Play with (not against) QANTA

Packet databases and other quizbowl sites, apps, or software should be discussed here.
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ezubaric
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Play with (not against) QANTA

Post by ezubaric »

We’ve been working on creating machine learning algorithms that can play quiz bowl:
http://umiacs.umd.edu/~jbg/projects/IIS ... html#Media

While we’ve focused on creating competitive systems, we’re now trying to see how well our systems can cooperate with human players. We created a Protobowl-like site (ironic, since Protobowl was based on our first research) where humans and machine can work together to answer questions. (This is akin to “centaur chess“, where a computer algorithm and a human play together, often beating the best individual humans and computers.)

You’ll be able to see what the computer is thinking and then we as researchers can see how it changes your style of play. To have a clear comparison, you’ll first play on some questions without the computer’s help.

If you play enough questions, you’ll be eligible for a drawing to receive gift card of either $50 or $10. So please try it out, and have some fun!
http://qbinterface.club

If you have any questions, please contact us by responding to this post or by e-mailing [email protected]
Jordan Boyd-Graber
UMD (College Park, MD), Faculty Advisor 2018-present
UC Boulder, Founder / Faculty Advisor 2014-2017
UMD (College Park, MD), Faculty Advisor 2010-2014
Princeton, Player 2004-2009
Caltech (Pasadena, CA), Player / President 2000-2004
Ark Math & Science (Hot Springs, AR), Player 1998-2000
Monticello High School, Player 1997-1998

Human-Computer Question Answering:
http://qanta.org/
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ezubaric
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Re: Play with (not against) QANTA

Post by ezubaric »

More specifically ...

Prizes are given to players who answer all questions:
  • First to answer 150 questions wins $50 (Amazon gift card; so make sure you use your real e-mail as your username)
  • 2nd to 5th each wins $20
  • 5 x $10 raffle for other players who finish all questions after that (probably a week or two, depending on uptake)
  • We may add additional incentives
We will also announce winners here.

Notes
  • You need to accept the “consent form” to use the interface. You can provide a user handle and an email address (required if you want to collect prize). Your information won’t be shared and the data will be anonymized if released. Do make sure to remember the email address you register with as it’s needed for collecting prizes.
  • We have three communication tools: Guesses, Highlights, and Evidence (listed under “Tools”). For each question, some of them will be randomly enabled for each player. This way we can make a fair comparison between the tools with each player.
  • Players won’t be able to buzz on a question that they have already answered. We select questions that most players in the room haven’t seen.
  • The web client will be paused if you have not buzzed on 5 questions. You can simply click on resume to get back to the interface. We just want to make sure not to collect data when user is not actively using the interface.
After enough data is collected for this research project, we will add features such as: new communication tools, a more competitive setting where you play against QANTA, etc, to make it more interesting. We hope this interface is useful for not only research but also the quizbowl community.
Last edited by ezubaric on Tue Mar 13, 2018 5:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Jordan Boyd-Graber
UMD (College Park, MD), Faculty Advisor 2018-present
UC Boulder, Founder / Faculty Advisor 2014-2017
UMD (College Park, MD), Faculty Advisor 2010-2014
Princeton, Player 2004-2009
Caltech (Pasadena, CA), Player / President 2000-2004
Ark Math & Science (Hot Springs, AR), Player 1998-2000
Monticello High School, Player 1997-1998

Human-Computer Question Answering:
http://qanta.org/
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UlyssesInvictus
Yuna
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Re: Play with (not against) QANTA

Post by UlyssesInvictus »

Given that we can't answer questions we've seen before, how will we know when we've answered/seen all 160 questions?
Raynor Kuang
quizdb.org
Harvard 2017, TJHSST 2013
I wrote GRAPHIC and FILM
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ezubaric
Rikku
Posts: 369
Joined: Mon Feb 09, 2004 8:02 pm
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Re: Play with (not against) QANTA

Post by ezubaric »

You'll get a popup when you have answered all 160.
Jordan Boyd-Graber
UMD (College Park, MD), Faculty Advisor 2018-present
UC Boulder, Founder / Faculty Advisor 2014-2017
UMD (College Park, MD), Faculty Advisor 2010-2014
Princeton, Player 2004-2009
Caltech (Pasadena, CA), Player / President 2000-2004
Ark Math & Science (Hot Springs, AR), Player 1998-2000
Monticello High School, Player 1997-1998

Human-Computer Question Answering:
http://qanta.org/
User avatar
ezubaric
Rikku
Posts: 369
Joined: Mon Feb 09, 2004 8:02 pm
Location: College Park, MD
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Re: Play with (not against) QANTA

Post by ezubaric »

Thanks for everybody who tried out the system. We're going to take it down very briefly to fix a bug we just found (if you've already played, don't worry, we'll keep your data).

We're going to lower the threshold to 150 questions to be eligible for reward.

Also, we reserve the right to not pay if you're not playing in good faith (e.g., always negging after first word).
Jordan Boyd-Graber
UMD (College Park, MD), Faculty Advisor 2018-present
UC Boulder, Founder / Faculty Advisor 2014-2017
UMD (College Park, MD), Faculty Advisor 2010-2014
Princeton, Player 2004-2009
Caltech (Pasadena, CA), Player / President 2000-2004
Ark Math & Science (Hot Springs, AR), Player 1998-2000
Monticello High School, Player 1997-1998

Human-Computer Question Answering:
http://qanta.org/
User avatar
ezubaric
Rikku
Posts: 369
Joined: Mon Feb 09, 2004 8:02 pm
Location: College Park, MD
Contact:

Re: Play with (not against) QANTA

Post by ezubaric »

Thanks for everybody who played with our system. The first round of data collection is finished. The winners are (user selected id):

$50 - raynorkuang
$20 - ryu
$20 - ewl1g17
$20 - briankal99
$20 - hwhite
$20 - Dan_Ni
$10 - hanto

Congrats! We will contact you by the email you registered with.

We plan to launch another round of data collection shortly, with new questions and new settings. Stay tuned! Once we're done completely, we'll also let people know our scientific findings.
Jordan Boyd-Graber
UMD (College Park, MD), Faculty Advisor 2018-present
UC Boulder, Founder / Faculty Advisor 2014-2017
UMD (College Park, MD), Faculty Advisor 2010-2014
Princeton, Player 2004-2009
Caltech (Pasadena, CA), Player / President 2000-2004
Ark Math & Science (Hot Springs, AR), Player 1998-2000
Monticello High School, Player 1997-1998

Human-Computer Question Answering:
http://qanta.org/
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