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History and Basic Concepts

of Information Science

Chapter 1

CHAPTER OVERVIEW

1.0 History and basic concepts of information science

1.1 Evolution of information science

What is information science

1.2 The boundaries of information science

The basic structure of information science

Foundational disciplines of information science

Related field of study in information science

1.3 Information Lifecycle

Information lifecycle management

Explanation of the information lifecycle management

1.4 Spectrum of Knowledge

Is there a hierarchy of data, information and knowledge?

Knowledge and information

Comparison and differences between information and knowledge

Data and information

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LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After completing this chapter, you should be able to:-

1. Define information science, information lifecycle

and information spectrum.

2. Explain the information lifecycle management.

3. Differentiate between data, information and

knowledge

4. Describe the knowledge spectrum.

WHAT IS INFORMATION SCIENCE?

Our perception of the concept of information science

is based on the assumption that all organisms

are information systems.

The information system is an environment of person,

machines, and procedures that develop human

biology potential to acquire, process and

act upon data, thus improves our chances for

survival.

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DEFINITIONS

Science

Any system of knowledge that is concerned with

the physical world and its phenomenaand that involve unbiased observationsand systematic experiment (research).

Information science

A discipline that deals with the processes of

storing and transferring of information.Fundamentally it covers all theories, concepts andmethods in the collection, organization, storage,retrieval and use of information.

• Technology and Systems - the application of IT

• Impact of IT on society - problems of information society, copyrights, personal privacy, plagiarism, etc.

• Resources - the human resources needed to sustain the activities of the science worldwide, encouragement of R&D, training, etc.

THE BOUNDARIES OF INFORMATION SCIENCE

Basic structure of

information science

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Philosophy - provides infor. Sc. with the understanding of inquiry system (state of the world) and the foundation of the social sciences that are relevant to infor. system.

Mathematics (statistics). - the foundation of statistics which is the tools used by infor. Scientist.

Linguistics - the study of language, which is important to infor. Scientist as tool to represent events.

Behavioral science - include psychology and sociology, important part for user study.

THE BOUNDARIES OF INFORMATION SCIENCE

Foundational

Disciplines

RELATED FIELD OF STUDY IN INFORMATION SCIENCE

Informatics – the study of automation and automated technologies in document retrieving.

Information Engineering – refers to various aspects of infor. System design.

Knowledge Engineering – artificial intelligence & expert system.

Cybernetics – the science of control, include communications & system theory.

Bionics – the understanding of the functions & characteristics of living systems & biomechanical systems.

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INFORMATION LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT

Information life cycle management (ILM) is a comprehensive

approach to managing the flow of an information

system's data from creation and initial storage to the

time when it becomes obsolete and is deleted. ILM involves all

aspects of dealing with data, starting with user practices. ILM

enables more complex criteria for storage management than

data age and frequency of access.

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INFORMATION LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT

1. Collection

• Acquisition

• Research

• Analysis

2. Processing

• Validating

3. Recording

• Documentation

4. Storage

5. Retrieval

6. Dissemination

• Distribution

7. Use

• Reuse

8. Restoring

9. Revalidation

10. Reprocessing

11. Disposition

FIVE PHASE OF ILM IN BUSINESS RECORDS

2. Distribution

3. Use

4. Maintenance5. Disposition

1. Creation and Receipt

Record from the

organization itself. Create

by member of the

organization or receipt of

information from an

external source. Examples:-

reports, drawings, computer

input/output etc.

Process of managing the

information once it has

been created or received.

Includes internal and

external distribution.

Takes place after

information is distribute

internally, can generate

business decisions,

document further actions or

serve other purpose.

Management of the

information. Example filing,

retrieval and transfers.

Handling the information

that is less frequently

accessed; relocate to an

inactive records facility. If

no longer valuable will be

disposed.

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Case Study:-

Find one situation in your daily life or business

environment and discuss the process of information

lifecycle involved for that situation.

Definition of Information

The term information has a number of different meanings and connotations when used in a number of

different contexts. It is generally recognized as

processed data, text, voice and/or

image and is synonymous with

knowledge or intelligence.

Many information scientists accept the standard definition of information as:

“Data which is used in

decision making”(Ralston, Anthony)

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Definition (cont..)

Fritz Machlup (1983) carefully assessed the differentmeanings associated with the information. Someinterpretations from these sources are as follows:

– Something one did not know before.– A clue.– Something that affects what one already knows.– How data is interpreted.

– Something useful in some way to the person receivingit.

– Something that reduces uncertainty.

– The meaning of words in sentences.– Something that provides more than what is stated.

– Something that changes what a person who receivesbelieves or expects.

abs.UiTM Johor

The representation of information

Signals – a sign with an emphasis on some consequential action.

Sign – a physical evidence of the immediate physical of the thing or event present.

Symbols – special kind of sign. They represent an object, idea or event and elicit the same response as if things they refferred to were

immediately present.

Languange – the principal method of human communication.

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Information Explosion

The universe of recorded information and the number of knowledgeable human beings are have expanded at

such a rate and in so short time a phenomenon knows as

information explosion will happen.

Information Overload

Occurs when the amount of information we receive exceeds our ability to process it in a meaningful way.

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Factors contribute to information overload

• Lack of time

• Poor self-organization

• Personal inefficiency

Personal factors

• Poor communication

• Ineffective use of information technology

• An organizational culture not geared up to handling information

Organizational factors

Consequences of information overload

• Stress and ill health

• Less free time

• Less job satisfaction

• Poor decision-making

Personal

• Loos of productivity

• Waste of resources

• Loos of competitive advantage

• Duplication and overlap of work

Organizational

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A model for managing information overload

Incoming Information

Filter

Process

Discard

Use

Store

Pass to

others

Throw away

Function and Use

Information is a key resource and an important factor

in national progress and development. It used to be

regarded as playing only a supportive role in the

various national development programs like education,

economic planning, agriculture, medicine and the

transfer of science and technology.

