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'{{Distinguish|Information theory|Informing science}} {{Information science}} [[File:ancientlibraryalex.jpg|thumb|262px| The [[Ancient Library of Alexandria]], an early form of [[information retrieval|information storage and retrieval]].]] '''Information science''' (or '''information studies''') is an [[Interdisciplinarity|interdisciplinary]] field primarily concerned with the analysis, collection, [[Categorization|classification]], manipulation, storage, [[information retrieval|retrieval]] and dissemination of [[information]].<ref>Merriam-Webster and American Heritage Dictionary.</ref> Practitioners within the field study the application and usage of knowledge in [[organization]]s, along with the interaction between people, organizations and any existing [[information system]]s, with the aim of creating, replacing, improving or understanding information systems. Information science is often (mistakenly) considered a branch of [[computer science]]. However, it is actually a broad, interdisciplinary field, incorporating not only aspects of computer science, but often diverse fields such as [[archival science]], [[cognitive science]], [[commerce]], [[communications]], [[law]], [[library science]], [[museology]], [[management]], [[mathematics]], [[philosophy]], [[Policy|public policy]], and the [[social sciences]]. Information science should not be confused with [[information theory]]. Information theory is the study of a particular mathematical concept of information, or with [[library science]], a field related to [[libraries]] which uses some of the principles of information science. == Foundations == === Scope and approach === Information science focuses on understanding [[problem solving|problems]] from the perspective of the stakeholders involved and then applying information and other technologies as needed. In other words, it tackles systemic problems first rather than individual pieces of [[technology]] within that system. In this respect, information science can be seen as a response to [[technological determinism]], the belief that technology "develops by its own laws, that it realizes its own potential, limited only by the material resources available and the creativity of its developers. It must therefore be regarded as an autonomous system controlling and ultimately permeating all other subsystems of society."<ref>{{cite web|author=|url=http://pespmc1.vub.ac.be/ASC/Techno_deter.html |title=Web Dictionary of Cybernetics and Systems: Technological Determinism|publisher=Principia Cibernetica Web |date= |accessdate=2011-11-28}}</ref> Many universities have entire colleges, departments or schools devoted to the study of information science, while numerous information science scholars can be found in disciplines such as [[communication]], [[computer science]], [[law]], [[library science]], and [[sociology]]. Several institutions have formed an I-School Caucus (see ''[[List of I-Schools]]''), but there are numerous others besides these with comprehensive information foci. Within information science, attention has been given in recent years to [[human–computer interaction]], [[groupware]], the [[semantic web]], value sensitive design, [[iterative design]] processes and to the ways people generate, use and find information. ===Definitions of information science=== An early definition of Information science (going back to 1968, the year when ''American Documentation Institute'' shifted name to ''American Society for Information Science and Technology'') is: :“Information science is that discipline that investigates the properties and behavior of information, the forces governing the flow of information, and the means of processing information for optimum accessibility and usability. :It is concerned with that body of knowledge relating to the origination, collection, organization, storage, retrieval, interpretation, transmission, transformation, and utilization of information. This includes the investigation of information representations in both natural and artificial systems, the use of codes for efficient message transmission, and the study of information processing devices and techniques such as computers and their programming systems. It is an interdisciplinary science derived from and related to such fields as mathematics, logic, linguistics, psychology, computer technology, operations research, the graphic arts, communications, library science, management, and other similar fields. It has both a pure science component, which inquires into the subject without regard to its application, and an applied science component, which develops services and products” (Borko, 1968, p.3).<ref>Borko, H. (1968). Information science: What is it? American Documentation, 19(1), 3¬5.</ref> Some authors treat [[Informatics (academic field)|informatics]] as a synonym for ''information science'', especially related to the concept developed by [[Alexander Ivanovich Mikhailov|A. I. Mikhailov]] and other Soviet authors in the mid sixties, which suggested that informatics is a discipline related to the study of Scientific Information.<ref>Mikhailov, A.I., Chernyl, A.I., and Gilyarevskii, R.S. (1966) "Informatika – novoe nazvanie teorii naučnoj informacii." Naučno tehničeskaja informacija, 12, pp. 35–39.