CS6501 Information Retrieval Course Policy Hongning Wang

Goal of this course Introduce core IR concepts – What is behind a commercial search engine Wide coverage of many IR applications – E.g., text mining, recommendation, personalization Get hands on experience by developing practical systems/components Prepare students for doing cutting-edge research in IR and related fields Open the door to the amazing job opportunities in search and e-commerce industry Information Retrieval2

Structure of this course Lecture based – Seven major topics will be covered in the course E.g., search engine architecture, retrieval models and retrieval evaluation – Introduce both classical and modern IR techniques E.g., Classical ranking model v.s. learning-based approach Information Retrieval3

Grading policy Homework (25%) – Written assignments (~3) – Machine problems (~3) Midterm (25%) Paper presentation (15%) – Graded by peer-review Course project (40%) – Research/development-oriented – Work in group Information Retrieval4

Prerequisite Programming skills – Basic data structures: CS 2150 or equivalent – Java is required for two machine problems Lucene is written in Java – Any language you choose for the rest of this course Resources: Google/Bing, stackoverflow, Piazza Math background – Probability discrete/continuous distributions Expectation, moments – Linear algebra Vector, matrix, dot product Information Retrieval5

Paper presentation Let students present the state-of-the-art IR research – Choosing from recommended readings, or your favorite paper outside the list – 10-mins presentation + 2-mins Q&A – One paper one student – Register your choice early, first come first serve – Will be graded by the instructor and other students Information Retrieval6

Course project Appreciate research-oriented problems or “deliverables” – Work in groups (not required) – Project proposal (20%) Discuss your topic with peers or the instructor Written report – Project report (40%) Due before final presentation – Project presentation (40%) 20-mins in-class presentation 5-mins Q&A Information Retrieval7

Late policy Homework – Everyone will have one chance to ask for extension (extra three days after deadline) Midterm – No make-up exams unless under emergency situation Paper presentation – Must be presented on your selected date Course project – Proposal due early in the semester (~5 th week) – Final report due before presentation (no extension) Information Retrieval8

Contact information Lecture – Instructor: Hongning Wang – Time: Tuesday/Thursday 9:30am to 10:45am – Location: Rice Hall 340 Office hour – Instructor’s Time: Thursday 11am to 12pm Location: Rice Hall 408 – TA’s Time: Tuesday 2pm to 4pm Location: Rice Hall 532 Course website – Website: – Piazza: Information Retrieval9

QUESTIONS? Thank you! Information Retrieval10