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'''Information''' is an ] that refers to something which has the power ]. At the most fundamental level, it pertains to the ] (perhaps ]) of that which may be ]d, or their ]s. Any natural process that is not completely ] and any observable ] in any ] can be said to convey some amount of information. Whereas ] and other ] use discrete ] to convey information, other phenomena and artifacts such as ], ], ]s, ] or other ]s, and ] convey information in a more continuous form.<ref name="Anderson">{{cite book|title=Understanding Information Transmission|author1=John B. Anderson|author2=Rolf Johnnesson|publisher=Ieee Press|year=1996|isbn=978-0471711209}}</ref> Information is not ] itself, but the ] that may be derived from a ] through interpretation.<ref name="Yockey">{{cite book|title=Information Theory, Evolution, and the Origin of Life|author=Hubert P. Yockey|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2005|page=7|isbn=978-0511546433}}</ref>
] codes for the word "Misplaced Pages" represented in ], the numeral system most commonly used for encoding computer information.]]
{{otheruses}}


'''Information''' as a ] has a diversity of meanings, from everyday usage to technical settings. Generally speaking, the concept of information is closely related to notions of ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and ]. The concept of ''information'' is relevant or connected to various concepts,<ref name="Floridi">{{cite book|author=Luciano Floridi|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ak__GBAcHU0C|title=Information A Very Short Introduction|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2010|isbn=978-0-19-160954-1}}</ref> including ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and ].


Information is often processed iteratively: Data available at one step are ] into information to be interpreted and processed at the next step. For example, in ] each ] or ] conveys information relevant to the word it is part of, each word conveys information relevant to the phrase it is part of, each phrase conveys information relevant to the sentence it is part of, and so on until at the final step information is interpreted and becomes knowledge in a given ]. In a ], ]s may be interpreted into the symbols, letters, numbers, or structures that convey the information available at the next level up. The key characteristic of information is that it is subject to interpretation and processing.
Many people speak about the ] as the advent of the Knowledge Age {{Fact|date=February 2007}}{{weasel word|date=June 2007}} or ], the ], the ], and ], and even though ], ] and ] are often in the spotlight, the word "information" is often used without careful consideration of the various meanings it has acquired.


The derivation of information from a signal or message may be thought of as the resolution of ] or ] that arises during the interpretation of patterns within the signal or message.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Webler |first1=Forrest |title=Measurement in the Age of Information |journal=Information |date=25 February 2022 |volume=13 |issue=3 |page=111 |doi=10.3390/info13030111 |doi-access=free }}</ref>
== Etymology ==
According to the ], the earliest historical meaning of the word ''information'' in ] was the act of ''informing'', or giving form or shape to the mind, as in education, instruction, or training. A quote from 1387: "Five books come down from heaven for information of mankind." It was also used for an ''item'' of training, ''e.g.'' a particular instruction. "Melibee had heard the great skills and reasons of Dame Prudence, and her wise information and techniques." (1386)


Information may be structured as ]. Redundant data can be ] up to an optimal size, which is the theoretical limit of compression.
The English word was apparently derived by adding the common "noun of action" ending "''-ation''" (descended through French from Latin "''-tio''") to the earlier verb ''to inform'', in the sense of to give form to the mind, to discipline, instruct, teach: "Men so wise should go and inform their kings." (1330) ''Inform'' itself comes (via French) from the Latin verb ''informare'', to give form to, to form an idea of. Furthermore, Latin itself already even contained the word ''informatio'' meaning concept or idea, but the extent to which this may have influenced the development of the word ''information'' in English is unclear.


The information available through a collection of data may be derived by analysis. For example, a restaurant collects data from every customer order. That information may be analyzed to produce knowledge that is put to use when the business subsequently wants to identify the most popular or least popular dish.{{Citation needed|date=May 2024}}
As a final note, the ancient Greek word for ''form'' was ''είδος'' ], and this word was famously used in a technical philosophical sense by ] (and later ]) to denote the ideal identity or essence of something (see ]). "Eidos" can also be associated with ], ] or even ].


Information can be transmitted in time, via ], and space, via ] and ].<ref name="Hilbertvideo2011">{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIKPjOuwqHo |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/iIKPjOuwqHo |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|title=World_info_capacity_animation |publisher=] |date=11 June 2011 |access-date=1 May 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Information is expressed either as the content of a ] or through direct or indirect ]. That which is ] can be construed as a message in its own right, and in that sense, all information is always conveyed as the content of a message.
== Information as a message ==


Information can be ] into various forms for ] and ] (for example, information may be encoded into a ] of ], or transmitted via a ]). It can also be ] for safe storage and communication.
'''Information''' is the state of a system of interest. Message is the information materialized.


The uncertainty of an event is measured by its probability of occurrence. Uncertainty is proportional to the negative logarithm of the probability of occurrence. ] takes advantage of this by concluding that more uncertain events require more information to resolve their uncertainty. The ] is a typical ]. It is 'that which reduces uncertainty by half'.<ref>{{Cite web |title=DT&SC 4-5: Information Theory Primer, Online Course |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qanHTredVE&list=PLtjBSCvWCU3rNm46D3R85efM0hrzjuAIg&index=42 |website=YouTube|publisher=University of California |publication-date=2015}}</ref> Other units such as the ] may be used. For example, the information encoded in one "fair" coin flip is log<sub>2</sub>(2/1) = 1 bit, and in two fair coin flips is log<sub>2</sub>(4/1) = 2 bits. A 2011 '']'' article estimates that 97% of technologically stored information was already in digital ]s in 2007 and that the year 2002 was the beginning of the ] for information storage (with digital storage capacity bypassing analogue for the first time).<ref name="HilbertLopez2011">{{cite journal|title=The World's Technological Capacity to Store, Communicate, and Compute Information|first1=Martin|last1=Hilbert|first2=Priscila|last2=López|date=2011|journal=]|volume=332|issue=6025|pages=60–65|doi=10.1126/science.1200970|pmid = 21310967|bibcode=2011Sci...332...60H|s2cid=206531385|doi-access=free}} Free access to the article at martinhilbert.net/WorldInfoCapacity.html</ref>
Information is a quality of a ] from a ] to one or more receivers. Information is always ''about'' something (size of a parameter, occurrence of an event, etc). Viewed in this manner, information does not have to be accurate; it may be a truth or a lie, or just the sound of a falling tree. Even a disruptive noise used to inhibit the flow of communication and create misunderstanding would in this view be a form of information. However, generally speaking, if the ''amount'' of information in the received message increases, the message is more accurate.


== Exact definition of information and digital application ==
This model assumes there is a definite ] and at least one receiver. Many refinements of the model assume the existence of a common language understood by the sender and at least one of the receivers. An important variation identifies information as that which would be communicated by a message if it were sent from a sender to a receiver capable of understanding the message. In another variation, it is not required that the sender be capable of understanding the message, or even cognizant that there is a message, making information something that can be extracted from an environment, e.g., through observation, reading or measurement.


Information can be defined exactly by set theory:
Information is a term with many meanings depending on context, but is as a rule closely related to such concepts as meaning, knowledge, instruction, communication, representation, and mental stimulus. Simply stated, information is a message received and understood. In terms of data, it can be defined as a collection of facts from which conclusions may be drawn. There are many other aspects of information since it is the knowledge acquired through study or experience or instruction. But overall, information is the result of processing, manipulating and organizing data in a way that adds to the knowledge of the person receiving it.


"Information is a selection from the domain of information".
] provides a numerical measure of the uncertainty of an outcome. For example, we can say that "the signal contained thousands of bits of information". Communication theory tends to use the concept of ], generally attributed to ] (see ]).