</ref> Because of the rapidly evolving, [[interdisciplinarity|interdisciplinary]] nature of informatics, a precise meaning of the term "informatics" is presently difficult to pin down. Regional differences and international terminology complicate the problem. Some people note that much of what is called "Informatics" today was once called "Information Science" at least in fields such as Medical Informatics. For example, when library scientists began also to use the phrase "Information Science" to refer to their work, the term informatics emerged: * in the United States as a response by computer scientists to distinguish their work from that of library science, and * in Britain as a term for a science of information that studies natural, as well as artificial or engineered, information-processing systems. There are considerable differences between what is considered a subfield of information science and what is not (or what belongs to one information science and what belongs to another. [[Brian Campbell Vickery]]'s ''Information Systems'' (1973) places information systems within IS. Ellis, Allen, & Wilson (1999) is, on the other hand a bibliometric investigation describing the relation between two '''different''' fields: "Information science" and "information systems". ====A multitude of information sciences?==== Michael Buckland's 2011 article ''What Kind of Science Can Information Science Be?'' is written from the perspective of [[Library and information science]], but nonetheless acknowledges that "other important fields [...] have also used the name “information science.” One is computer science, concerned with the theory and application of algorithms. Another, concerned with entropy, probability, Shannon-Weaver [[information theory]], physical patterns (in-form-ing), and related topics, is sometimes referred to as the “physics of information.” Also, the word information is, of course, used in information technology (IT, also ICT, for information and communication technologies), but largely restricted in practice to the use of electronics for communication and computation. These other areas are not considered here. Instead, we are concerned with those areas generally understood as being within the scope of library and information science (LIS) and the interests of the [[American Society for Information Science and Technology]]." ===Philosophy of information=== {{Main|Philosophy of information}} Philosophy of information (PI) studies conceptual issues arising at the intersection of [[computer science]], [[information technology]], and [[philosophy]]. It includes the investigation of the conceptual nature and basic principles of [[information]], including its dynamics, utilisation and sciences, as well as the elaboration and application of information-theoretic and computational methodologies to its philosophical problems.<ref>Luciano Floridi, [http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/pci/downloads/introduction.pdf "What is the Philosophy of Information?"], ''Metaphilosophy'', 2002, (33), 1/2.</ref> === Ontology === {{Main|Ontology (information science)}} In computer science and information science, an ontology formally represents knowledge as a set of concepts within a [[Domain of discourse|domain]], and the relationships between those concepts. It can be used to [[Reasoning|reason]] about the entities within that domain and may be used to describe the domain. More specifically, an ontology is a model for describing the world that consists of a set of types, properties, and relationship types. Exactly what is provided around these varies, but they are the essentials of an ontology. There is also generally an expectation that there be a close resemblance between the real world and the features of the model in an ontology.<ref>{{cite web |first=L. M. |last=Garshol |year=2004 |url=http://www.ontopia.net/topicmaps/materials/tm-vs-thesauri.html#N773 |title=Metadata? Thesauri? Taxonomies? Topic Maps! Making sense of it all'' |accessdate=13 October 2008 }}</ref> In theory, an ontology is a "formal, explicit specification of a shared conceptualisation".<ref name="TRG93">{{cite journal |first=Thomas R. |last=Gruber |authorlink=Tom Gruber |month=June |year=1993 |url=http://tomgruber.org/writing/ontolingua-kaj-1993.pdf |format=PDF |title=A translation approach to portable ontology specifications |journal=[[Knowledge Acquisition]] |volume=5 |issue=2 |pages=199–220 |doi=10.1006/knac.1993.1008}}</ref> An ontology renders shared [[vocabulary]] and [[taxonomy]] which models a domain with the definition of objects and/or concepts and their properties and relations.