Rethinking Dataset Discovery with DataScout

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Lin, Rachel, Chopra, Bhavya, Lin, Wenjing, Shankar, Shreya, Hulsebos, Madelon, Parameswaran, Aditya G.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Lin, Rachel
Chopra, Bhavya
Lin, Wenjing
Shankar, Shreya
Hulsebos, Madelon
Parameswaran, Aditya G.
author_facet Lin, Rachel
Chopra, Bhavya
Lin, Wenjing
Shankar, Shreya
Hulsebos, Madelon
Parameswaran, Aditya G.
contents Dataset Search -- the process of finding appropriate datasets for a given task -- remains a critical yet under-explored challenge in data science workflows. Assessing dataset suitability for a task (e.g., training a classification model) is a multi-pronged affair that involves understanding: data characteristics (e.g. granularity, attributes, size), semantics (e.g., data semantics, creation goals), and relevance to the task at hand. Present-day dataset search interfaces are restrictive -- users struggle to convey implicit preferences and lack visibility into the search space and result inclusion criteria -- making query iteration challenging. To bridge these gaps, we introduce DataScout to proactively steer users through the process of dataset discovery via -- (i) AI-assisted query reformulations informed by the underlying search space, (ii) semantic search and filtering based on dataset content, including attributes (columns) and granularity (rows), and (iii) dataset relevance indicators, generated dynamically based on the user-specified task. A within-subjects study with 12 participants comparing DataScout to keyword and semantic dataset search reveals that users uniquely employ DataScout's features not only for structured explorations, but also to glean feedback on their search queries and build conceptual models of the search space.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2507_18971
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Rethinking Dataset Discovery with DataScout
Lin, Rachel
Chopra, Bhavya
Lin, Wenjing
Shankar, Shreya
Hulsebos, Madelon
Parameswaran, Aditya G.
Human-Computer Interaction
Dataset Search -- the process of finding appropriate datasets for a given task -- remains a critical yet under-explored challenge in data science workflows. Assessing dataset suitability for a task (e.g., training a classification model) is a multi-pronged affair that involves understanding: data characteristics (e.g. granularity, attributes, size), semantics (e.g., data semantics, creation goals), and relevance to the task at hand. Present-day dataset search interfaces are restrictive -- users struggle to convey implicit preferences and lack visibility into the search space and result inclusion criteria -- making query iteration challenging. To bridge these gaps, we introduce DataScout to proactively steer users through the process of dataset discovery via -- (i) AI-assisted query reformulations informed by the underlying search space, (ii) semantic search and filtering based on dataset content, including attributes (columns) and granularity (rows), and (iii) dataset relevance indicators, generated dynamically based on the user-specified task. A within-subjects study with 12 participants comparing DataScout to keyword and semantic dataset search reveals that users uniquely employ DataScout's features not only for structured explorations, but also to glean feedback on their search queries and build conceptual models of the search space.
title Rethinking Dataset Discovery with DataScout
topic Human-Computer Interaction
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.18971