The "domain of information" is a set that the sender and receiver of information must know before exchanging information. Digital information, for example, consists of building blocks that are all number sequences. Each number sequence represents a selection from its domain. The sender and receiver of digital information (number sequences) must know the domain and binary format of each number sequence before exchanging information.
Another form of information is ], a concept of ]. This is used in application of statistics to ] and to science in general. Fisher information is thought of as the amount of information that a message carries about an unobservable parameter. It can be computed from knowledge of the ] defining the system. For example, with a normal likelihood function, the Fisher information is the reciprocal of the variance of the law. In the absence of knowledge of the likelihood law, the Fisher information may be computed from normally distributed score data as the reciprocal of their second moment.
By defining number sequences online, this would be systematically and universally usable. Before the exchanged digital number sequence, an efficient unique link to its online definition can be set. This online-defined digital information (number sequence) would be globally comparable and globally searchable.<ref>Orthuber, Wolfgang (16 May 2022). "We Can Define the Domain of Information Online and Thus Globally Uniformly". Information. 13(5), 256. https://doi.org/10.3390/info13050256 .</ref>


== Etymology ==
Even though information and data are often used interchangeably, they are actually very different. Data is a set of unrelated information, and as such is of no use until it is properly evaluated. Upon evaluation, once there is some significant relation between data, and they show some relevance, then they are converted into information. Now this same data can be used for different purposes. Thus, till the data convey some information, they are not useful.
{{See also|Information history#History of the word and concept "information"|l1=History of the word and concept "information"}}
The English word "information" comes from Middle French ''enformacion/informacion/information'' 'a criminal investigation' and its etymon, Latin ''informatiō(n)'' 'conception, teaching, creation'.<ref>'']'', Third Edition, 2009, </ref>


=== Measuring information entropy === In English, "information" is an uncountable ].


==Information theory==
The view of information as a message came into prominence with the publication in 1948 of an influential paper by ], "]." This paper provides the foundations of ] and endows the word ''information'' not only with a technical meaning but also a measure. If the sending device is equally likely to send any one of a set of <math>N</math> messages, then the preferred measure of "the information produced when one message is chosen from the set" is the base two ] of <math>N</math> (This measure is called '']''). In this paper, Shannon continues:
{{main|Information theory}}
Information theory is the scientific study of the ], ], and ] of information. The field itself was fundamentally established by the work of ] in the 1940s, with earlier contributions by ] and ] in the 1920s.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Pérez-Montoro Gutiérrez |first=Mario |title=The Phenomenon of Information: A Conceptual Approach to Information Flow |last2=Edelstein |first2=Dick |date=2007 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0-8108-5942-5 |location=Lanham (Md.) |pages=21–22 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Wesołowski |first=Krzysztof |url=http://ndl.ethernet.edu.et/bitstream/123456789/54386/1/33pdf.pdf |title=Introduction to Digital Communication Systems |date=2009 |publisher=Wiley |isbn=978-0-470-98629-5 |edition=1. publ |location=Chichester |pages=2 |language=en}}</ref> The field is at the intersection of ], ], computer science, ], ], and ].


A key measure in information theory is ]. Entropy quantifies the amount of uncertainty involved in the value of a ] or the outcome of a ]. For example, identifying the outcome of a fair ] (with two equally likely outcomes) provides less information (lower entropy) than specifying the outcome from a roll of a ] (with six equally likely outcomes). Some other important measures in information theory are ], channel capacity, ]s, and ]. Important sub-fields of information theory include ], ], ], and ].
{{quotation|The ] of a logarithmic base corresponds to the choice of a ]. If the base 2 is used the resulting units may be called binary digits, or more briefly ]s, a word suggested by ]. A device with two stable positions, such as a relay or a flip-flop circuit, can store one bit of information. N such devices can store N bits…<ref name = "Shannon">The Bell System Technical Journal, Vol. 27, p. 379, (July 1948).</ref>}}


There is another opinion regarding the universal definition of information. It lies in the fact that the concept itself has changed along with the change of various historical epochs, and to find such a definition, it is necessary to find standard features and patterns of this transformation. For example, researchers in the field of information Petrichenko E. A. and Semenova V. G., based on a retrospective analysis of changes in the concept of information, give the following universal definition: "Information is a form of transmission of human experience (knowledge)." In their opinion, the change in the essence of the concept of information occurs after various breakthrough technologies for the transfer of experience (knowledge), i.e. the appearance of writing, the printing press, the first encyclopedias, the telegraph, the development of cybernetics, the creation of a microprocessor, the Internet, smartphones, etc. Each new form of experience transfer is a synthesis of the previous ones. That is why we see such a variety of definitions of information, because, according to the law of dialectics "negation-negation", all previous ideas about information are contained in a "filmed" form and in its modern representation.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Semenova |first1=Veronika |last2=Petrichenko |first2=Evgeny |title=Information: The History of Notion, Its Present and Future |date=2022 |url=https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/informatsiya-istoriya-ponyatiya-ego-nastoyaschee-i-buduschee |journal=Izvestiya University. The North Caucasus Region. Series: Social Sciences |volume=1 |issue=213 |pages=16–26 |doi=10.18522/2687-0770-2022-1-16-26 |s2cid=249796993 |issn=2687-0770}}</ref>
A complementary way of measuring information is provided by ]. In brief, this measures the information content of a list of symbols based on how predictable they are, or more specifically how easy it is to compute the list through a ]: the information content of a sequence is the number of bits of the shortest program that computes it. The sequence below would have a very low algorithmic information measurement since it is a very predictable pattern, and as the pattern continues the measurement would not change. Shannon information would give the same information measurement for each symbol, since they are ], and each new symbol would increase the measurement.
:123456789101112131415161718192021


Applications of fundamental topics of information theory include source coding/] (e.g. for ]), and channel coding/] (e.g. for ]). Its impact has been crucial to the success of the ] missions to deep space, the invention of the ], the feasibility of mobile phones and the development of the Internet. The theory has also found applications in other areas, including ],<ref>Burnham, K. P. and Anderson D. R. (2002) ''Model Selection and Multimodel Inference: A Practical Information-Theoretic Approach, Second Edition'' (Springer Science, New York) {{ISBN|978-0-387-95364-9}}.</ref> ], ],<ref name="Spikes">{{cite book|title=Spikes: Exploring the Neural Code|author1=F. Rieke|author2=D. Warland|author3=R Ruyter van Steveninck|author4=W Bialek|publisher=The MIT press|year=1997|isbn=978-0262681087}}</ref> ],<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Delgado-Bonal|first1=Alfonso|last2=Martín-Torres|first2=Javier|date=2016-11-03|title=Human vision is determined based on information theory|journal=Scientific Reports|language=En|volume=6|issue=1|page=36038|bibcode=2016NatSR...636038D|doi=10.1038/srep36038|issn=2045-2322|pmc=5093619|pmid=27808236}}</ref> linguistics, the evolution<ref>{{cite journal|last1=cf|last2=Huelsenbeck|first2=J. P.|last3=Ronquist|first3=F.|last4=Nielsen|first4=R.|last5=Bollback|first5=J. P.|year=2001|title=Bayesian inference of phylogeny and its impact on evolutionary biology|journal=Science|volume=294|issue=5550|pages=2310–2314|bibcode=2001Sci...294.2310H|doi=10.1126/science.1065889|pmid=11743192|s2cid=2138288}}</ref> and function<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Allikmets|first1=Rando|last2=Wasserman|first2=Wyeth W.|last3=Hutchinson|first3=Amy|last4=Smallwood|first4=Philip|last5=Nathans|first5=Jeremy|last6=Rogan|first6=Peter K.|year=1998|title=Thomas D. Schneider], Michael Dean (1998) Organization of the ABCR gene: analysis of promoter and splice junction sequences|url=http://alum.mit.edu/www/toms/|journal=Gene|volume=215|issue=1|pages=111–122|doi=10.1016/s0378-1119(98)00269-8|pmid=9666097|doi-access=free}}</ref> of molecular codes (]), ],<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Jaynes|first1=E. T.|year=1957|title=Information Theory and Statistical Mechanics|url=http://bayes.wustl.edu/|journal=Phys. Rev.|volume=106|issue=4|page=620|bibcode=1957PhRv..106..620J|doi=10.1103/physrev.106.620|s2cid=17870175 }}</ref> ], ], ], ], ],<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Bennett|first1=Charles H.|last2=Li|first2=Ming|last3=Ma|first3=Bin|year=2003|title=Chain Letters and Evolutionary Histories|url=http://sciamdigital.com/index.cfm?fa=Products.ViewIssuePreview&ARTICLEID_CHAR=08B64096-0772-4904-9D48227D5C9FAC75|journal=Scientific American|volume=288|issue=6|pages=76–81|bibcode=2003SciAm.288f..76B|doi=10.1038/scientificamerican0603-76|pmid=12764940|access-date=2008-03-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071007041539/http://www.sciamdigital.com/index.cfm?fa=Products.ViewIssuePreview&ARTICLEID_CHAR=08B64096-0772-4904-9D48227D5C9FAC75|archive-date=2007-10-07|url-status=dead}}</ref> ], ]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://aicanderson2.home.comcast.net/~aicanderson2/home.pdf|title=Some background on why people in the empirical sciences may want to better understand the information-theoretic methods|author=David R. Anderson|date=November 1, 2003|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723045720/http://aicanderson2.home.comcast.net/~aicanderson2/home.pdf|archive-date=July 23, 2011|url-status=dead|access-date=2010-06-23}}
It is important to recognize the limitations of traditional information theory and algorithmic information theory from the perspective of human meaning. For example, when referring to the meaning content of a message Shannon noted “Frequently the messages have ''meaning…'' these semantic aspects of communication are irrelevant to the engineering problem. The significant aspect is that the actual message is one selected ''from a set of possible messages''” (emphasis in original).
</ref> and even art creation.


