Abstract: Mechanisms are provided in a data processing system for utilizing algorithms based on categories in a question answering system. The mechanisms capture a history of performance and correctness metrics for identifying efficiency of respective algorithms for finding answers to questions in respective question categories in a question answering system. The mechanisms determine sets of algorithms to use for respective question categories according to efficiency and correctness analysis. The mechanisms determine a question category of a given input question and execute a set of algorithms corresponding to the question category of the given input question that meet an efficiency threshold to contribute to finding a correct answer for the given input question.

Abstract: An approach is provided that receives a question at a question answering (QA) system. The question includes a number of words. The approach operates by calculating weights that correspond to search terms included in the plurality of words. The search terms include the plurality of words and may include terms that are one or more sequences of adjacent words included in the question. Based on the calculated weights and the words in the question, the approach generates a query that is used to search a corpus that is managed by the QA system with the search resulting in one or more search results.

Abstract: An approach is provided that receives a question at a question answering (QA) system. The question includes a number of words. The approach operates by calculating weights that correspond to search terms included in the plurality of words. The search terms include the plurality of words and may include terms that are one or more sequences of adjacent words included in the question. Based on the calculated weights and the words in the question, the approach generates a query that is used to search a corpus that is managed by the QA system with the search resulting in one or more search results.

Abstract: An active learning framework is operative to identify informative questions that should be added to existing question-answer (Q&A) pairs that comprise a training dataset for a learning model. In this approach, the question-answer pairs (to be labeled as “true” or “false”) are automatically selected from a larger pool of unlabeled data. A spatial-directed clustering algorithm partitions the relevant question-answer space of unlabeled data. A margin-induced loss function is then used to rank a question. For each question selected, a label is then obtained, preferably by assigning a prediction for each associated question-answer pair using a current model that has been trained on labeled question-answer pairs. After the questions are labeled, an additional re-sampling is performed to assure high quality of the training data. Preferably, and with respect to a particular question, this additional re-sampling is based on a distance measure between correct and incorrect answers.

Abstract: Mechanisms are provided in a data processing system for utilizing algorithms based on categories in a question answering system. The mechanisms capture a history of performance and correctness metrics for identifying efficiency of respective algorithms for finding answers to questions in respective question categories in a question answering system. The mechanisms determine sets of algorithms to use for respective question categories according to efficiency and correctness analysis. The mechanisms determine a question category of a given input question and execute a set of algorithms corresponding to the question category of the given input question that meet an efficiency threshold to contribute to finding a correct answer for the given input question.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method generates a candidate answer triple for use in retrieving information used to answer a question. One or more processors parse a question to identify a lexical answer type for the question, a question action for the question, and a question timestamp for the question to make up a question triple. One or more processors retrieve multiple candidate passages for answering the question, and parse each of the multiple candidate passages to identify a candidate entity, a candidate action, and a candidate timestamp from each of the multiple candidate passages to generate a candidate answer triple. One or more processors compare the question triple to the candidate answer triple and establish a match score for each candidate answer triple, which is used in retrieving information used to answer the question.

Abstract: Mechanisms are provided in a data processing system for utilizing algorithms based on categories in a question answering system. The mechanisms capture a history of performance and correctness metrics for identifying efficiency of respective algorithms for finding answers to questions in respective question categories in a question answering system. The mechanisms determine sets of algorithms to use for respective question categories according to efficiency and correctness analysis. The mechanisms determine a question category of a given input question and execute a set of algorithms corresponding to the question category of the given input question that meet an efficiency threshold to contribute to finding a correct answer for the given input question.

Abstract: An approach is provided that receives a question at a question answering (QA) system. The question includes a number of words. The approach operates by calculating weights that correspond to search terms included in the plurality of words. The search terms include the plurality of words and may include terms that are one or more sequences of adjacent words included in the question. Based on the calculated weights and the words in the question, the approach generates a query that is used to search a corpus that is managed by the QA system with the search resulting in one or more search results.

