1998 TREC-7 Spoken Document Retrieval Track Overview and Results

This paper describes the 1998 TREC-7 Spoken Document Retrieval (SDR) Track which implemented an evaluation of retrieval of broadcast news excerpts using a combination of automatic speech recognition and information retrieval technologies. The motivations behind the SDR Track and background regarding its development and implementation are discussed. The SDR evaluation collection and topics are described and summaries and analyses of the results of the track are presented. Alternative metrics for automatic speech recognition as applicable to retrieval applications are also explored. Finally, plans for future SDR tracks are described.