<ref>{{cite web |first1=F. |last1=Arvidsson |first2=A. |last2=Flycht-Eriksson |url=http://www.ida.liu.se/~janma/SemWeb/Slides/ontologies1.pdf |title=Ontologies I |format=PDF |accessdate=26 November 2008}}</ref> Ontologies are the structural frameworks for organizing information and are used in [[artificial intelligence]], the [[Semantic Web]], [[systems engineering]], [[software engineering]], [[biomedical informatics]], [[library science]], [[enterprise bookmarking]], and [[information architecture]] as a form of [[knowledge representation]] about the world or some part of it. The creation of domain ontologies is also fundamental to the definition and use of an [[enterprise architecture framework]]. == Careers == === Information scientist === {{Main|Information scientist}} An information scientist is an individual, usually with a relevant subject degree or high level of subject knowledge, providing focused information to scientific and technical research staff in industry, a role quite distinct from and complementary to that of a librarian. The title also applies to an individual carrying out research in information science. === Information professional === {{Main|Information professional}} An information professional is an individual who preserves, organizes, and disseminates information. Information professionals are skilled in the organization and retrieval of recorded knowledge. Traditionally, their work has been with print materials, but these skills are being increasingly used with electronic, visual, audio, and digital materials. Information professionals work in a variety of public, private, non-profit, and academic institutions. ==History== (See also [[Information history]]) ===Early beginnings=== [[File:Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz]], a German polymath who wrote primarily in Latin and French. His fields of study were Metaphysics, Mathematics, Theodicy.]] Information science, in studying the collection, [[Categorization|classification]], manipulation, storage, [[information retrieval|retrieval]] and dissemination of [[information]] has origins in the common stock of human knowledge. Information analysis has been carried out by scholars at least as early as the time of the [[Abyssinian Empire]] with the emergence of cultural depositories, what is today known as libraries and archives.<ref>Clark, John Willis. ''The Care Of Books: An Essay On The Development Of Libraries And Their Fittings, From The Earliest Times To The End Of The Eighteenth Century.'' Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1901</ref> Institutionally, information science emerged in the 19th century along with many other social science disciplines. As a science, however, it finds its institutional roots in the [[history of science]], beginning with publication of the first issues of ''[[Philosophical Transactions]],'' generally considered the first scientific journal, in 1665 by the Royal Society (London). The institutionalization of science occurred throughout the 18th Century. In 1731, [[Benjamin Franklin]] established the [[Library Company of Philadelphia]], the first library owned by a group of public citizens, which quickly expanded beyond the realm of books and became a center of scientific experiment, and which hosted public exhibitions of scientific experiments.<ref>Korty, Margaret Barton. "Benjamin Franklin and Eighteenth Century American Libraries." ''Transactions of the American Philosophical Society'' December vol. 55.9 (1965)</ref> Benjamin Franklin invested a town in Massachusetts with a collection of books that the town voted to make available to all free of charge, forming the first Public Library.<ref>{{cite web|author=|url=http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_Library/libraryhistory |title=Town of Franklin - History of the Franklin Public Library |publisher=Franklinma.virtualtownhall.net |date=2010-06-29 |accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref> Academie de Chirurgia ([[Paris]]) published ''Memoires pour les Chirurgiens'', generally considered to be the first medical journal, in 1736. The [[American Philosophical Society]], patterned on the [[Royal Society]] ([[London]]), was founded in Philadelphia in 1743. As numerous other scientific journals and societies were founded, [[Alois Senefelder]] developed the concept of lithography for use in mass printing work in [[Germany]] in 1796. ===19th century=== [[File:Joseph Marie Jacquard.jpg|thumb|left|150px|[[Joseph Marie Jacquard]]]] By the 19th Century the first signs of information science emerged as separate and distinct from other sciences and social sciences but in conjunction with communication and computation. In 1801, [[Joseph Marie Jacquard]] invented a punched card system to control operations of the cloth weaving loom in France. It was the first use of "memory storage of patterns" system.<ref>Reichman, F. (1961). Notched Cards. In R. Shaw (Ed.), The state of the library art (Volume 4, Part 1, pp. 11–55). New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers, The State University, Graduate School of Library Service</ref> As chemistry journals emerged throughout the 1820s and 1830s,<ref name="autogenerated2">Emard, J. P. (1976). An information science chronology in perspective. Bulletin of the American Society for Information Science , 2(8), 51–56</ref> [[Charles Babbage]] developed his "difference engine," the first step towards the modern computer, in 1822 and his "analytical engine” by 1834. By 1843 [[Richard Hoe]] developed the rotary press, and in 1844 [[Samuel Morse]] sent the first public telegraph message. By 1848 William F. Poole begins the ''Index to Periodical Literature,'' the first general periodical literature index in the US. In 1854 [[George Boole]] published ''An Investigation into Laws of Thought...,'' which lays the foundations for [[Boolean algebra (logic)|Boolean algebra]], which is later used in [[information retrieval]].