summarizing

Summarizing is the practice of producing a shortened version of a text or speech that maintains the core ideas and overall meaning. A good summary captures main points, conclusions, and the structure of the original while omitting supporting details, examples, and digressions. It is typically crafted for a specific audience or purpose, such as study notes, briefing, or background research. Summaries are distinct from paraphrases, which restate the same wording in different phrasing, and from abstracts, which are concise standalone descriptions used to present a larger work.

There are two common approaches: extractive and abstractive. Extractive summarization selects sentences or phrases directly from the source, preserving its exact wording. Abstractive summarization generates new sentences that convey the essential information, potentially rephrasing and combining ideas.

The process generally involves reading or listening to the source, identifying main ideas and supporting arguments, deciding what belongs in the summary based on purpose and audience, writing or speaking a condensed version in clear, coherent language, and then revising for accuracy and brevity. Key criteria include fidelity to the original meaning, avoidance of introduced bias, and avoidance of unnecessary repetition.

Applications include education, journalism, research, and information management. In computing, summarization is an active field in natural language processing, with extractive and abstractive methods developed to automate the task. Ethical considerations include avoiding distortion, misrepresentation, and unwarranted omission.