Now, however its importance is being increasingly

recognized and its acquisition has emerged as a matter

of national policy.

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Characteristics of Information

Expandable– Facts are never all in, we are constantly aware of

information overload.

Compressible– While the amount is expanding exponentially, it can be

concentrated, integrated, summarized, miniaturized foreasier handling.

Substitutable– It can replace capital or physical materials, information is a

commodity and on the current scene that means power.

Transportable– At the speed of lights, as quick as pushing a button.

Diffusive– It tends to leak and in that regard cannot be possessed.

Shareable– Sharing transactions.

Source of Information

PEO

PLE

•Personal contact

•Writings

OR

GA

NIZ

ATI

ON

•Commercial orgn

•Educational

•Governmental

•Society and professional organization

INFO

RM

ATI

ON

SY

STE

M

•Computer based services that provides information

LITE

RA

TUR

E

•Production of litery work or written artistic works as form of expression or ideas.

•Novel, Books, articles, pamphlets etc

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The hierarchical transformation of data, information, knowledge, wisdom and enlightenment

What are the elements that trigger the transformation?

Intrinsic: the influence within oneself that turns these elements into other entities on several basis like our experience, background, education, belief, lifestyles etc.

Extrinsic: the external influences that turn these entities into other form. For example the information that we have through reading materials might may turn something that we are aware of to be something that we really understand its concept.

SPECTRUM OF KNOWLEDGE

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IS THERE A HIERARCHY OF DATA, INFORMATION, AND KNOWLEDGE?

To determine whether the transformation is hierarchical we need to

• understand the concept of information, knowledge, wisdom and enlightenment in details.

• be able to understand the differences between these entities.

Knowledge and Information

A close and firm link between information and knowledge has always existed .

Distinctions between information and knowledge have been proposed chiefly on the followings:

Information is fragmented, particular, whereas knowledge is structured (well-thought of), coherent (logical), and often universal.

Information is timely, transitory, whereas knowledge is of enduring significance.

.

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Information is a flow of messages, whereas knowledge is a stock, largely resulting from the flow, in the sense that the "input" of information may affect the stock of knowledge by adding to it, restructuring it, or changing it in any way

Information in the sense of telling and being told is always different from knowledge in the sense of knowing: The former is a process, the latter a state.

Data are the things given to the analyst, investigator, or problem-solver; they may be numbers, words, sentences, records, assumptions - just anything given, no matter in what form and of what origin.

Information...is essentially raw data. Knowledge is interpreted data.

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Comparison And Differences Between Information &

Knowledge

Knowledge may be considered as storage of information by way the information makes changes to the structure of the knowledge.

Information is acquired by being told, whereas knowledge can be acquired by thinking. Thus, new knowledge can be acquired without new information being received.

Neither knowledge nor information needs to be useful or valuable to merit its designation. People speak of "useless information" and "useless knowledge"

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Nor is it a requirement of normal language use that information is correct and knowledge is true.

When a new discovery or a new theory is announced in newspapers and news broadcasts, this will be information to most recipients but new knowledge to specialists.

Data and Information

There is no need to establish either a hierarchy or a temporal sequence in discussing data and information.

For example, consider the following three outputs:

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a printout that gives us exactly what has been fed into the memory of the computer

a new arrangement of the data, after sorting (chronological or alphabetical ordering, or selecting on the basis of detailed instructions)

an output different from the stored data as a result of an analysis made by the computer using a highly sophisticated piece of software.

Should all three printouts still be called data or

should they be referred to as information?

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For some definers, information, to be information, has to have value.

Sometime it is proposed that information must reduce uncertainty on the part of those getting informed.

Information may in the ordinary sense is received by people without any effect on their uncertainty; and some news items may even raise uncertainty in several aspects.

FORMS OF INFORMATION

Information touches all human activity. It comes in a multitude of different shapes –

speech, pictures, video,

office work, software,

great art and kitsch,

invoices, music, stock prices, tax returns,

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Characteristics of Information

Information has several characteristics that make information very different than other commodities:

1. It is reproducible.

2. The cost of reproduction is low.

3. It can be transported easily.

4. Its lifetime can be brief.

5. Its value is not additive.

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Value of Information

One suggestion is that information has economic value to people only if it can lead then to the acquisition of tangible goods. Therefore, value of information is a matter of form, not of amount.

Also, value of information often depends on the preexisting form of the receiver as on the message itself.

Similarly, information has intangible value if it can enable them to satisfy less tangible human desires.

An encyclopedia publisher, for instance, will find a mailing list of prospective buyers useful because it might increase sales.

Watching a soap opera has value for those people who want to experience heartrending emotions.

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Watching a soap opera has value for those people who want to experience heartrending emotions.

Because information leads to goods only indirectly, it seems reasonable to value it as a fraction of the worth of the tangible goods to which it leads.

Therefore the economic value of all sprawling computer-and-network complexes may be estimated as a fraction of the tangible goods to which they will lead.

Value of US computer hardware and software, including the work needed to run computer systems within organizations, at almost a tenth of its GNP - roughly about $500 billion.

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Yet because some 60 percent of the work forces have jobs that involve information, the value of computerized information handling may well grow to an even larger fraction of the global economy.

In spite of its importance, information is secondary to people's principal needs - food, shelter, health and human relationships