Support : Publications : Chronolog Archives : April 2002

Search Tip: The "Which" Hunt

A favorite trick is what one of our experts calls a "which" hunt. It is useful when looking for a term of prior art, an abbreviation, or an acronym. It works well in newspaper and general information fulltext files. The technique depends on the use of the word "which" appearing close to a word in a clause in which the word is described. Here's an example:

The question: I heard about something called UDMH being found on apples. What is it?

     ?B PAPERS
     S UDMH(w)WHICH
     T S1/K/1-11

The answer: ...Worry focuses on a breakdown product of daminozide, a chemical called unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine, or UDMH, which is a more potent carcinogen than the parent molecule...