Information Analysis &

ConsolidationSomipam R. Shimray

Research Scholar (JRF)Dept. of LIS

Pondicherry Central UniversityPondicherry

India

Contents

• Conceptual • Information Analysis activities• Information Consolidation• Objectives of Information Consolidation• Why Information consolidation• Who needs them• Information Analysis and Consolidation Process• Planning and Management of IAC Centers• IAC centers in India• IAC - Benefits• Conclusions• References

Conceptual

• Information is:– Processed data– Organized data for a purpose– Presented within a context that gives it meaning

• Information is valuable because it can affect behavior and a decision.

Example: – A single student percentage (40, 60, 80) is a data but an average

student percentage (60) is an information.

Information Analysis

What is Analysis?• A systematic examination and evaluation of data or information, by

breaking it into its components parts to uncover their relationships.• An examination of data and facts to uncover and understand cause-effect

relationships, thus providing basis for problem solving and decision making.

Why analysis?• Because the data you collect can't help you if you don't understand it and

use it to shape your decisions.

Information Analysis• Information analysis comprises a wide range of functions, such as

abstracting, indexing, translation, reviewing, consolidating etc.

Information Analysis activities

• Involves gathering quantitative data about products, processes, and projects and analyzing that data to influence your actions and plans.

Information analysis activities allow you to: • Characterize, or gain understanding of your processes, products,

resources, and environments.• Evaluate, to determine your status with respect to your plans.• Predict, by understanding relationships among processes and

products so the values you observe for some attributes can be used to predict others.

• Improve, by identifying roadblocks, root causes, inefficiencies, and other opportunities for improvement.

Information Consolidation

• Information consolidation is defined as the process of evaluation and compression of relevant documents in order to provide definite user groups with reliable and concise information in usable form.

• UNESCO Symposium on Information Analysis and Consolidation in Sri-Lanka has given the following definition : “ Information Consolidation activities are used to define the responsibility exercised by individuals, departments or organizations for evaluating and compressing relevant documents in order to provide definite users’ groups with reliable and concise new bodies of knowledge. Individuals or groups of individuals performing consolidation activities would each constitute an Information consolidation Unit.”

Objectives of Information ConsolidationThe basic objectives of Information Consolidation can be enumerated

as follows:• To increase the effectiveness of information transfer to the target

audience;• To make the required information reach larger audience in

accessible and usable form; and• To encourage more intensive use of information in wide range of

developmental activities.

Why Information consolidation?• Exponential growth of information and increasing rate of obsolescence:

Users have inadequate time reading and assimilating new information;• Interdisciplinary nature of information leading to scattering and seepage

of information: Users can specialize only in restricted subject fields;• Wide variation in quality and reliability of information: Users find it

difficult and have inadequate time for evaluating and selecting the right information;

• Information is presented in multiplicity of languages: Users are not familiar with the language(s) to use the information;

• Information presented in a wide range of standards and formats: Users may not be familiar with that standard or format to use the information;

• Required information is published in documents with restricted circulation: Leading to inaccessibility of information; and

• S &T information is highly technical in nature with technical and trade jargons: Potential user with no technical background cannot comprehend it.

Exponential growth of information

1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 20300

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400

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Exponential growth of information

Articles published

X -Axis Year

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Open Access Journal

• Journals that provide free access to all articles and utilize a form of licensing that puts minimal restrictions on the use of articles.

• Journals that provide free access to all articles and utilize a variety of copyright statements and do not use a Creative Commons Attribution License or similar license.

• Provide free access to all articles after a specified embargo period and typically utilize conventional copyright statements.

• Provide free access to selected articles and typically utilize conventional copyright statements.

• Provide no free access to articles and typically utilize conventional copyright statements.

Who needs them?

• Entrepreneur• Policy maker• Scientists• Students and Teacher• The public

Information Analysis and Consolidation Process

The basic processes involved in information analysis and consolidations are: 1. Study of potential users to find their information needs and

decide on the information product(s) suitable to fulfill those needs. 2. Selection of relevant information sources, both primary as well

secondary information sources, containing the most useful information for the given user’s problems and information needs.

3. Evaluation of information contained in these sources for its merit, validity and reliability.

4. Analysis of information to identify and extract most salient features conveyed by the given source.

Information Analysis and Consolidations Process

5. Restructuring (if necessary) the analyzed and extracted information as a new whole, which differ from original presentation and can be used most effectively and efficiently by the user. This may involve synthesis, condensation, rewriting, simplifying, reviews, state-of-the-art presentation, etc.6. Packaging and/or repackaging of restructured information in a form that will increase its use. 7. Diffusion or Dissemination of information in ways that will encourage and promote its use. This may also involve educating the users in the use of information and marketing of information. 8. Feedback from the users and improve the product based on the feedback.

Planning and Management of IACCenters

• Policy Formulation• Planning• Resources Needed• Human Resources• Technical and Technological Resources• Physical Resources• Information Sources• Financial Resources• IAC Products and Services• Feedback• Evaluation

IAC centers in India• Tata Energy Research Institute (TERI) • National Institute of Science Communication and Information Resources (NISCAIR)• Indian Council of Agricultural Research• Centre for Monitoring of Indian Economy (CMIE) Pvt. Ltd.ExamplesTechnical Digest:• TERI Information Digest on Energy and Environment: Published quarterly by TERI• Management Digest: Published bimonthly by SENDOC• Innovative Technology: Published bimonthly by SENDOC Annual Reviews: • Annual Review of Immunology;• Annual Reviews of Biochemistry; • Annual Review of Clinical Psychology etc.Statistical Reviews: • Indian statistical Review.

IAC - Benefits

As the amount of information presented to the decision maker is increasingly consolidated, its value increases. User Benefits• As information is increasingly expressed in everyday language and the

social and cultural framework of the user, its value increases for that user.

• As the information is increasingly packaged in a way that will make its use easier, its value increases.

General benefits • To increase the effectiveness of information transfer; • To encourage the intensive use of information in variety of developmental

activities; and • To increase the circle of potential users by fulfilling information

requirements for evaluated and synthesized information.

Conclusions

• Information analysis comprises a wide range of functions, such as abstracting, indexing, translation, reviewing, consolidating etc.

• Information Analysis activities allow to - Characterize, Evaluate, Predict and Improve decision making.

• Information consolidation - process of evaluation and compression of relevant documents in order to provide definite user groups with reliable and concise information in usable form.

References

• Coffman, Steve. We'll take it from here: developments we'd like to see in virtual reference software. Information Technology and Libraries, v. 20, no. 3. http://www.ala.org/ala/lita/litapublications/ital/2003coffman.htm

• Lupien, P. Bilingual Virtual Reference: It's Better Than Searching the Open Web. Computers in Libraries v. 24 no. 5 (2004) p. 6-8, 53-4, 56

• NISO Question/Answer Transaction Protocol. http://www.niso.org/standards/dsftu.html; http://www.loc.gov/standards/net_ref

• OCLC. “OCLC and MCLS to combine Question Point, 24/7 Reference Services.” http://www.oclc.org/news/releases/20048.htm

• Olivares, O. May: Virtual Reference Systems. Computers in Libraries v. 24 no. 5 (2004) p. 25-9.

• Peters, T. Auditory Options. Library Journal (1976) part Net Connect (2004) p. 8-9

• Reference Universe. http://www.paratext.com• http://www.academia.edu/6825264/Informati on Consolidation • IGNOU study material