== As sensory input ==
In information theory signals are part of a process, not a substance; they do something, they do not contain any specific meaning. Combining algorithmic information theory and information theory we can conclude that the most random signal contains the most information as it can be interpreted in any way and cannot be compressed.{{Fact|date=August 2007}}
Often information can be viewed as a type of input to an ] or ]. Inputs are of two kinds; some inputs are important to the function of the organism (for example, food) or system (]) by themselves. In his book ''Sensory Ecology''<ref>{{cite book|last=Dusenbery|first=David B.|date=1992|title=Sensory Ecology|url=https://archive.org/details/sensoryecologyho0000duse|url-access=registration|publisher=W.H. Freeman|location=New York|isbn=978-0-7167-2333-2}}</ref> biophysicist ] called these causal inputs. Other inputs (information) are important only because they are associated with causal inputs and can be used to ] the occurrence of a causal input at a later time (and perhaps another place). Some information is important because of association with other information but eventually there must be a connection to a causal input.


In practice, information is usually carried by weak stimuli that must be detected by specialized sensory systems and amplified by energy inputs before they can be functional to the organism or system. For example, light is mainly (but not only, e.g. plants can grow in the direction of the light source) a causal input to plants but for animals it only provides information. The colored light reflected from a flower is too weak for photosynthesis but the visual system of the bee detects it and the bee's nervous system uses the information to guide the bee to the flower, where the bee often finds nectar or pollen, which are causal inputs, a nutritional function.
Michael Reddy noted that "'signals' of the ] are 'patterns that can be exchanged'. There is no message contained in the signal, the signals convey the ability to select from a set of possible messages." In information theory "the system must be designed to operate for each possible selection, not just the one which will actually be chosen since this is unknown at the time of design".


== As representation and complexity ==
== Information as a pattern ==
The ] and applied mathematician Ronaldo Vigo argues that information is a concept that requires at least two related entities to make quantitative sense. These are, any dimensionally defined category of objects S, and any of its subsets R. R, in essence, is a representation of S, or, in other words, conveys representational (and hence, conceptual) information about S. Vigo then defines the amount of information that R conveys about S as the rate of change in the ] of S whenever the objects in R are removed from S. Under "Vigo information", pattern, invariance, complexity, representation, and information{{snd}}five fundamental constructs of universal science{{snd}}are unified under a novel mathematical framework.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Vigo|first=R. |title=Representational information: a new general notion and measure of information |journal=Information Sciences |volume=181 |issue=21 |pages=4847–4859 |year=2011 |doi=10.1016/j.ins.2011.05.020|url=http://cogprints.org/7961/1/Vigo_Information_Sciences.pdf }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Vigo | first1 = R. | year = 2013 | title = Complexity over Uncertainty in Generalized Representational Information Theory (GRIT): A Structure-Sensitive General Theory of Information | journal = Information | volume = 4 | issue = 1| pages = 1–30 | doi = 10.3390/info4010001 | doi-access = free }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Vigo|first=R.|date=2014|title=Mathematical Principles of Human Conceptual Behavior: The Structural Nature of Conceptual Representation and Processing|publisher=Scientific Psychology Series, Routledge|location=New York and London|isbn=978-0415714365}}</ref> Among other things, the framework aims to overcome the limitations of ] when attempting to characterize and measure subjective information.


== As an influence that leads to transformation ==
Information is any represented ]. This view assumes neither accuracy nor directly communicating parties, but instead assumes a separation between an object and its representation. Consider the following example: ] represent an ], however inaccurately. What are commonly referred to as data in ], ], and other fields, are forms of information in this sense. The ] patterns in a ] and connected ]s are related to something other than the pattern itself, such as ] to be displayed and ] input. ]s, ]s, and ]s are also in this category. On the other hand, according to ], data is symbols with certain syntax and information is data with a certain semantic. ] and ] contain information to the extent that they represent something such as an assortment of objects on a table, a ], or a ]. In other words, when a pattern of something is transposed to a pattern of something else, the latter is information. This would be the case whether or not there was anyone to perceive it.
Information is any type of pattern that influences the formation or transformation of other patterns.<ref>{{cite book|last=Shannon|first=Claude E.|author-link=Claude E. Shannon|title=The Mathematical Theory of Communication|year=1949|title-link=A Mathematical Theory of Communication}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Casagrande|first=David|title=Information as verb: Re-conceptualizing information for cognitive and ecological models|journal=Journal of Ecological Anthropology|year=1999|volume=3|issue=1|pages=4–13|url=http://www.lehigh.edu/~dac511/literature/casagrande1999.pdf|doi=10.5038/2162-4593.3.1.1|doi-access=free}}</ref> In this sense, there is no need for a conscious mind to perceive, much less appreciate, the pattern. Consider, for example, ]. The sequence of ]s is a pattern that influences the formation and development of an ] without any need for a conscious mind. One might argue though that for a human to consciously define a pattern, for example a nucleotide, naturally involves conscious information processing. However, the existence of ] and ] organisms, with the complex ] that leads, among other events, to the existence of ] and polynucleotides that interact maintaining the biological order and participating in the development of multicellular organisms, precedes by millions of years the emergence of human consciousness and the creation of the scientific culture that produced the chemical nomenclature.


] at times seems to refer to information in this sense, assuming information does not necessarily involve any conscious mind, and patterns circulating (due to ]) in the system can be called information. In other words, it can be said that information in this sense is something potentially perceived as representation, though not created or presented for that purpose. For example, ] defines "information" as a "difference that makes a difference".<ref>{{cite book|last=Bateson|first=Gregory|title= Form, Substance, and Difference, in Steps to an Ecology of Mind|year=1972|publisher=University of Chicago Press|pages=448–466}}</ref>
But if information can be defined merely as a pattern, does that mean that neither ] nor meaning are necessary components of information? Arguably a distinction must be made between raw unprocessed data and information which possesses utility, ] or some quantum of meaning. On this view, information may indeed be characterized as a pattern; but this is a ] condition, not a ] one.


