In this paper we examine the interplay between the requirements of information seekers to access information in large digital text collections and the techniques developed by natural language processing researchers to support this access. In particular we examine how language processing technologies such as question answering, single and multidocument summarisation, and ontology-guided similar event searching can assist journalists in gathering information from news archives for the purpose of writing background to a breaking news event – the Cub Reporter scenario. Our thesis is that investigating real-world tasks with complex information access requirements, such as the Cub Reporter scenario, stimulates researchers to look beyond existing search engine solutions and drives the development and evaluation of novel language processing techniques; at the same time novel developments in language processing capabilities allow both conceptual insights into how to characterise information seeking behaviour and empirical insights based on observation of information seeking behaviour using new technologies
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Gaizauskas, R., Saggion, H., Barker, E. (2007). Information Access and Natural Language Processing: A Stimulating Dialogue. In: Ahmad, K., Brewster, C., Stevenson, M. (eds) Words and Intelligence II. Text, Speech and Language Technology, vol 36. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-5833-0_4
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