Abstract: An approach is provided that receives a question at a question answering (QA) system. The question includes a number of words. The approach operates by calculating weights that correspond to search terms included in the plurality of words. The search terms include the plurality of words and may include terms that are one or more sequences of adjacent words included in the question. Based on the calculated weights and the words in the question, the approach generates a query that is used to search a corpus that is managed by the QA system with the search resulting in one or more search results.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method generates a candidate answer triple for use in retrieving information used to answer a question. One or more processors parse a question to identify a lexical answer type for the question, a question action for the question, and a question timestamp for the question to make up a question triple. One or more processors retrieve multiple candidate passages for answering the question, and parse each of the multiple candidate passages to identify a candidate entity, a candidate action, and a candidate timestamp from each of the multiple candidate passages to generate a candidate answer triple. One or more processors compare the question triple to the candidate answer triple and establish a match score for each candidate answer triple, which is used in retrieving information used to answer the question.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method generates a temporal candidate answer to a question. One or more processors tag terms found in multiple text passages with a part of speech (POS) tag, and then parse POS tagged terms found in the multiple text passages to generate passage triples for multiple parts of each of the multiple text passages. The processor(s) filter each sub-passage from the multiple text passages, which removes passages from each of the multiple text passages that are not associated with said each sub-passage. The processor(s) temporally align each sub-passage triple with a particular time range, and then extract text within each sub-passage from the multiple text passages to create a temporal candidate answer identified by the associated sub-passage triple. Upon receipt of a question related to a sub-passage that is related to the particular time range, the processor(s) return the temporal candidate answer that is temporally aligned with the question.

Abstract: An active learning framework is operative to identify informative questions that should be added to existing question-answer (Q&A) pairs that comprise a training dataset for a learning model. In this approach, the question—answer pairs (to be labeled as “true” or “false”) are automatically selected from a larger pool of unlabeled data. A spatial-directed clustering algorithm partitions the relevant question-answer space of unlabeled data. A margin-induced loss function is then used to rank a question. For each question selected, a label is then obtained, preferably by assigning a prediction for each associated question-answer pair using a current model that has been trained on labeled question-answer pairs. After the questions are labeled, an additional re-sampling is performed to assure high quality of the training data. Preferably, and with respect to a particular question, this additional re-sampling is based on a distance measure between correct and incorrect answers.

Abstract: Mechanisms are provided for configuring a ranker array of a question and answer (QA) system. An initial configuration of a ranker array of the QA system is generated which comprises a plurality of rankers with each ranker applying a statistical classification function to candidate answers generated by the QA system. A training question is input to the QA system to generate a training candidate answer set and the ranker array is applied to the training candidate answer set to generate, for each ranker in the ranker array, a ranked listing of candidate answers. For each ranker in the ranker array, a correctness of a corresponding ranked listing of candidate answers is determined and the ranker array is reconfigured based on results of the determined correctness of the corresponding ranked listing of candidate answers for each ranker in the ranker array.

Abstract: Mechanisms are provided in a data processing system for utilizing algorithms based on categories in a question answering system. The mechanisms capture a history of performance and correctness metrics for identifying efficiency of respective algorithms for finding answers to questions in respective question categories in a question answering system. The mechanisms determine sets of algorithms to use for respective question categories according to efficiency and correctness analysis. The mechanisms determine a question category of a given input question and execute a set of algorithms corresponding to the question category of the given input question that meet an efficiency threshold to contribute to finding a correct answer for the given input question.

Abstract: Mechanisms are provided in a data processing system for utilizing algorithms based on categories in a question answering system. The mechanisms capture a history of performance and correctness metrics for identifying efficiency of respective algorithms for finding answers to questions in respective question categories in a question answering system. The mechanisms determine sets of algorithms to use for respective question categories according to efficiency and correctness analysis. The mechanisms determine a question category of a given input question and execute a set of algorithms corresponding to the question category of the given input question that meet an efficiency threshold to contribute to finding a correct answer for the given input question.

Abstract: Mechanisms are provided in a data processing system for utilizing algorithms based on categories in a question answering system. The mechanisms capture a history of performance and correctness metrics for identifying efficiency of respective algorithms for finding answers to questions in respective question categories in a question answering system. The mechanisms determine sets of algorithms to use for respective question categories according to efficiency and correctness analysis. The mechanisms determine a question category of a given input question and execute a set of algorithms corresponding to the question category of the given input question that meet an efficiency threshold to contribute to finding a correct answer for the given input question.