If, however, the premise of "influence" implies that information has been perceived by a conscious mind and also interpreted by it, the specific ] associated with this interpretation may cause the transformation of the information into ]. Complex definitions of both "information" and "knowledge" make such semantic and logical analysis difficult, but the condition of "transformation" is an important point in the study of information as it relates to knowledge, especially in the business discipline of ]. In this practice, tools and processes are used to assist a ] in performing research and making decisions, including steps such as:
An individual entry in a telephone book, which follows a specific pattern formed by name, address and telephone number, does not become "informative" in some sense unless and until it possesses some degree of utility, value or meaning. For example, someone might look up a girlfriend's number, might order a take away etc. The vast majority of numbers will never be construed as "information" in any meaningful sense. The gap between data and information is only closed by a behavioral bridge whereby some value, utility or meaning is added to transform mere data or pattern into information.
* Review information to effectively derive value and meaning
* Reference ] if available
* Establish ] context, often from many possible contexts
* Derive new knowledge from the information
* Make decisions or recommendations from the resulting knowledge


Stewart (2001) argues that transformation of information into knowledge is critical, lying at the core of value creation and ] for the modern enterprise.
When one constructs a representation of an object, one can selectively extract from the object (]) or use a ] of signs to replace (]), or both. The sampling and encoding result in representation. An example of the former is a "sample" of a product; an example of the latter is "verbal description" of a product. Both contain information of the product, however inaccurate. When one interprets representation, one can predict a broader pattern from a limited number of observations (inference) or understand the relation between patterns of two different things (]). One example of the former is to sip a ] to know if it is spoiled; an example of the latter is examining footprints to determine the animal and its condition. In both cases, information sources are not constructed or presented by some "sender" of information.
Regardless, information is dependent upon, but usually unrelated to and separate from, the medium or media used to express it. In other words, the position of a theoretical series of bits, or even the output once interpreted by a ] or similar device, is unimportant, except when someone or something is present to interpret the information. Therefore, a quantity of information is totally distinct from its medium.


In a biological framework, Mizraji <ref>{{cite journal|last=Mizraji|first=E.|title=The biological Maxwell's demons: exploring ideas about the information processing in biological systems |journal=Theory in Biosciences.|volume=140 |pages=307–318 |year=2021 |issue=3 |doi= 10.1007/s12064-021-00354-6|pmid=34449033 |pmc=8568868 }}</ref> has described information as an entity emerging from the interaction of patterns with receptor systems (eg: in molecular or neural receptors capable of interacting with specific patterns, information emerges from those interactions). In addition, he has incorporated the idea of "information catalysts", structures where emerging information promotes the transition from pattern recognition to goal-directed action (for example, the specific transformation of a substrate into a product by an enzyme, or auditory reception of words and the production of an oral response)
== Information as sensory input ==


The Danish Dictionary of Information Terms<ref>{{cite web|first=Bo Krantz|last=Simonsen |url=http://www.informationsordbogen.dk/concept.php?cid=902 |title=Informationsordbogen – vis begreb |website=Informationsordbogen.dk |access-date=1 May 2017}}</ref> argues that information only provides an answer to a posed question. Whether the answer provides knowledge depends on the informed person. So a generalized definition of the concept should be: "Information" = An answer to a specific question".
Often information is viewed as a type of ] to an ] or designed device. Inputs are of two kinds. Some inputs are important to the function of the organism (for example, food) or device (]) by themselves. In his book ''Sensory Ecology,'' Dusenbery<!-- who? --> called these causal inputs. Other inputs (information) are important only because they are associated with causal inputs and can be used to predict the occurrence of a causal input at a later time (and perhaps another place). Some information is important because of association with other information but eventually there must be a connection to a causal input. In practice, information is usually carried by weak stimuli that must be detected by specialized sensory systems and amplified by energy inputs before they can be functional to the organism or device. For example, light is often a causal input to plants but provides information to animals. The colored light reflected from a flower is too weak to do much photosynthetic work but the visual system of the bee detects it and the bee's nervous system uses the information to guide the bee to the flower, where the bee often finds nectar or pollen, which are causal inputs, serving a nutritional function.


When ] speaks of ] and their effects on human cultures, he refers to the structure of ] that in turn shape our behaviors and mindsets. Also, ]s are often said to be "information" in this sense.
Information is any type of sensory input. When an organism with a ] receives an input, it transforms the input into an electrical signal. This is regarded information by some. The idea of representation is still relevant, but in a slightly different manner. That is, while ] does not represent anything concretely, when the viewer sees the painting, it is nevertheless transformed into electrical signals that create a representation of the painting. Defined this way, information does not have to be related to truth, communication, or representation of an object. ] in general is not intended to be informative. ], the ], ]s, works of ] and so on are thus forms of information in this sense, but they are not necessarily forms of information according to some definitions given above. Consider another example: food supplies both nutrition and taste for those who eat it. If information is equated to sensory input, then nutrition is not information but taste is.


== Technologically mediated information ==
== Information as an influence which leads to a transformation ==
{{Further|Information Age}}
These sections are using measurements of data rather than information, as information cannot be directly measured.


=== As of 2007 ===
Information is any type of pattern that influences the formation or transformation of other patterns. In this sense, there is no need for a conscious mind to perceive, much less appreciate, the pattern. Consider, for example, ]. The sequence of ]s is a pattern that influences the formation and development of an organism without any need for a conscious mind. ] at times seems to refer to information in this sense, assuming information does not necessarily involve any conscious mind, and patterns circulating (due to ]) in the system can be called information. In other words, it can be said that information in this sense is something potentially perceived as representation, though not created or presented for that purpose.
It is estimated that the world's technological capacity to store information grew from 2.6 (optimally compressed) ] in 1986 – which is the informational equivalent to less than one 730-MB ] per person (539 MB per person) – to 295 (optimally compressed) ] in 2007.<ref name="HilbertLopez2011"/> This is the informational equivalent of almost 61 ] per person in 2007.<ref name="Hilbertvideo2011"/>


The world's combined technological capacity to receive information through one-way ] networks was the informational equivalent of 174 ]s per person per day in 2007.<ref name="HilbertLopez2011"/>
When ] speaks of ] and their effects on human cultures, he refers to the structure of ] that in turn shape our behaviors and mindsets. Also, ]s are often said to be "information" in this sense.


The world's combined effective capacity to exchange information through two-way ] networks was the informational equivalent of 6 newspapers per person per day in 2007.<ref name="Hilbertvideo2011"/>
(See also ].)


As of 2007, an estimated 90% of all new information is digital, mostly stored on hard drives.<ref>Failure Trends in a Large Disk Drive Population. Eduardo Pinheiro, Wolf-Dietrich Weber and Luiz Andre Barroso</ref>
== Information as a property in physics ==


=== As of 2020 ===
{{main|Physical information}}
The total amount of data created, captured, copied, and consumed globally is forecast to increase rapidly, reaching 64.2 zettabytes in 2020. Over the next five years up to 2025, global data creation is projected to grow to more than 180 zettabytes.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Total data volume worldwide 2010–2025|url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/871513/worldwide-data-created/|access-date=2021-08-06|website=Statista|language=en}}</ref>


== As records ==
In 2003, J. D. Bekenstein claimed there is a growing trend in ] to define the physical world as being made of information itself (and thus information is defined in this way). Information has a well defined meaning in physics. Examples of this include the phenomenon of ] where particles can interact without reference to their separation or the speed of light. Information itself cannot travel faster than light even if the information is transmitted indirectly. This could lead to the fact that all attempts at physically observing a particle with an "entangled" relationship to another are slowed down, even though the particles are not connected in any other way other than by the information they carry.
{{LibraryandInformation-TopicSidebar}}
Records are specialized forms of information. Essentially, records are information produced consciously or as by-products of business activities or transactions and retained because of their value. Primarily, their value is as evidence of the activities of the organization but they may also be retained for their informational value. Sound ] ensures that the integrity of records is preserved for as long as they are required.{{Citation needed|date=May 2024}}


The international standard on records management, ISO 15489, defines records as "information created, received, and maintained as evidence and information by an organization or person, in pursuance of legal obligations or in the transaction of business".<ref>{{citation|title=ISO 15489}}</ref> The International Committee on Archives (ICA) Committee on electronic records defined a record as, "recorded information produced or received in the initiation, conduct or completion of an institutional or individual activity and that comprises content, context and structure sufficient to provide evidence of the activity".<ref name="ica">{{cite web |author1=Committee on Electronic Records |title= Guide For Managing Electronic Records From An Archival Perspective |url=https://www.ica.org/sites/default/files/ICA%20Study%208%20guide_eng.pdf |website=www.ica.org |publisher=International Committee on Archives |access-date=9 February 2019 |page=22 |date=February 1997}}</ref>
Another link is demonstrated by the ] thought experiment. In this experiment, a direct relationship between information and another physical property, ], is demonstrated. A consequence is that it is impossible to destroy information without increasing the entropy of a system; in practical terms this often means generating heat. Another, more philosophical, outcome is that information could be thought of as interchangeable with ]. Thus, in the study of ], the theoretical lower bound of thermal energy released by an ''AND gate'' is higher than for the ''NOT gate'' (because information is destroyed in an ''AND gate'' and simply converted in a ''NOT gate''). Physical information is of particular importance in the theory of ].


