Will Supercomputer Watson win the Jeopardy! quiz show?
On Wednesday 16 February, the Information Science department of the University of Groningen will be organizing a symposium about Watson, IBM’s supercomputer. That evening, the computer will be competing in the quiz show Jeopardy! in the United States against Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter, the two best human players ever.
If the trial round is a good predictor of the result, then Watson will be the winner. This would be an enormous leap forward in computer development and human-machine communication. It would surpass the achievement of the IBM computer Deep Blue, which beat the reigning chess world champion Kasparov in 1997.
The Information Science department of the University of Groningen is specialized in the automatic analysis of human language, and is itself busy developing a question-answer system (like Watson) for Dutch. The University of Groningen offers both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Information Science (Dutch-taught).
Watson will be playing against human opponents on 14, 15 and 16 February. The contests will be broadcast live in the United States. On 16 February, three experts at the University of Groningen will explain what is going on at the event. They will use video fragments from the first two rounds to answer questions, including the following:
- Why is this a unique achievement? How does Watson work exactly?
- What are Watson’s limits?
- Will we be getting a similar system for Dutch soon?
- What does this mean for the future?
The audience and the press will also have the opportunity to ask questions.
Speakers:
- Prof. Jaap van den Herik (NIAS),
- Dr Gosse Bouma (RUG)
- Prof. Johan Bos (RUG)
Chairman: Theo Jurriens
Wednesday 16 February 2011, 6-7 p.m., Harmonie Building, Oude Kijk in 't Jatstraat 26, 9712 EK Groningen, Room 14.14.
Note for the press
Contact: Prof. Johan Bos
Last modified: | 13 March 2020 01.53 a.m. |
More news
-
19 December 2024
Konstantin Mierau new Vice Dean Faculty of Arts
The Board of the University of Groningen has appointed Dr Konstantin Mierau as Vice Dean of the Faculty of Arts, effective 1 January 2025. Dean Thony Visser and Managing Director Sander van den Bos are pleased with the appointment and look forward...
-
16 December 2024
Jouke de Vries: ‘The University will have to be flexible’
2024 was a festive year for the University of Groningen. Jouke de Vries, the chair of the Executive Board, looks back.
-
10 December 2024
Time will tell: what tree rings reveal about the past
Ancient DNA analysis of bones, teeth, or plants can reveal family connections, population movements, and domestication pathways. Pınar Erdil tells more about it.