<ref>Smith, E. S. (1993). On the shoulders of giants: From Boole to Shannon to Taube: The origins and development of computerized information from the mid-19th century to the present. Information Technology and Libraries , 12(2), 217–226</ref> In 1860 a congress was held at Karlsruhe Technische Hochschule to discuss the feasibility of establishing a systematic and rational nomenclature for chemistry. The congress did not reach any conclusive results, but several key participants returned home with [[Stanislao Cannizzaro]]'s outline (1858), which ultimately convinces them of the validity of his scheme for calculating atomic weights.<ref>Skolnik, H. (1976). Milestones in chemical information science: Award symposium on contributions of the Division of Chemical Literature (Information) to the Chemical Society. Journal of Chemical Information and Computer Science , 16(4), 187–193</ref> By 1865, the [[Smithsonian Institution]] began a catalog of current scientific papers, which became the ''[[International Catalogue of Scientific Papers]]'' in 1902.<ref>Adkinson, B. W. (1976). Federal government’s support of information activities: A historical sketch. Bulletin of the American Society for Information Science, 2(8), 24–26</ref> The following year the Royal Society began publication of its ''Catalogue of Papers'' in London. In 1868, Christopher Sholes, Carlos Glidden, and S. W. Soule produced the [[Sholes and Glidden typewriter|first practical typewriter]]. By 1872 Lord Kelvin devised an analogue computer to predict the tides, and by 1875 [[Frank Stephen Baldwin]] was granted the first US patent for a practical calculating machine that performs four arithmetic functions.<ref name="autogenerated2" /> [[Alexander Graham Bell]] and [[Thomas Edison]] invented the telephone and phonograph in 1876 and 1877 respectively, and the [[American Library Association]] was founded in Philadelphia. In 1879 ''Index Medicus'' was first issued by the Library of the Surgeon General, U.S. Army, with [[John Shaw Billings]] as librarian, and later the library issues ''Index Catalogue,'' which achieved an international reputation as the most complete catalog of medical literature.<ref>Schullian, D. M., & Rogers, F. B. (1958). The National Library of Medicine. I. Library Quarterly, 28(1), 1–17</ref> ===European documentation=== <!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:otlet.jpg|thumb|160px|[[Paul Otlet]], a founder of modern information science, also known as "Documentation"]] --> The discipline of ''[[documentation science]]'', which marks the earliest theoretical foundations of modern information science, emerged in the late part of the 19th Century in Europe together with several more scientific indexes whose purpose was to organize scholarly literature. Many information science historians cite [[Paul Otlet]] and [[Henri La Fontaine]] as the fathers of information science with the founding of the International Institute of Bibliography (IIB) in 1895.<ref>Rayward, W. B. (1994). International federation for information and documentation. In W. A. Wiegand, & D. G. David Jr. (Eds.), The encyclopedia of library history (pp. 290–294). New York: Garland Publishing, Inc.</ref> A second generation of European Documentalists emerged after the [[Second World War]], most notably [[Suzanne Briet]]. However, "information science" as a term is not popularly used in academia until sometime in the latter part of the 20th Century.<ref>Day, Ronald. ''Modern Invention of Information''. Carbondale, Il.: Southern Illinois University Press, 2001: 7</ref> Documentalists emphasized the utilitarian integration of technology and technique toward specific social goals. According to Ronald Day, "As an organized system of techniques and technologies, documentation was understood as a player in the historical development of global organization in modernity – indeed, a major player inasmuch as that organization was dependent on the organization and transmission of information."<ref>Day, Ronald. ''Modern Invention of Information.'' Carbondale, Il.: Southern Illinois University Press, 2001: 7</ref> Otlet and Lafontaine (who won the [[Nobel Prize]] in 1913) not only envisioned later technical innovations but also projected a global vision for information and [[information technologies]] that speaks directly to postwar visions of a global "information society." Otlet and Lafontaine established numerous organizations dedicated to standardization, bibliography, international associations, and consequently, international cooperation. These organizations were fundamental for ensuring international production in commerce, information, communication and modern economic development, and they later found their global form in such institutions as the [[League of Nations]] and the [[United Nations]]. Otlet designed the [[Universal Decimal Classification]], based on [[Melville Dewey]]’s decimal classification system.