Records may be maintained to retain ] of the organization or to meet legal, fiscal or accountability requirements imposed on the organization. Willis expressed the view that sound management of business records and information delivered "...six key requirements for good ]...transparency; accountability; due process; compliance; meeting statutory and common law requirements; and security of personal and corporate information."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Willis |first1=Anthony |title=Corporate governance and management of information and records |journal=Records Management Journal |date=1 August 2005 |volume=15 |issue=2 |pages=86–97 |doi=10.1108/09565690510614238}}</ref>
== Information as records ==


== Semiotics ==
Records are a specialized form of information. Essentially, records are information produced consciously or as by-products of business activities or transactions and retained because of their value. Primarily their value is as evidence of the activities of the organization but they may also be retained for their informational value. Sound ] ensures that the integrity of records is preserved for as long as they are required.
] has classified "information" in terms of its uses: "information as process", "information as knowledge", and "information as thing".<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Buckland|first1=Michael K.|author-link=Michael Buckland|title=Information as thing|journal=]|date=June 1991|volume=42|issue=5|pages=351–360|doi=10.1002/(SICI)1097-4571(199106)42:5<351::AID-ASI5>3.0.CO;2-3}}</ref>


]<ref>{{cite book|last=Beynon-Davies|first=P.|date=2002|title=Information Systems: an introduction to informatics in Organisations|publisher=Palgrave|location=Basingstoke, UK|isbn=978-0-333-96390-6}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Beynon-Davies|first=P.|date=2009|title=Business Information Systems|publisher=Palgrave|location=Basingstoke|isbn=978-0-230-20368-6}}</ref> explains the multi-faceted concept of information in terms of signs and signal-sign systems. Signs themselves can be considered in terms of four inter-dependent levels, layers or branches of ]: pragmatics, semantics, syntax, and empirics. These four layers serve to connect the social world on the one hand with the physical or technical world on the other.
The international standard on records management, ISO 15489, defines records as "information created, received, and maintained as evidence and information by an organization or person, in pursuance of legal obligations or in the transaction of business". The International Committee on Archives (ICA) Committee on electronic records defined a record as, "a specific piece of recorded information generated, collected or received in the initiation, conduct or completion of an activity and that comprises sufficient content, context and structure to provide proof or evidence of that activity".


] is concerned with the purpose of communication. Pragmatics links the issue of signs with the context within which signs are used. The focus of pragmatics is on the intentions of living agents underlying communicative behaviour. In other words, pragmatics link language to action.
Records may be retained because of their business value, as part of the ] of the organization or to meet legal, fiscal or accountability requirements imposed on the organization. Willis (2005) expressed the view that sound management of business records and information delivered "…six key requirements for good ]…transparency; accountability; due process; compliance; meeting statutory and common law requirements; and security of personal and corporate information."


] is concerned with the meaning of a message conveyed in a communicative act. Semantics considers the content of communication. Semantics is the study of the meaning of signs – the association between signs and behaviour. Semantics can be considered as the study of the link between symbols and their referents or concepts – particularly the way that signs relate to human behavior.
== Information and semiotics ==
Beynon-Davies <ref>Beynon-Davies P. (2002). Information Systems: an introduction to informatics in Organisations. Palgrave, Basingstoke, UK. ISBN: 0-333-96390-3</ref> explains the multi-faceted concept of information in terms of that of signs and sign-systems. Signs themselves can be considered in terms of four inter-dependent levels, layers or branches of ]: pragmatics, semantics, syntactics and empirics. These four layers serve to connect the social world on the one hand with the physical or technical world on the other.


] is concerned with the purpose of communication. Pragmatics links the issue of signs with that of intention. The focus of pragmatics is on the intentions of human agents underlying communicative behaviour. In other words, intentions link language to action. ] is concerned with the formalism used to represent a message. Syntax as an area studies the form of communication in terms of the logic and grammar of sign systems. Syntax is devoted to the study of the form rather than the content of signs and sign systems.


Nielsen (2008) discusses the relationship between semiotics and information in relation to dictionaries. He introduces the concept of ]s and refers to the effort a user of a dictionary must make to first find, and then understand data so that they can generate information.
] is concerned with the meaning of a message conveyed in a communicative act. Semantics considers the content of communication. Semantics is the study of the meaning of signs - the association between signs and behaviour. Semantics can be considered as the study of the link between symbols and their referents or concepts; particularly the way in which signs relate to human behaviour.


Communication normally exists within the context of some social situation. The social situation sets the context for the intentions conveyed (pragmatics) and the form of communication. In a communicative situation intentions are expressed through messages that comprise collections of inter-related signs taken from a language mutually understood by the agents involved in the communication. Mutual understanding implies that agents involved understand the chosen language in terms of its agreed syntax and semantics. The sender codes the message in the language and sends the message as signals along some communication channel (empirics). The chosen communication channel has inherent properties that determine outcomes such as the speed at which communication can take place, and over what distance.
Syntactics is concerned with the formalism used to represent a message. Syntactics as an area studies the form of communication in terms of the logic and grammar of sign systems. Syntactics is devoted to the study of the form rather than the content of signs and sign-systems.


== Physics and determinacy ==
Empirics is the study of the signals used to carry a message; the physical characteristics of the medium of communication. Empirics is devoted to the study of communication channels and their characteristics, e.g., sound, light, electronic transmission etc.


The existence of information about a ] is a major concept in both ] and ], encompassing the ability, real or theoretical, of an agent to predict the future state of a system based on knowledge gathered during its past and present. ] is a philosophical theory holding that causal determination can predict all future events,<ref>{{cite book |author=Ernest Nagel |title=The Structure of Science: Problems in the Logic of Scientific Explanation |publisher=Hackett |year=1999 |isbn=978-0915144716 |edition=2nd |pages=285–292 |chapter=§V: Alternative descriptions of physical state |quote=A theory is deterministic if, and only if, given its state variables for some initial period, the theory logically determines a unique set of values for those variables for any other period. |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u6EycHgRfkQC&pg=PA285}}</ref> positing a fully predictable ] described by classical physicist ] as "]".<ref name="Truscott">Laplace, Pierre Simon, '']'', translated into English from the original French 6th ed. by Truscott, F.W. and Emory, F.L., Dover Publications (New York, 1951) p.4.</ref>
Communication normally exists within the context of some social situation. The social situation sets the context for the intentions conveyed (pragmatics) and the form in which communication takes place. In a communicative situation intentions are expressed through messages which comprise collections of inter-related signs taken from a language which is mutually understood by the agents involved in the communication. Mutual understanding implies that agents involved understand the chosen language in terms of its agreed syntax (syntactics) and semantics. The sender codes the message in the language and sends the message as signals along some communication channel (empirics). The chosen communication channel will have inherent properties which determine outcomes such as the speed with which communication can take place and over what distance.


