IR Course Lecture 11: Ranking and Relevance with Vector Space Model

What is Vector Scoring

A vector field is a mathematical representation that assigns a vector to every point in a given region of space. These vectors can represent various physical quantities such as velocity in a fluid flow, the strength and direction of a magnetic or electric field, or even the gradient of a scalar function. In two dimensions, a vector field looks like a grid of arrows, each arrow showing the direction and magnitude of the vector at that point. In three dimensions, the concept is similar but harder

A vector field assigns a vector to every point in a region of space, allowing us to visualize how a quantity changes from place to place. Each vector has both a direction and a magnitude, so a vector field captures not just the presence of a phenomenon but also how it flows, rotates, or expands. You can think of it like a map of tiny arrows: at every point, the arrow tells you “which way” and “how strongly” something is acting. In physics, these arrows might represent gravitational pull, electri