Heuristic search techniques Optimization Foundations; Symbolic AI
noun phrase
Definition: Search methods that use heuristic information, such as estimates of distance, cost, or promise, to guide exploration toward more relevant or efficient solution paths instead of exhaustively examining the entire search space [Sun et al. 2025].
Example in context: “Heuristic search techniques could be developed to create DETs that are more likely to identify termination and mitigate the impact of the order of node elimination in the creation of DETs and in the analysis carried out by GenSieve.” [Srivastava 2023]
Synonyms: heuristic search methods; informed search techniques
Related terms: A* search; best-first search; search heuristic; node expansion; state-space search