Here, we'll go deeper into the analysis by trying to interpret the meaning of each topic that we have discovered in the earlier steps. The way to interpret the topics is to analyse by linking the higher and lower weighted words and extracting examples of verbatims for the individual topic. This is quite a time-consuming process but the results are the most qualitative as it gives context to the results of the algorithm. An important aspect to keep in mind is that not all the topics will be interesting or making sense, so we need to identify those which are interesting to the subject we are working on. In our case, we are looking for topics which have discussion around car usage, maintenance, brands, and so on. We are not so interested in topics that are full of promotional context and also those that are spammy.
After going through the words and verbatims of the 20 topics that we have generated, we have chosen the following that seem interesting to us, though it could differ from other perspectives:
To interpret the topics, we'll plot histograms of the word weights and extract a few verbatims for each topic as examples.
Topic 1 : Racing and motor-sports
In this topic the words with the strongest weight are "race", "car", "track", "series", and "team".
Looking at these words, it seems to be a discussion on car racing and other sub topics based on it, such as teams, drivers, motorsport, and so on.
A few verbatims that are linked to this topic:
"Wright Motorsport 1-2-3-4 1-2-3-4. That's not something you see very often.
Wright preps some good cars, as evidenced by last weekend's events!
Congratulations to Wright, as well as all of their drivers. First time winner Sean Johnston, who won on Friday, as well as Madison Snow, who won Saturday's event."
"TPC Racing Returns to Victory Lane at CTMP TPC Racing / Porsche of Towson Back On Top in Canada
For rounds seven and eight of the IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge Series by Yokohama, the TPC Racing / Porsche of Towson / Merkle team was at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. The team went into rounds seven and eight leading the team and drivers' championship in the Gold Class as well, first and second in the Masters Class standings. ......"
"Supercars: Gumpert Apollo | Nat Geo Supercars: Gumpert Apollo
The Gumpert Apollo Enraged is a race car than a million dollars that can be used legally on the streets. It is one of the fastest cars in the world and one of the most exclusive."
The second topic has main words such as "new", "audi", "car", "engine", "model", and "mercedes". It seems to be a discussions on new cars from different brands and their features.
The sample verbatims are as follows:
"Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 on Video!! It has been some time since we first saw the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 unveiled at a preview evening the day before the Geneva Motor Show, but in that time the interest in the the Italian Marque's latest creation has not wavered. So we are hardly going to pass up an opportunity to see the monster beating down the track giving us the orchestral symphony coming from the 5.2-liter V10 engine found in the mid-engined supercar. The engine which will also make its way over to the Audi R8 V10 is mated to 6-speed transmission passing the 560hp of power to all four wheels which uses a 4WD Viscous Traction system. 0-100km/h is achieved in 3.7 seconds (although some claim it to be 3.5 seconds) with 200km/h reached after 11.8 seconds, top speed lies at 325km/h. Base price is set at $201,000 in the US with sales to commence this summer. YouTube - OFFICIAL VIDEO: Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4"
"New Porsche Macan Reported to Debut at LA Auto Show New Porsche Macan Reported to Debut at LA Auto Show
The long awaited smaller SUV from Porsche is said to debut this November at the LA Auto Show, with a spring 2014 release date, according to UK magazine AutoExpress.
The new Porsche will be based on the same underpinnings as the Audi Q5, but will be much lighter due to a more extensive use of aluminium components. AutoExpress goes on to note this could save roughly 130kg over its Q5 sibling."
"Turbo", "stock", "performance, "car", "engine", and "factory" are the strongest words of this topic, which indicates that there are more technical discussions that are driving the topic. Users are discussing the engine and performance aspects of certain cars and models and also asking for or giving advice to help each other.
We can see this in the following verbatims:
"....Sportec SP750 Porsche 997 GT2 Porsche enthusiasts will undoubtedly count the 997-generation 911 GT2 as one of the most extreme supercars ever to roll out of Stuttgart - right up there with the 959 and the Carrera GT. But where there's speed, there's always room for more speed, and the Swiss aren't about to stay neutral on this matter...."
"Hi all,
I need some advise. Recently I started tracking my car and am running the stock suspension and stock Michelin tires. Tires are about toast so I am thinking of getting some cup tires unless any of you have a better recommendation. Currently I have upgraded my exhaust, headers, I/C and ecu. So I have plenty of power but, would like to utilize that power by being on the gas earlier coming out of corners. I need better grip for this.
My questions:
Will Bilstein PSS10 Coil overs work with PASM?
If I just do new springs and sway bars will this be as good as the Bilsteins?
What is the difference between H&R and Bilsteins? Better recommendations?
What tires have any of you used and what is recommended?