<ref name="autogenerated1">Day, Ronald. ''Modern Invention of Information.'' Carbondale, Il.: Southern Illinois University Press, 2001:</ref> Although he lived decades before computers and networks emerged, what he discussed prefigured what ultimately became the [[World Wide Web]]. His vision of a great network of [[knowledge]] focused on [[document]]s and included the notions of [[hyperlink]]s, [[Search engine (computing)|search engines]], remote access, and [[social network]]s. Otlet not only imagined that all the world's knowledge should be interlinked and made available remotely to anyone, but he also proceeded to build a structured document collection. This collection involved standardized paper sheets and cards filed in custom-designed cabinets according to a hierarchical index (which culled information worldwide from diverse sources) and a commercial information retrieval service (which answered written requests by copying relevant information from index cards). Users of this service were even warned if their query was likely to produce more than 50 results per search.<ref name="autogenerated1" /> By 1937 documentation had formally been institutionalized, as evidenced by the founding of the American Documentation Institute (ADI), later called the [[American Society for Information Science and Technology]]. ===Transition to modern information science=== [[File:Vannevar Bush portrait.jpg|thumb|250px|[[Vannevar Bush]], a famous information scientist, ca. 1940–1944]] With the 1950s came increasing awareness of the potential of automatic devices for literature searching and information storage and retrieval. As these concepts grew in magnitude and potential, so did the variety of information science interests. By the 1960s and 70s, there was a move from batch processing to online modes, from mainframe to mini and microcomputers. Additionally, traditional boundaries among disciplines began to fade and many information science scholars joined with library programs. They further made themselves multidisciplinary by incorporating disciplines in the sciences, humanities and social sciences, as well as other professional programs, such as [[law]] and [[medicine]] in their curriculum. By the 1980s, large databases, such as [[Grateful Med]] at the [[United States National Library of Medicine|National Library of Medicine]], and user-oriented services such as [[Dialog (online database)|Dialog]] and [[Compuserve]], were for the first time accessible by individuals from their personal computers. The 1980s also saw the emergence of numerous [[special interest groups]] to respond to the changes. By the end of the decade, special interest groups were available involving non-print media, social sciences, energy and the environment, and community information systems. Today, information science largely examines technical bases, social consequences, and theoretical understanding of online databases, widespread use of databases in government, industry, and education, and the development of the Internet and World Wide Web.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.asis.org/history.html |title=ASIST History |publisher=Asis.org |date=1968-01-01 |accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref> <!-- Please do not remove or change this Copyvio message until the issue is settled --> {{Nobots}} {{Copyviocore |url=http://www.capurro.de/tampere91.htm http://books.google.be/books?id=K2Zo8wAymHAC&pg=PA79&lpg=PA79#v=onepage&q&f=false |month = December |day = 20 |year = 2012 |time = 22:48 |timestamp = 20121220224809}} <!-- Do not use the "Copyviocore" template directly; the above line is generated by "subst:Copyvio|url" --> '''THREE LEADING PARADIGMS OF INFORMATION SCIENCE''' Looking at its mediating perspectives information science has three basic paradigms. • THE REPRESENTATION PARADIGM • THE SOURCE-CHANNEL-RECEIVER PARADIGM • THE PLATONIST PARADIGM '''1. THE REPRESENTATION PARADIGM''' Human Being are knowers or observers of an outside reality. The process of knowledge consists of an assimilation of things through their representations in the mind/brain of the knowing subject. These representations, once processed or codified in our brain, can then be communicated to other minds and/or stored and processed in machines (computers). Human beings are biological information processors. '''2. THE SOURCE-CHANNEL-RECEIVER PARADIGM''' It takes the phenomenon of human communication as a metaphor to be applied to different levels of reality. When they communicate, human beings, or other kinds of sources and receivers, are said to exchange information. In order for the receiver to understand the meaning of the message sent by the source, a common stock of signs has to exist. But the exchange of information can be considered only in relationship to the structure of the message. At the same time, receivers are seekers or users of information in order to solve their problems. '''3. THE PLATONIST PARADIGM''' It looks for something to be considered as information in itself. This is the sphere of human knowledge not as a biological, psychological or sociological process but as objectivized in non-human carriers. We can call it, paradoxically, materialistic Platonism. The idealistic version of this paradigm considers knowledge as something objective in itself, independently of any material carrier. '''The six models of Information Science are:''' • THE HI-TECH MODEL. Information science is the study of the mediating aspects of D-I-K-M phenomena as they are implemented in the hi-tech domain. • THE TECHNOLOGY MODEL. Information science is the study of the mediating aspects of D-I-K-M phenomena as they are implemented in all types of technologies. • THE CULTURE MODEL. Information science is the study of the mediating aspects of D-I-K-M phenomena as they are implemented in the cultural domain. • THE HUMAN WORLD MODEL. Information