STUDY UNIT 1
1. The Core Variable Trinity
Information Science focuses on the interplay of three variables :
Human Beings: The most important variable. Man is the generator of information
and cannot exist without it .
Information: An essential component of existence that is legally indefinable .
Communication: The method by which information is transferred.
NB: Technology is never the goal; it is only the support for the goal.
2. The DIKW(Data, information, knowledge and wisdom) Hierarchy &
Parallel Inference
You must understand how these four levels evolve. Spiegler (2003) notes that value, insight,
and abstraction are the catalysts for this movement.
Level Definition Characteristics
Data Symbols (letters, numbers, binary) that carry no
Unprocessed raw facts.
meaning and stand loose from man .
Data processed to create Exists "in the eye of the beholder"; what is "gold" to
Information
meaning. one is "nonsense" to another.
Includes logic and understanding; a reflection of
Knowledge Applied information.
reality in human thought .
The application of
Wisdom "Knowing how to look for something".
knowledge.
3. The Task of the Information Scientist
The Goal: To provide the right information to the right person at the right time in
the right format for the right decision .
The Scientist's Burden: You must address problems like information overload,
irrelevance, obsolescence, and disorganized info .
NB: Correct information does NOT guarantee a correct decision!
1. The Core Variable Trinity
Information Science focuses on the interplay of three variables :
Human Beings: The most important variable. Man is the generator of information
and cannot exist without it .
Information: An essential component of existence that is legally indefinable .
Communication: The method by which information is transferred.
NB: Technology is never the goal; it is only the support for the goal.
2. The DIKW(Data, information, knowledge and wisdom) Hierarchy &
Parallel Inference
You must understand how these four levels evolve. Spiegler (2003) notes that value, insight,
and abstraction are the catalysts for this movement.
Level Definition Characteristics
Data Symbols (letters, numbers, binary) that carry no
Unprocessed raw facts.
meaning and stand loose from man .
Data processed to create Exists "in the eye of the beholder"; what is "gold" to
Information
meaning. one is "nonsense" to another.
Includes logic and understanding; a reflection of
Knowledge Applied information.
reality in human thought .
The application of
Wisdom "Knowing how to look for something".
knowledge.
3. The Task of the Information Scientist
The Goal: To provide the right information to the right person at the right time in
the right format for the right decision .
The Scientist's Burden: You must address problems like information overload,
irrelevance, obsolescence, and disorganized info .
NB: Correct information does NOT guarantee a correct decision!
