STATISTICAL EVALUATION, PROS AND CONS, APPLICATIONS

This thesis discusses keyword-in-context KWIC indexing, a new method of machine indexing literature. In presenting the subject, the author assumes that the reader is unfamiliar with the new discipline of Information Science, precipitated by the information explosion. The background of machine indexing is developed deductively. Next, the author describes KWIC indexing, evaluates statistically the hypothesis upon which it is based that titles are descriptive of the article or document they represent, lists its pros, cons and applications. And finally, the author concludes that KWIC indexing is indeed an efficacious new tool.