science is the study of all the aspects of D-I-K-M phenomena as they are implemented in the human realm. • THE LIVING WORLD MODEL. Information science is the study of all the aspects of D-I-K-M phenomena as they are implemented in the living world, human and non-human. </div> == Research vectors and applications == The following areas are some of those that information science investigates and develops. ===Information access=== {{Main|Information access}} Information access is an area of research at the intersection of [[Informatics (academic field)|informatics]], [[Information Science]], [[Information Security]], [[Language Technology]], [[Computer Science]], and [[library science]]. The objectives of information access research are to automate the processing of large and unwieldy amounts of information and to simplify users' access to it. Applicable technologies include [[information retrieval]], [[text mining]], [[machine translation]], and [[text categorisation]]. ===Information architecture=== {{Main|Information architecture}} Information architecture (IA) is the art and science of organizing and labelling [[website]]s, [[intranet]]s, [[online communities]] and software to support usability.<ref>‘What is IA?’ Information Architecture Institute. [http://www.iainstitute.org/documents/learn/What_is_IA.pdf IAinstitute.org]</ref> It is an emerging discipline and ''community of practice'' focused on bringing together principles of [[design]] and [[architecture]] to the ''digital landscape''.<ref>{{cite book | last1 = Morville | first1 = Peter | last2 = Rosenfeld | first2 = Louis | title = Information Architecture for the World Wide Web | publisher = O'Reilly Media, Inc | year = 2006 | accessdate = 2012-05-01 | isbn = 978-0-596-52734-1}}</ref> Typically it involves a [[Scientific modelling|model]] or [[concept]] of [[information]] which is used and applied to activities that require explicit details of complex [[information system]]s. These activities include [[library]] systems and [[database]] development. ===Information management=== {{Main|Information management}} Information management (IM) is the collection and management of information from one or more sources and the distribution of that information to one or more audiences. This sometimes involves those who have a stake in, or a right to that information. Management means the organization of and control over the structure, processing and delivery of information. Throughout the 1970s this was largely limited to files, file maintenance, and the life cycle management of paper-based files, other media and records. With the proliferation of information technology starting in the 1970s, the job of information management took on a new light, and also began to include the field of data maintenance. ===Information retrieval=== {{Main|Information retrieval}} Information retrieval (IR) is the area of study concerned with searching for documents, for [[information]] within documents, and for [[Metadata (computing)|metadata]] about documents, as well as that of searching [[structured storage]], [[relational database]]s, and the [[World Wide Web]]. Automated information retrieval systems are used to reduce what has been called "[[information overload]]". Many universities and [[public library|public libraries]] use IR systems to provide access to books, journals and other documents. [[Web search engine]]s are the most visible [[Information retrieval applications|IR applications]]. An information retrieval process begins when a user enters a [[query string|query]] into the system. Queries are formal statements of [[information need]]s, for example search strings in web search engines. In information retrieval a query does not uniquely identify a single object in the collection. Instead, several objects may match the query, perhaps with different degrees of [[relevance|relevancy]]. An object is an entity that is represented by information in a [[database]]. User queries are matched against the database information. Depending on the [[Information retrieval applications|application]] the data objects may be, for example, text documents, images,<ref name=goodron2000>{{cite journal |first=Abby A. |last=Goodrum |title=Image Information Retrieval: An Overview of Current Research |journal=Informing Science |volume=3 |year=2000 |issue=2 }}</ref> audio,<ref name=Foote99>{{cite journal |first=Jonathan |last=Foote |title=An overview of audio information retrieval |journal=Multimedia Systems |year=1999 |publisher=Springer |doi=10.1007/s005300050106 |volume=7 |pages=2 }}</ref> [[mind maps]]<ref name=Beel2009>{{cite document |first=Jöran |last=Beel |first2=Bela |last2=Gipp |first3=Jan-Olaf |last3=Stiller |contribution=Information Retrieval On Mind Maps - What Could It Be Good For? |contribution-url=http://www.sciplore.org/publications_en.php |title=Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Collaborative Computing: Networking, Applications and Worksharing (CollaborateCom'09) |year=2009 |publisher=IEEE |place=Washington, DC }}</ref> or videos. Often the documents themselves are not kept or stored directly in the IR system, but are instead represented in the system by document surrogates or metadata. Most IR systems compute a numeric score on how well each object in the database match the query, and rank the objects according to this value. The top ranking objects are then shown to the user. The process may then be iterated if the user wishes to refine the query.