The phenomenon of INFORMATION Nature and multifaceted characteristics

The phenomenon of INFORMATION Nature and multifaceted characteristics Tefko Saracevic Rutgers University © Tefko Saracevic 1

What is information? We don’t know!! n But: What is energy, matter, gravity, life, intelligence. . . ? n All - information included are basic phenomena n How to study them? All studied in terms of: MANIFESTATIONS BEHAVIOR EFFECTS n © Tefko Saracevic 2

Dictionary (Oxford) INFORM: ä to form (the mind. . . ) esp. by imparting, learning, instruction ä to impart knowledge of some fact or occurrence; to tell (one) something INFORMATION: ä the action of informing; the action of telling or. . . being told of something ä that of which one is apprised or told; intelligence, news © Tefko Saracevic 3

Interpretations Information: n a complex phenomenon n spectrum of views; variety of interpretations in differing contexts n research in many fields from philosophy to neuroscience n complex relation to other phenomena e. g. knowledge & processes e. g. communication n strong intuitive & context dependent understanding © Tefko Saracevic 4

Views of information: polarization - spectrum One end: Exists in structure of material world -would be there if we exist or not as a basic phenomenon in universe as energy & matter áInf. as a basic aspect of living systems Other end: Material world can only become inf. when acted upon by a knower áInf. “Life is a knowledge process” Miller © Tefko Saracevic áInf. as a cognitive phenomenon only áRelated to (& restricted to) cognitive processes 5

Relations: increase in complexity of cognitive processing Data with some meaning Information á Conversion, interpretation Knowledge á Integration, embedding in private & public Wisdom/ á Connections, insight higher interpretations © Tefko Saracevic á Symbols 6

“Information journey” From Data to Information to Knowledge to Wisdom/insight è Increased complexity requiring cognitive skills, past intellectual history, intelligence. . . è Processing into new patterns, relationships è Under contextual and cultural dependency è Interplay between private and public knowledge RECORDS © Tefko Saracevic 7

Scholarly treatment theories of information n Variety of theories, reflecting – different points of view, departure – different focus & restrictions on given characteristics n Restrictions provide framework for theory, interpretation. . . – Common approach in science Any restriction, interpretation has limitations, critics n No comprehensive theory yet n But knowledge on behavior, effects advancing n © Tefko Saracevic 8

Theories. . . characteristic, restriction emphasized W Uncertainty - inf. theory – concentration on probability of signals – link to entropy (Shanon) W Uncertainty - psychology – contemplated actions (Rapaport) W Uncertainty - inf. science – effects of processing (Hayes) W Truth - logic, philosophy – propositions (Belknap & Anderson) – sentences (Fox) W Meaning - semantics, logic – Texts and contexts (Bar-Hillel & Carnap) © Tefko Saracevic 9

Theories. . . W W Effectuation, feedback cybernetics – role in communication (Wiener) Propagation - epidemic theory of communication – changes in population (Goffman) W Changes in mind - inf. science – effect on structure (Shreider, Belkin) W W Changes in knowledge - inf. science – effect on knowledge (Brooks) Decision making - management – role in process (Yovits) © Tefko Saracevic 10

Information: mind & brain Cartesian dilemma n n n Descart: rational mind & physical brain Cognitive science - mind Neurophysiology - brain Convergence: how does brain process information? Theory of consciousness: – distributive memory, interacting systems – regions in brain where concepts are stored & processed – brain as an “indexer organizing inf. into categories” © Tefko Saracevic 11

Characteristics of the notion in information science 1. Part of human cognition 2. Has a meaning, content 3. Produced by a generator 4. Recorded, any medium 5. Represented , value-added 6. In context of communication 7. Basis for social interaction 8. Requested, needed; retrieved 9. Effects the recipient (user) 10. A process - transformation. . . 11. A thing, commodity; has value (After Belkin, Buckland) © Tefko Saracevic 12

Inf. as a PROCESS Information is: *Expandable – addition, change over time * Compressible – represented, integrated. . . *Transportable – various media, speeds *Diffusive – among populations; “leaks” * Shareable – repeated use by many Inf. systems use these attributes © Tefko Saracevic 13

