LongSummary

LongSummary is a document summarization concept describing an extended summary that provides more detail than a standard abstract or executive summary. It is used to convey the essential arguments, evidence, and context of a source while staying shorter than the full text. Long summaries are common in research digests, policy briefs, and comprehensive product reviews.

Characteristics include increased depth, coverage of methods and results, and the inclusion of context or implications that a shorter summary might omit. They typically range from several hundred to a few thousand words, and may be organized into sections such as background, methodology, key findings, and conclusions. The exact length and structure depend on the domain and the intended audience.

Generation approaches combine manual and automated techniques. Manual long summaries are produced by editors or subject experts for accuracy and nuance. Automated methods use extractive techniques to select representative passages, abstractive techniques to rewrite content, or hybrids that combine both. Outputs may include bullet points, concise narratives, or a structured overview with cited sources.

Applications and considerations: Long summaries can accelerate comprehension for readers who need thorough overviews without reading full documents. They aid researchers, policymakers, and professionals in comparing sources. Challenges include ensuring coverage without redundancy, maintaining coherence, avoiding misrepresentation of sources, and addressing copyright or privacy concerns in data-heavy materials. Evaluation often involves human judgment, with automated metrics like ROUGE or BLEU used as supplementary tools.

See also: related concepts include abstract, executive summary, digest, and long-form content.