Quantum physics instead encodes information as a ], which prevents observers from directly identifying all of its possible ]s. Prior to the publication of ], determinists reconciled with this behavior using ], which argued that the information necessary to predict the future of a function ''must'' exist, even if it is not accessible for humans; A view surmised by ] with the assertion that "]".<ref name="Einstein letter, 4 Dec 1926"></ref>
== References ==
{{reflist}}


Modern ] cites the mechanical sense of information in the ], positing that, because the complete evaporation of a ] into ] leaves nothing except an expanding cloud of ] particles, this results in the irrecoverability of any information about the matter to have originally crossed the ], violating both classical and quantum assertions against the ability to destroy information.<ref name="SH-2006">{{cite video |people=Hawking, Stephen |title=The Hawking Paradox |url=http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/other-shows/videos/other-shows-into-the-universe-with-stephen-hawking.htm |date=2006 |publisher=] |access-date=13 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130802071021/http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/other-shows/videos/other-shows-into-the-universe-with-stephen-hawking.htm |archive-date=2 August 2013 }}</ref><ref name="NYT-20130812">{{cite news |last=Overbye |first=Dennis |author-link=Dennis Overbye |title=A Black Hole Mystery Wrapped in a Firewall Paradox |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/13/science/space/a-black-hole-mystery-wrapped-in-a-firewall-paradox.html |date=12 August 2013 |work=] |access-date=12 August 2013 }}</ref>
== Further reading ==

* Alan Liu (2004). ''The Laws of Cool: Knowledge Work and the Culture of Information'', ]
== The application of information study ==
* Bekenstein, Jacob D. (2003, August). Information in the ]. ''Scientific American''.
The information cycle (addressed as a whole or in its distinct components) is of great concern to ], ], as well as ]. These fields deal with those processes and techniques pertaining to information capture (through ]) and generation (through ], ] or composition), ] (including encoding, encryption, compression, packaging), ] (including all ] methods), presentation (including ] / ] methods), ] (such as magnetic or optical, including ]), etc.
* ], (2005). 'Is Information Meaningful Data?', ''Philosophy and Phenomenological Research'', 70 (2), pp. 351 - 370. Available online at

* ], (2005). 'Semantic Conceptions of Information', ''The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' (Winter 2005 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.). Available online at
] (shortened as InfoVis) depends on the computation and digital representation of data, and assists users in ] and ].
<gallery>
Internet map 1024.jpg|Partial map of the Internet, with nodes representing IP addresses
Structure of the Universe.jpg|Galactic (including dark) matter distribution in a cubic section of the Universe
XD Aolet.jpg|Information embedded in an abstract mathematical object with symmetry symmetry-breaking nucleus
Attractor Poisson Saturne.jpg|Visual representation of a strange attractor, with converted data of its fractal structure
</gallery>

] (shortened as InfoSec) is the ongoing process of exercising due diligence to protect information, and information systems, from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, destruction, modification, disruption or distribution, through algorithms and procedures focused on monitoring and detection, as well as incident response and repair.

] is the process of inspecting, transforming, and modeling information, by converting raw data into actionable knowledge, in support of the decision-making process.

] (shortened as InfoQ) is the potential of a dataset to achieve a specific (scientific or practical) goal using a given empirical analysis method.

] represents the convergence of informatics, telecommunication and audio-visual media & content.


== See also == == See also ==
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==References==
{{Technology}}
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book|first=Alan|last=Liu|date=2004|title=The Laws of Cool: Knowledge Work and the Culture of Information|publisher=]}}
* {{cite journal|last=Bekenstein|first=Jacob D.|date=August 2003|title=Information in the holographic universe|journal=Scientific American|volume=289|issue=2|pages=58–65|title-link=holographic principle|bibcode=2003SciAm.289b..58B|doi=10.1038/scientificamerican0803-58|pmid=12884539}}
* {{cite book|author-link=James Gleick|last=Gleick|first=James|date=2011|title=The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood|publisher=Pantheon|location=New York, NY|title-link=The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood}}
* {{cite journal|first=Shu-Kun|last=Lin|date=2008|title=Gibbs Paradox and the Concepts of Information, Symmetry, Similarity and Their Relationship|journal=Entropy|volume=10|issue=1|pages=1–5|doi=10.3390/entropy-e10010001|arxiv=0803.2571|bibcode=2008Entrp..10....1L|s2cid=41159530|doi-access=free}}
* {{cite journal|author-link=Luciano Floridi|first=Luciano|last=Floridi|date=2005|title=Is Information Meaningful Data?|journal=Philosophy and Phenomenological Research|volume=70|issue=2|pages=351–370|url=http://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/archive/00002536/01/iimd.pdf|doi=10.1111/j.1933-1592.2005.tb00531.x|hdl=2299/1825|s2cid=5593220 |hdl-access=free}}
* {{cite encyclopedia|author-link=Luciano Floridi|first=Luciano|last=Floridi|date=2005|title=Semantic Conceptions of Information|encyclopedia=The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy|edition=Winter 2005|editor-first=Edward N.|editor-last=Zalta|url=http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/information-semantic/|publisher=Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University}}
* {{cite book|author-link=Luciano Floridi|first=Luciano|last=Floridi|date=2010|title=Information: A Very Short Introduction|publisher=]|location=Oxford}}
* {{cite book|author-link=Robert K. Logan|first=Robert K.|last = Logan|title=What is Information? – Propagating Organization in the Biosphere, the Symbolosphere, the Technosphere and the Econosphere|location=Toronto|publisher=DEMO Publishing}}
* Machlup, F. and U. Mansfield, ''The Study of information : interdisciplinary messages''. 1983, New York: Wiley. xxii, 743 p. {{ISBN|978-0471887171}}
* {{cite journal|first=Sandro|last=Nielsen|title=The Effect of Lexicographical Information Costs on Dictionary Making and Use|journal=Lexikos|volume=18|date=2008|pages=170–189}}
* {{cite book|last=Stewart|first=Thomas|date=2001|title=Wealth of Knowledge|publisher=Doubleday|location=New York, NY}}
* {{cite book|last=Young|first=Paul|title=The Nature of Information|date=1987|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|location=Westport, Ct|isbn=978-0-275-92698-4}}
* {{cite book |last1=Kenett |first1=Ron S. |last2=Shmueli |first2=Galit|author2-link= Galit Shmueli |title=Information Quality: The Potential of Data and Analytics to Generate Knowledge |date=2016 |publisher=John Wiley and Sons |location=Chichester, United Kingdom |doi=10.1002/9781118890622 |isbn=978-1-118-87444-8 }}


==External links== ==External links==
{{Wiktionary}}
{{wiktionary|Information}}
{{Wikiquote}}
{{Commons}}
* Review by ] for the ] * Review by ] for the ]
* *
* This essay is continually revised in the light of ongoing research. * This essay is continually revised in the light of ongoing research.
* an attempt to estimate how much new information is created each year (study was produced by faculty and students at the ] at the ].) * {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100407145846/http://www2.sims.berkeley.edu/research/projects/how-much-info-2003/index.htm |date=7 April 2010 }} an attempt to estimate how much new information is created each year (study was produced by faculty and students at the ] at the ])
* {{in lang|da}} The Danish Dictionary of Information Terms / Informationsordbogen


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Latest revision as of 16:00, 7 January 2025

Facts provided or learned about something or someone For other uses, see Information (disambiguation).

Communication
General aspects
Fields
Disciplines
Categories

Information is an abstract concept that refers to something which has the power to inform. At the most fundamental level, it pertains to the interpretation (perhaps formally) of that which may be sensed, or their abstractions. Any natural process that is not completely random and any observable pattern in any medium can be said to convey some amount of information. Whereas digital signals and other data use discrete signs to convey information, other phenomena and artifacts such as analogue signals, poems, pictures, music or other sounds, and currents convey information in a more continuous form. Information is not knowledge itself, but the meaning that may be derived from a representation through interpretation.

The concept of information is relevant or connected to various concepts, including constraint, communication, control, data, form, education, knowledge, meaning, understanding, mental stimuli, pattern, perception, proposition, representation, and entropy.