Inf. in inf. science. . . Information treated as with these characteristics n Each subject of research, models, experimentation n Basis for operations in inf. systems, inf. industry n Each related to professional practice, education n Technology applied to a number n But: at times some treated in isolation, as if others don’t exist - a dangerous mistake n © Tefko Saracevic 14

Inf. in information science (cont. ) Again: intuitively well understood, but formally not well stated – Several viewpoints, models emerged n Shannon: source-channeldestination – signals not content – not really applicable n Cognitive: changes in cognitive structures – content processing & effects n Social: context, situation – information seeking, tasks © Tefko Saracevic 15

Shannon's information theory n Developed a general model for communication systems, and a set of theoretical tools for analyzing such systems, by measuring information in terms of probabilities (numbers) © Tefko Saracevic 16

Shannon … uncertainty n Defined information in terms of probabilities – developed measure of the information we get from observing the occurrence of an event, BUT ignored any particular features of the event » e. g. flipping a fair coin once will give us events h and t each with probability 1/2, and thus a single flip of a coin gives us - log 2(1/2) = 1 bit (Binary digit) of information (whether it comes up h or t) § Information measured in bits is the reduction in uncertainty in the mind of the receiver § information (in bits) is the amount of uncertainty a measure eliminates © Tefko Saracevic 17

Shannon’s impact n Had great impact in treating of digital information as signals – e. g maximizing capacities of channels; coding n Had disappointing impact (despite many tries) where information is connected with meaning, context, humans, values – the ideal to measure information in human terms is elusive – but keep trying … © Tefko Saracevic 18

Cognitive – basic idea: K(S) + ΔI = K(S + ΔS) (Brookes) n n n Information when operating on a knowledge structure produces an effect whereby the knowledge structure is changed “Information is differences that make a difference” (find who said it!) Actually, it only states the problem – – “unoperational” in information systems – involves cognitive, mental events only – constructivists rejected it © Tefko Saracevic 19

Inf. manifestations (Buckland) n Information as a process – what someone knows is changed when informed; “the action of informing” (similar as Brookes) » refers to cognitive changes + process of doing it n Information as knowledge – knowledge communicated about x » uncertainty removal a special case » refers to that which is being communicated - intangible n Information as a thing – data, documents with quality of imparting information - tangible » refers to potential information conveyed from objects © Tefko Saracevic 20

Senses of inf. in inf. science Three senses (from narrowest to broadest) 1. Information in terms of decision involving little or no cognitive processing - Shannon – 2. Information involving cognitive processing & understanding Brookes – 3. signals, bits, straightforward data - computing, telecommunication, economics, understanding, matching texts Information also as related to context, situation, problem-at-hand, process – Buckland to some extend – users, use, tasks For information science (including information retrieval): third, broadest interpretation necessary © Tefko Saracevic 21

What is in a book? n for discussion in class © Tefko Saracevic 22

Cover page of a book: What is in it? © Tefko Saracevic 23

A chapter in that book © Tefko Saracevic 24

Here is also a cover page of a book: What is in it? © Tefko Saracevic 25

A chapte r in that book © Tefko Saracevic 26

Adequacy? None of theories about information are adequate to cover fully information as a phenomenon n Each covers a bit or simply describes manifestation n Shannon’s theory is testable, but reduces “information” to signals only n A scientific theory is one that can be refuted – tested for confirmation, rejection (Popper) n © Tefko Saracevic 27

Conclusions Inf. - a complex phenomenon but with recognizable & definable properties n Researched in many fields, from many angles n – communication not good n Attributes used in many applications & inf. systems – often with intuitive understanding of properties Slow convergence of ideas n Work on information of increasing importance social dimensions n © Tefko Saracevic 28

So we went to study n Human information behavior § “how people need, seek, manage, give, and use information in different contexts” (Pettigrew ) § many models, theories, studies on a variety of aspects § extends to study of web behavior n Bibliometrics § “the study, or measurement, of texts and information” (Norton) § many studies and formal statements about structure & patterns of literatures, citations, authors, journals, texts … § Bradford’s law, Lotka’s law © Tefko Saracevic 29

to be continued … We cover these in other lectures and courses n and two 2005 books cover very nicely the topics of theories of human information behavior and integration of information seeking and information retrieval in context n – highly recommended © Tefko Saracevic 30

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