Abstract: A machine-implemented system and method of information retrieval, comprising: receiving queries including an ordered set of clause definitions, each clause definition including a clause pipeline, wherein a clause pipeline includes an ordered set of clause specifications that comprises an expansion operation and/or a filter operation, where the queries are received from a calling application; parsing the queries into a collection of expression pools; processing data by the expression pools in the collection to generate a current object set; and returning the current object set to the calling application in response to the queries.

Abstract: Systems and Methods for information retrieval, comprising: receiving object-oriented data from multiple data sources; receiving a query from a query application that formulates the query and supplies the query to an information retrieval system; parsing the query into a graph of data nodes; processing the data nodes in the graph on the object-oriented data to generate a current object set; and returning the current object set to the query application in response to the query.

Abstract: An information retrieval system implements a search language, through which a querying entity (e.g., a user, a program or process, or the like) formulates a search query. Preferably, a search query is composed of an ordered set of clause definitions, and each clause can have set membership operations applied to it. Each clause includes a clause pipeline, and a time constraint. A clause pipeline includes an ordered set of clause specifications separated by a pipeline operator. A clause specification can be either an expansion operation or a filtering operation. Preferably, a first clause specification in a pipeline operates on an initial universe of all objects, and each subsequent clause specification operates on a set of objects produced from the previous clause specification. The search language is exposed to users (typically, IT administrators), and one or more builder programs within the system (each referred to as a “model builder”) are used internally to present data models to the search language.