Evaluation of the Selective Dissemination of Information (SDI) Program for the Aerospace Materials Information Center.

Abstract : The SDI data base consists of the periodic document index records input to the AMIC system. The users served by the SDI program are 63 engineers, scientists and technical administrators at the AFML and 16 scientific and technical personnel at the University of Dayton. The scope of interest encompasses all materials of current or potential use in aerospace systems and includes theoretical studies, manufacturing processes, and in-service performance and failure analysis. An informal interview technique elicited responses regarding the user assessment of the program and indicated problem areas in the SDI returns received by the users. Most respondents indicated that too many abstracts were being received and relevance was too low. Based on more precise statements obtained in the interviews and on rejected abstracts, profile modifications were effected. An SDI experiment to test the effect of profile modifications on relevance indicated that overall relevance was increased from 37.6% to 51.8%. The primary factor in the improvement was the judicious but copious use of NOT terms to eliminate unwanted abstracts while retrieving desired abstracts. Results showed the validity of the NOT strategy and indicated the effectiveness of direct contact between the information specialist and the SDI user.