In this paper, we propose an unsupervised query enhanced approach for knowledge-intensive conversations, namely QKConv. There are three modules in QKConv: a query generator, an off-the-shelf knowledge selector, and a response generator. QKConv is optimized through joint training, which produces the response by exploring multiple candidate queries and leveraging corresponding selected knowledge. The joint training solely relies on the dialogue context and target response, getting exempt from extra query annotations or knowledge provenances. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed QKConv, we conduct experiments on three representative knowledge-intensive conversation datasets: conversational question-answering, task-oriented dialogue, and knowledge-grounded conversation. Experimental results reveal that QKConv performs better than all unsupervised methods across three datasets and achieves competitive performance compared to supervised methods.

Life is full of little disappointments. That's why it's so refreshing to occasionally see someone do something grand, and just a bit nutty. Like Elon Musk setting up a fully functional production tent in the Tesla's factory's backyard, in a improbable--and thus far successful!--bid to hit his 2018 production targets. Like a developer taking a polluted ex-Ford factory in Minnesota and trying to turn it into a walker-friendly, net-zero energy planned community. Like the mere existence of the Polaris Slingshot, which is not quite a car and not quite a motorcycle, but tells us some important things about the future of transportation. This week, it was all about lofty goals.

Tesla has been on an epic run since the beginning of 2017. Its market cap, at around $50 billion, passed Ford's and now rivals General Motors. If all goes according to schedule, the Model 3 mass-market car will launch in about a month. But not all is well in Tesla land. There's been chatter about a union-organizing effort at the company's Fremont, Calif. And a Guardian report this week saw some Tesla workers characterize the plant as a dangerous place to work, and the pace that the carmaker and CEO Elon Musk sets to be brutal.