At this point I do not have a trailer for my car so I drive to the track. The tracks are 70 to 200 miles away. I hope to get a trailer soon, but, not sure when.
Thanks for reading my post."
"Coolant leaking? Could be your coolant expansion tank... It's pretty early for the 997 cars to be experiencing this problem, but with the same coolant expansion tank, it's a matter of time before 997 owners will see the same problem. "
This topic too seems to be rich in technical discussions but more focused on specific aspects such as "exhaust", "system", "tube", and "performance", which have the biggest weights.
Looking at the verbatims:
"Ford Mondeo ST220 in our shop for "one-off" exhaust system. Hello.
Couple weeks ago, the Ford Mondeo ST220 arrived our shop.
For those who doesn't know about this car, this is sports model of the Ford Mondeo for European market.
This car sports Duratec 3.0 V6(225hp) with manual tranny.
This car actually had SuperSprint exhaust system, but the customer wanted get full Kreissieg exhaust system. ..."
"After having my RS from new & having now covered 22000 miles in her I decided she was due an upgrade (I have done other small items - spacers, seat inserts etc but nothing BIG).
I previously had sharkys bypass fitted & this was an amazing mod for the money but I decided I wanted more. I looked to upgrading the exhaust & suspension, so naturally I went straight to Akrapovic, purchased at a fantastic price through Revolution247 over here.
It took two weeks to arrive but they system is simply a work of art as I am sure you all know.
The car feel great with the system on, the weight loss & power gains is EASILY noticeable throughout the whole rev-range & general driving of the car, though you should note MASSIVE torque loss is present low in the rev range, so low though (under 2k rpm) this is almost irrelevant. ...."
The last topic chosen has words with peak weights such as "pics", "car", "day", "event", and "photos". Often users on online forums like to share pictures of things of their interest and here it seems to be the same case. The verbatims corresponding to this topic also confirm that excited users are sharing pictures and information with their community on the thread:
"New BMW Teaser: X1 in white and on the beach A week from tomorrow, BMW will officially present the X1 during an event at the Leipzig plant in Germany, but we expect the press release and photos to go out a few days prior to that."
"Cars from Paris... I am in Paris last week and take some pics of the cars I have seen..Like Koeningsegg(Special one),SLR with Brabus wheels,Pink SV, murci, 599's, SLS's, F430's(scudi,spider,coupe),LP570-4 Superleggera,LP560-4, M5 with great sounding Eissenmann exhaust, DBS, Vintage Vespa's and parking skills on streets..
I have seen TDF Blue 458 with full cuicuo interior..Daymmm...Its amazing..In real life its better than pics....."
"Lambo's St. Morritz I found this on Classic driver.com. Great article, and lot's of cool pictures. I know that some were posted before, but these are more pictures. Never hurts to see more of these pics. Lamborghini St. Moritz 2010 - Classic Driver - MAGAZINE - events"
At the end, we would like to mention that it's important to detect spammy topics that don't have any substantial discussion but more of promotional posts, quite like those you receive in your emails. One such topic is Topic 17.
In this topic, we see the most important words as "month", "base", "rate", and "lease", among others. Analysing some of the verbatims, we can recognise that this is promotional content around leasing programs, which doesn't give us any insights into user interest in cars.
"Audi Auto Lease Programs - September 2010 Audi Auto Lease Programs - Effective September 2010 These lease rates and residuals are provided courtesy of LeaseCompare.com by dealer partners and are NOT for redistribution. This information is to help you evaluate different lease offers from your Audi dealer and an independent leasing company....."
"BMW Auto Lease Programs - March 2009 BMW Auto Lease Programs - Effective March 2009 These lease programs are provided courtesy of LeaseCompare.com by dealer partners and are NOT for redistribution. Follow these 3 steps for the best lease deal! 1) Use the data listed below each vehicle model, and the Lease Formula at the bottom of this page, to calculate a manufacturer (captive) lease payment. 2) Compare special Bank Lease programs by clicking on the vehicle model name to see instant lease payments. 3) You've done your homework, now choose the best lease and start driving your car! NOTE: Choosing a lease program, captive or bank, with the lowest money factor and a realistic residual value will provide you with the best overall leasing option...."
"Swap A Lease / Lease Takeover Has anyone had luck with swap a lease (getting out of a lease) websites before? Thinking to get out of a '11 MBZ E350 lease and weighing my options...
Thanks guys."
Going through all the topics and their verbatims in detail is beyond the scope of the book, but we hope that you have got a reasonable idea of applying topic models and qualitatively interpreting the topics that are most interesting verses those that are less interesting or spammy. This is a great way to establish the relevance of web content on the information that you're looking for and separate the noise from the surface.