Information is often processed iteratively: Data available at one step are processed into information to be interpreted and processed at the next step. For example, in written text each symbol or letter conveys information relevant to the word it is part of, each word conveys information relevant to the phrase it is part of, each phrase conveys information relevant to the sentence it is part of, and so on until at the final step information is interpreted and becomes knowledge in a given domain. In a digital signal, bits may be interpreted into the symbols, letters, numbers, or structures that convey the information available at the next level up. The key characteristic of information is that it is subject to interpretation and processing.

The derivation of information from a signal or message may be thought of as the resolution of ambiguity or uncertainty that arises during the interpretation of patterns within the signal or message.

Information may be structured as data. Redundant data can be compressed up to an optimal size, which is the theoretical limit of compression.

The information available through a collection of data may be derived by analysis. For example, a restaurant collects data from every customer order. That information may be analyzed to produce knowledge that is put to use when the business subsequently wants to identify the most popular or least popular dish.

Information can be transmitted in time, via data storage, and space, via communication and telecommunication. Information is expressed either as the content of a message or through direct or indirect observation. That which is perceived can be construed as a message in its own right, and in that sense, all information is always conveyed as the content of a message.

Information can be encoded into various forms for transmission and interpretation (for example, information may be encoded into a sequence of signs, or transmitted via a signal). It can also be encrypted for safe storage and communication.

The uncertainty of an event is measured by its probability of occurrence. Uncertainty is proportional to the negative logarithm of the probability of occurrence. Information theory takes advantage of this by concluding that more uncertain events require more information to resolve their uncertainty. The bit is a typical unit of information. It is 'that which reduces uncertainty by half'. Other units such as the nat may be used. For example, the information encoded in one "fair" coin flip is log2(2/1) = 1 bit, and in two fair coin flips is log2(4/1) = 2 bits. A 2011 Science article estimates that 97% of technologically stored information was already in digital bits in 2007 and that the year 2002 was the beginning of the digital age for information storage (with digital storage capacity bypassing analogue for the first time).

Exact definition of information and digital application

Information can be defined exactly by set theory:

"Information is a selection from the domain of information".

The "domain of information" is a set that the sender and receiver of information must know before exchanging information. Digital information, for example, consists of building blocks that are all number sequences. Each number sequence represents a selection from its domain. The sender and receiver of digital information (number sequences) must know the domain and binary format of each number sequence before exchanging information. By defining number sequences online, this would be systematically and universally usable. Before the exchanged digital number sequence, an efficient unique link to its online definition can be set. This online-defined digital information (number sequence) would be globally comparable and globally searchable.

Etymology

See also: History of the word and concept "information"

The English word "information" comes from Middle French enformacion/informacion/information 'a criminal investigation' and its etymon, Latin informatiō(n) 'conception, teaching, creation'.

In English, "information" is an uncountable mass noun.

Information theory

Main article: Information theory

Information theory is the scientific study of the quantification, storage, and communication of information. The field itself was fundamentally established by the work of Claude Shannon in the 1940s, with earlier contributions by Harry Nyquist and Ralph Hartley in the 1920s. The field is at the intersection of probability theory, statistics, computer science, statistical mechanics, information engineering, and electrical engineering.

A key measure in information theory is entropy. Entropy quantifies the amount of uncertainty involved in the value of a random variable or the outcome of a random process. For example, identifying the outcome of a fair coin flip (with two equally likely outcomes) provides less information (lower entropy) than specifying the outcome from a roll of a die (with six equally likely outcomes). Some other important measures in information theory are mutual information, channel capacity, error exponents, and relative entropy. Important sub-fields of information theory include source coding, algorithmic complexity theory, algorithmic information theory, and information-theoretic security.

There is another opinion regarding the universal definition of information. It lies in the fact that the concept itself has changed along with the change of various historical epochs, and to find such a definition, it is necessary to find standard features and patterns of this transformation. For example, researchers in the field of information Petrichenko E. A. and Semenova V. G., based on a retrospective analysis of changes in the concept of information, give the following universal definition: "Information is a form of transmission of human experience (knowledge)." In their opinion, the change in the essence of the concept of information occurs after various breakthrough technologies for the transfer of experience (knowledge), i.e. the appearance of writing, the printing press, the first encyclopedias, the telegraph, the development of cybernetics, the creation of a microprocessor, the Internet, smartphones, etc. Each new form of experience transfer is a synthesis of the previous ones. That is why we see such a variety of definitions of information, because, according to the law of dialectics "negation-negation", all previous ideas about information are contained in a "filmed" form and in its modern representation.

Applications of fundamental topics of information theory include source coding/data compression (e.g. for ZIP files), and channel coding/error detection and correction (e.g. for DSL). Its impact has been crucial to the success of the Voyager missions to deep space, the invention of the compact disc, the feasibility of mobile phones and the development of the Internet. The theory has also found applications in other areas, including statistical inference, cryptography, neurobiology, perception, linguistics, the evolution and function of molecular codes (bioinformatics), thermal physics, quantum computing, black holes, information retrieval, intelligence gathering, plagiarism detection, pattern recognition, anomaly detection and even art creation.

As sensory input

Often information can be viewed as a type of input to an organism or system. Inputs are of two kinds; some inputs are important to the function of the organism (for example, food) or system (energy) by themselves. In his book Sensory Ecology biophysicist David B. Dusenbery called these causal inputs. Other inputs (information) are important only because they are associated with causal inputs and can be used to predict the occurrence of a causal input at a later time (and perhaps another place). Some information is important because of association with other information but eventually there must be a connection to a causal input.

In practice, information is usually carried by weak stimuli that must be detected by specialized sensory systems and amplified by energy inputs before they can be functional to the organism or system. For example, light is mainly (but not only, e.g. plants can grow in the direction of the light source) a causal input to plants but for animals it only provides information. The colored light reflected from a flower is too weak for photosynthesis but the visual system of the bee detects it and the bee's nervous system uses the information to guide the bee to the flower, where the bee often finds nectar or pollen, which are causal inputs, a nutritional function.

As representation and complexity

The cognitive scientist and applied mathematician Ronaldo Vigo argues that information is a concept that requires at least two related entities to make quantitative sense. These are, any dimensionally defined category of objects S, and any of its subsets R. R, in essence, is a representation of S, or, in other words, conveys representational (and hence, conceptual) information about S. Vigo then defines the amount of information that R conveys about S as the rate of change in the complexity of S whenever the objects in R are removed from S. Under "Vigo information", pattern, invariance, complexity, representation, and information – five fundamental constructs of universal science – are unified under a novel mathematical framework. Among other things, the framework aims to overcome the limitations of Shannon-Weaver information when attempting to characterize and measure subjective information.

As an influence that leads to transformation

Information is any type of pattern that influences the formation or transformation of other patterns. In this sense, there is no need for a conscious mind to perceive, much less appreciate, the pattern. Consider, for example, DNA. The sequence of nucleotides is a pattern that influences the formation and development of an organism without any need for a conscious mind. One might argue though that for a human to consciously define a pattern, for example a nucleotide, naturally involves conscious information processing. However, the existence of unicellular and multicellular organisms, with the complex biochemistry that leads, among other events, to the existence of enzymes and polynucleotides that interact maintaining the biological order and participating in the development of multicellular organisms, precedes by millions of years the emergence of human consciousness and the creation of the scientific culture that produced the chemical nomenclature.

Systems theory at times seems to refer to information in this sense, assuming information does not necessarily involve any conscious mind, and patterns circulating (due to feedback) in the system can be called information. In other words, it can be said that information in this sense is something potentially perceived as representation, though not created or presented for that purpose. For example, Gregory Bateson defines "information" as a "difference that makes a difference".

If, however, the premise of "influence" implies that information has been perceived by a conscious mind and also interpreted by it, the specific context associated with this interpretation may cause the transformation of the information into knowledge. Complex definitions of both "information" and "knowledge" make such semantic and logical analysis difficult, but the condition of "transformation" is an important point in the study of information as it relates to knowledge, especially in the business discipline of knowledge management. In this practice, tools and processes are used to assist a knowledge worker in performing research and making decisions, including steps such as:

  • Review information to effectively derive value and meaning
  • Reference metadata if available
  • Establish relevant context, often from many possible contexts
  • Derive new knowledge from the information
  • Make decisions or recommendations from the resulting knowledge

Stewart (2001) argues that transformation of information into knowledge is critical, lying at the core of value creation and competitive advantage for the modern enterprise.

