Generation Challenges 2010

自然语言生成（NLG）是自然语言处理（NLP）的一个分支，主要研究如何通过计算机自动生成语言。NLG技术的可能应用包括节省文本制作过程和改善非语言信息的获取，以及机器翻译，文本摘要和人机对话。NLG是一个拥有巨大但迄今为止基本上未实现的潜力的领域。在其他NLP领域，共享数据，共享核心技术和有组织的共享任务竞赛已经被视为激励研究社区，并导致快速的技术进步。在NLG研究人员中，对比较评估形式的兴趣日益增长，引发了一场讨论，现在已经导致了NLG中的前三个共享任务评估竞赛：2007年，我们组织了一个试点NLG共享任务评估活动，生成引用表达式的属性选择（ASGRE'07）挑战;二零零八年，我们组织了ReferringExpression Generation Challenge（REG'08），参与人数增加了一倍，我们与NLG的领先国际会议（哥伦布，俄亥俄州的INLG'08）同地举办;今年，我们组织了第一届Generation Challenges活动，任务、组织团队和参与者的数量进一步增加，并与NLG的领先欧洲会议（雅典的ENLG'09）同地举办。ASGRE'07、REG'08和Generation Challenges 2009在NLG研究人员中引起了极大的热情，导致了新技术和数据资源的创建，并吸引了新的研究人员进入该领域。为了继续和增加这些有益的影响，我们正在组织一个新的NLG评估活动，2010年的世代挑战，再次与领先的NLG会议（INLG'10）。2010年世代挑战包括两项从上一年的任务中发展出来的任务，两项新任务，以及三个目前正在开发的新任务工作组，预计将在2011年运行。为了使“世代挑战”计划更具持久性和代表性，我们最近成立了“世代挑战指导委员会”，其成员包括NLG领域的许多领先研究人员。我们2010年的目标是建立机制，确保世代挑战倡议的长期持续，并纳入越来越多的研究人员组织和运行自己的任务。与由美国政府机构资助和指导的机器翻译和文档摘要领域的领先评估计划不同，ASGRE'07、REG'08、GenChal'09和现在的Generation Enterprises 2010都是以社区为基础、由英国领导的评估计划。该提案要求为伞式组织和行政活动提供资金，以及为2010年世代挑战中的一项共同任务进行数据准备和评估实验，使我们能够开展计划的全部活动，并保持这一倡议以社区为基础，由联合王国领导。

Natural Language Generation (NLG) is the subfield of Natural LanguageProcessing (NLP) that is concerned with developing computationalmethods for automatically producing language. Possible applicationsof NLG technology include economising text-production processes andimproving access to non-verbal information, as well as machinetranslation, text summarisation and human-computer dialogue. NLG is afield with vast but so far largely unrealised potential. In other NLPfields, shared data, shared core technology and organised shared-taskcompetitions have been seen to galvanise research communities, andlead to rapid technological progress. Among NLG researchers, growinginterest in comparative forms of evaluation led to a discussion whichhas now resulted in the first three shared-task evaluationcompetitions in NLG: in 2007, we organised a pilot NLG shared-taskevaluation event, the Attribute Selection for Generating ReferringExpressions (ASGRE'07) Challenge; in 2008, we organised the ReferringExpression Generation Challenge (REG'08) which saw participationdouble and was co-located with the leading international conference inNLG (INLG'08 in Columbus, Ohio); and this year, we organised the firstGeneration Challenges event which saw the number of tasks, organisingteams and participants increase further and was co-located with the leadingEuropean conference in NLG (ENLG'09 in Athens). ASGRE'07, REG'08 andGeneration Challenges 2009 have met with enthusiasm among NLGresearchers, have resulted in the creation of new technology and dataresources, and have drawn new researchers into the field. In order tocontinue and increase these beneficial effects, we are organising afourth NLG evaluation event, Generation Challenges 2010, once again inconjunction with the leading NLG conference (INLG'10). GenerationChallenges 2010 comprises two tasks that have grown out of tasks fromthe previous year, two new tasks, and three working groups on new taskscurrently under development which are expected to run in 2011. Inorder to put the Generation Challenges initiative on a more permanentand representative footing, we have recently founded the GenerationChallenges Steering Committee whose members include many of theleading researchers in the NLG field. Our aim for 2010 is to putmechanisms in place that ensure the long-term continuation of theGeneration Challenges initiative and the inclusion of growing numbersof researchers organising and running their own tasks. Unlike leadingevaluation initiatives in Machine Translation and DocumentSummarisation, which are funded and directed by US governmentagencies, ASGRE'07, REG'08, GenChal'09 and now Generation Challenges2010 are community-based, UK-led evaluation initiatives. Thisproposal requests funding for umbrella organisation and administrativeactivities, as well as data preparation and evaluation experiments forone of the shared tasks in Generation Challenges 2010, to enable us tocarry out the full range of planned activities, and to keep thisinitiative community-based and UK-led.