Patent ID: 8230364

Claim:
An information retrieval system comprising: a mapping section comprising a self organising artificial neural network including an array of nodes trained upon representations of a set of distinct information items and configured to map a representation of each information item in the set of distinct information items to a single closest corresponding node in the array of nodes of the self organising artificial neural network so that information items having similar content are mapped to nodes of the self organising artificial neural network near to each other in said array of nodes; a first search enquiry section configured to (1) select a subset of said information items by applying a user-defined search query against said information items, (2) detect a degree of relevance, to said search query, of each information item in said subset, and (3) provide said degrees of relevance and said subset of said information items; a second search enquiry section configured to identify which nodes among the array of nodes of the self organising artificial neural network are mapped to by at least some of said subset of said information items provided by the first search enquiry section; and a graphical user interface configured to display the array of nodes of the self organising artificial neural network in a node display area on a user display, and configured to display a representation of the nodes identified by the second enquiry section that correspond to at least some of said subset of said information items within the array of nodes of the node display area on the user display, said graphical user interface being operable to display each of said nodes identified by the second enquiry section with respective display properties dependent on said provided degrees of relevance.