In a biological framework, Mizraji has described information as an entity emerging from the interaction of patterns with receptor systems (eg: in molecular or neural receptors capable of interacting with specific patterns, information emerges from those interactions). In addition, he has incorporated the idea of "information catalysts", structures where emerging information promotes the transition from pattern recognition to goal-directed action (for example, the specific transformation of a substrate into a product by an enzyme, or auditory reception of words and the production of an oral response)

The Danish Dictionary of Information Terms argues that information only provides an answer to a posed question. Whether the answer provides knowledge depends on the informed person. So a generalized definition of the concept should be: "Information" = An answer to a specific question".

When Marshall McLuhan speaks of media and their effects on human cultures, he refers to the structure of artifacts that in turn shape our behaviors and mindsets. Also, pheromones are often said to be "information" in this sense.

Technologically mediated information

Further information: Information Age

These sections are using measurements of data rather than information, as information cannot be directly measured.

As of 2007

It is estimated that the world's technological capacity to store information grew from 2.6 (optimally compressed) exabytes in 1986 – which is the informational equivalent to less than one 730-MB CD-ROM per person (539 MB per person) – to 295 (optimally compressed) exabytes in 2007. This is the informational equivalent of almost 61 CD-ROM per person in 2007.

The world's combined technological capacity to receive information through one-way broadcast networks was the informational equivalent of 174 newspapers per person per day in 2007.

The world's combined effective capacity to exchange information through two-way telecommunication networks was the informational equivalent of 6 newspapers per person per day in 2007.

As of 2007, an estimated 90% of all new information is digital, mostly stored on hard drives.

As of 2020

The total amount of data created, captured, copied, and consumed globally is forecast to increase rapidly, reaching 64.2 zettabytes in 2020. Over the next five years up to 2025, global data creation is projected to grow to more than 180 zettabytes.

As records

Part of a series on
Library and information science
HistoriesLibraries - Information
FocusArchives management - Collections management (Preservation) - Data management - Information management (cataloguing) - Knowledge management - Library management
CurationData - Metadata - Information - Documents - Artefacts - Knowledge
Interdisciplinary fieldsArchival science - Communication studies - Computer science - Data science - Documentation science - Epistemology - Library science - Information science - Science and technology studies
AreasAcademic - Archival - Legal - Health - Private - Public - School - Special

Records are specialized forms of information. Essentially, records are information produced consciously or as by-products of business activities or transactions and retained because of their value. Primarily, their value is as evidence of the activities of the organization but they may also be retained for their informational value. Sound records management ensures that the integrity of records is preserved for as long as they are required.

The international standard on records management, ISO 15489, defines records as "information created, received, and maintained as evidence and information by an organization or person, in pursuance of legal obligations or in the transaction of business". The International Committee on Archives (ICA) Committee on electronic records defined a record as, "recorded information produced or received in the initiation, conduct or completion of an institutional or individual activity and that comprises content, context and structure sufficient to provide evidence of the activity".

Records may be maintained to retain corporate memory of the organization or to meet legal, fiscal or accountability requirements imposed on the organization. Willis expressed the view that sound management of business records and information delivered "...six key requirements for good corporate governance...transparency; accountability; due process; compliance; meeting statutory and common law requirements; and security of personal and corporate information."

Semiotics

Michael Buckland has classified "information" in terms of its uses: "information as process", "information as knowledge", and "information as thing".

Beynon-Davies explains the multi-faceted concept of information in terms of signs and signal-sign systems. Signs themselves can be considered in terms of four inter-dependent levels, layers or branches of semiotics: pragmatics, semantics, syntax, and empirics. These four layers serve to connect the social world on the one hand with the physical or technical world on the other.

Pragmatics is concerned with the purpose of communication. Pragmatics links the issue of signs with the context within which signs are used. The focus of pragmatics is on the intentions of living agents underlying communicative behaviour. In other words, pragmatics link language to action.

Semantics is concerned with the meaning of a message conveyed in a communicative act. Semantics considers the content of communication. Semantics is the study of the meaning of signs – the association between signs and behaviour. Semantics can be considered as the study of the link between symbols and their referents or concepts – particularly the way that signs relate to human behavior.

Syntax is concerned with the formalism used to represent a message. Syntax as an area studies the form of communication in terms of the logic and grammar of sign systems. Syntax is devoted to the study of the form rather than the content of signs and sign systems.

Nielsen (2008) discusses the relationship between semiotics and information in relation to dictionaries. He introduces the concept of lexicographic information costs and refers to the effort a user of a dictionary must make to first find, and then understand data so that they can generate information.

Communication normally exists within the context of some social situation. The social situation sets the context for the intentions conveyed (pragmatics) and the form of communication. In a communicative situation intentions are expressed through messages that comprise collections of inter-related signs taken from a language mutually understood by the agents involved in the communication. Mutual understanding implies that agents involved understand the chosen language in terms of its agreed syntax and semantics. The sender codes the message in the language and sends the message as signals along some communication channel (empirics). The chosen communication channel has inherent properties that determine outcomes such as the speed at which communication can take place, and over what distance.

Physics and determinacy

The existence of information about a closed system is a major concept in both classical physics and quantum mechanics, encompassing the ability, real or theoretical, of an agent to predict the future state of a system based on knowledge gathered during its past and present. Determinism is a philosophical theory holding that causal determination can predict all future events, positing a fully predictable universe described by classical physicist Pierre-Simon Laplace as "the effect of its past and the cause of its future".

Quantum physics instead encodes information as a wave function, which prevents observers from directly identifying all of its possible measurements. Prior to the publication of Bell's theorem, determinists reconciled with this behavior using hidden variable theories, which argued that the information necessary to predict the future of a function must exist, even if it is not accessible for humans; A view surmised by Albert Einstein with the assertion that "God does not play dice".

Modern astronomy cites the mechanical sense of information in the black hole information paradox, positing that, because the complete evaporation of a black hole into Hawking radiation leaves nothing except an expanding cloud of homogeneous particles, this results in the irrecoverability of any information about the matter to have originally crossed the event horizon, violating both classical and quantum assertions against the ability to destroy information.

The application of information study

The information cycle (addressed as a whole or in its distinct components) is of great concern to information technology, information systems, as well as information science. These fields deal with those processes and techniques pertaining to information capture (through sensors) and generation (through computation, formulation or composition), processing (including encoding, encryption, compression, packaging), transmission (including all telecommunication methods), presentation (including visualization / display methods), storage (such as magnetic or optical, including holographic methods), etc.

Information visualization (shortened as InfoVis) depends on the computation and digital representation of data, and assists users in pattern recognition and anomaly detection.

  • Partial map of the Internet, with nodes representing IP addresses Partial map of the Internet, with nodes representing IP addresses
  • Galactic (including dark) matter distribution in a cubic section of the Universe Galactic (including dark) matter distribution in a cubic section of the Universe
  • Information embedded in an abstract mathematical object with symmetry symmetry-breaking nucleus Information embedded in an abstract mathematical object with symmetry symmetry-breaking nucleus
  • Visual representation of a strange attractor, with converted data of its fractal structure Visual representation of a strange attractor, with converted data of its fractal structure

Information security (shortened as InfoSec) is the ongoing process of exercising due diligence to protect information, and information systems, from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, destruction, modification, disruption or distribution, through algorithms and procedures focused on monitoring and detection, as well as incident response and repair.

Information analysis is the process of inspecting, transforming, and modeling information, by converting raw data into actionable knowledge, in support of the decision-making process.

Information quality (shortened as InfoQ) is the potential of a dataset to achieve a specific (scientific or practical) goal using a given empirical analysis method.

Information communication represents the convergence of informatics, telecommunication and audio-visual media & content.

See also

References

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