Exploratory search in multi-domain information spaces with liquid query

Abstract

Search Computing (SeCo) aims at building search applications that bridge the gap between general-purpose and vertical search engines. SeCo queries extract ranked information about several interconnected domains, such as hotels, or concerts, by interacting with Web data sources which are wrapped as search services; an example of query is: Find a good Jazz concert close to the user's current location, together with close-by good restaurants and hotels. The SeCo system supports the deployment of search applications, by providing a generic software architecture and the tools for service and query registration, for query formulation and execution, and for result browsing. In this demo paper, we focus on the Liquid Query (LQ) interface which supports the iteration over query formulation, result visualization and query refinement, with commands for perusing the result set, changing the visualization of data based on their type (e.g., geographical or temporal) and interacting with the remote search services. It also supports an exploratory search approach, where the user starts by accessing one data source (e.g., an event listing for finding interesting concerts), then is assisted in progressively joining other correlated sources in an interactive exploration of the search space. The exploration paths can be chosen on the fly and the navigation history can be browsed back and forth for cross-checking the retrieved options.