Desperately seeking answers

“As the circle of my knowledge grows, so grows the circumference of the unknown.”

Sir Isaac Newton wrote that ­ or at least, I think he did. I had to check the origin of the quote using a search engine, so my accuracy is reliant on the accuracy of someone ­ or something ­ else.

In covering IT innovation for Computing, I hear a lot about the future of search, for example, the challenges of porting search engines to mobile devices and potential ways we can help people to work together.

There is no doubt that such issues will have to be dealt with in the near future, but at the same time there is another, more basic set of problems: those that stem from human-machine interaction.

All the big hitters in search are working in this area, and one of the most interesting approaches is True Knowledge a Cambridge-based project that aims to create an engine capable of understanding full questions, rather than just looking for patterns or selected words in online text.

Achieving the goal has long been something of a Holy Grail for search companies, but William Tunstall-Pedoe seems to be making good progress.

The entrepreneur and his team have developed a tool that relies on a database of facts when handling queries, allowing it to comprehend the correct intention behind ambiguous search terms.

For example, when asked a question, such as “Is Madonna single?”, the search engine will assess whether the user is referring to the pop singer, the mother of Christ or one of several locations in Italy.

The system will recognise “single” as being a relationship status, and that places are unable to form loving bonds with one another.

A standard answer will therefore be “no”, since True Knowledge knows Madonna is married to Guy Ritchie ­ and it is highly likely that this is the Madonna in question.
If pushed, it will also give an answer about the relationship status of the Virgin Mary ­ “I don’t know,” in case you are interested.

All the information feeding the True Knowledge decisions is based on the input of voluntary users, who submit facts on a specific subject.

Every submission is used, and in a case where the engine receives two opposing bits of information ­ if someone suggests that Madonna is single, for example ­ the application will side with the majority vote.

The process in turn makes it more difficult to hijack or graffiti content, as sometimes happens with contentious Wikipedia articles.

True Knowledge is in the beta stage of testing with about 500 regular contributors, so the database still needs time to grow.However, the search system is still a fascinating indication of the way the market might develop.

The idea of a search tool that can actually answer questions is appealing, but fact-based systems still have limitations.

Absolute truths will work, such as “Is George Bush a president?” But subjective questions fare less well: “Is George Bush a good president?”

So, machines may be able to tell us if Madonna is single, but they cannot tell us how to get a date with her. Or why we would want one, for that matter. Answers on a postcard, please.