Our search function adheres to Boolean search logic which allows you to combine words and phrases using the words AND, OR, NOT (known as Boolean operators) to limit, broaden, or define your search.
How to Build a Boolean Search
- Choose your keywords: Think about the main words that describe what you're looking for. For example, if you want to find information about pets, your keyword might be "dogs."
- Use "AND" to narrow down results: If you want results that include both of two keywords, use "AND" between them. For example, if you want information about big dogs, you can search for "dogs AND big." This tells the platform to find results that have both "dogs" and "big" in them.
- Use "OR" to expand results: If you want results that include either of two keywords (or both), use "OR" between them. For example, if you're interested in either dogs or cats, you can search for "dogs OR cats." This will bring up results that have either "dogs" or "cats" or both.
- Put it all together: You can combine these operators to create more complex searches. For example, if you're looking for information about big dogs but not small ones or cats, you can search for "dogs AND big NOT small OR cats." This tells the search engine exactly what you want.
Here’s an example within Cypris’ platform to demonstrate the impact of breaking up a phrase into the individual words and how the boolean logic will change the results.
Notice the difference in results when you break up a two-word term into two separate keywords connected by an AND operator.
For more information on Boolean Search, visit this article here.