<ref name="Frakes1992">{{cite book |last=Frakes |first=William B. |title=Information Retrieval Data Structures & Algorithms |publisher=Prentice-Hall, Inc. |year=1992 |isbn=0-13-463837-9 |url=http://www.scribd.com/doc/13742235/Information-Retrieval-Data-Structures-Algorithms-William-B-Frakes }}</ref> ====Information seeking==== {{Main|Information seeking}} Information seeking is the process or activity of attempting to obtain information in both human and technological contexts. Information seeking is related to, but different from, information retrieval (IR). Much library and information science (LIS) research has focused on the information-seeking practices of practitioners within various fields of professional work. Studies have been carried out into the information-seeking behaviors of librarians,<ref>Brown, C. M., & Ortega, L. (2007). Information seeking behaviour of physical science librarians: Does research inform practice. College & Research Libraries, 66(3), 231–247. http://crl.acrl.org/content/66/3/231.short</ref> academics,<ref>Hemminger, B. M., Lu, D., Vaughan, K. T. L., & Adams, S. J. (2007). Information seeking behaviour of academic scientists. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 58(14), 2205–2225. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/asi.20686</ref> medical professionals,<ref>Davies, K., & Harrison, J. (2007). The information-seeking behaviour of doctors: A review of the evidence. Health Information & Libraries Journal 2007, 2, 78–94. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-1842.2007.00713.x</ref> engineers<ref>Robinson, M. A. (2010). An empirical analysis of engineers’ information behaviors. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 61(4), 640–658. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/asi.21290</ref> and lawyers<ref>Kuhlthau, C. C., & Tama, S. L. (2001). Information search process of lawyers: A call for ‘just for me’ information services. Journal of Documentation, 57(1), 25–43 http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/EUM0000000007076</ref> (among others). Much of this research has drawn on the work done by Leckie, Pettigrew (now Fisher) and Sylvain, who in 1996 conducted an extensive review of the LIS literature (as well as the literature of other academic fields) on professionals' information seeking. The authors proposed an analytic model of professionals' information seeking behaviour, intended to be generalizable across the professions, thus providing a platform for future research in the area. The model was intended to "prompt new insights... and give rise to more refined and applicable theories of information seeking" (1996, p.&nbsp;188). The model has been adapted by Wilkinson (2001) who proposes a model of the information seeking of lawyers. ===Information society=== {{Main|Information society}} An information society is a [[society]] where the creation, distribution, diffusion, use, integration and manipulation of [[information]] is a significant economic, political, and cultural activity. The aim of an information society is to gain competitive advantage internationally, through using [[Information technology|IT]] in a creative and productive way. The [[knowledge economy]] is its economic counterpart, whereby wealth is created through the economic exploitation of understanding. People who have the means to partake in this form of society are sometimes called [[digital citizens]]. Basically, an information society is the means of getting information from one place to another (Wark, 1997, p.&nbsp;22). As technology has become more advanced over time so too has the way we have adapted in sharing this information with each other. Information society theory discusses the role of information and information technology in society, the question which key concepts shall be used for characterizing contemporary society, and how to define such concepts. It has become a specific branch of contemporary sociology. === Knowledge representation and reasoning === Knowledge representation (KR) is an area of [[artificial intelligence]] research aimed at representing knowledge in symbols to facilitate [[inference|inferencing]] from those [[knowledge]] elements, creating new elements of knowledge. The KR can be made to be independent of the underlying knowledge model or knowledge base system (KBS) such as a [[semantic network]].<ref name="martin" >[http://www.webkb.org/doc/papers/iccs02/iswc02.pdf "Knowledge representation in RDF/XML, KIF, Frame-CG and Formalized-English"], Philippe Martin, Distributed System Technology Centre, QLD, Australia, July 15–19, 2002</ref> Knowledge Representation (KR) research involves analysis of how to reason accurately and effectively and how best to use a set of symbols to represent a set of facts within a knowledge domain. A symbol vocabulary and a system of logic are combined to enable [[inference]]s about elements in the KR to create new KR sentences. Logic is used to supply formal [[semantics]] of how reasoning functions should be applied to the symbols in the KR system. Logic is also used to define how operators can process and reshape the knowledge. Examples of operators and operations include, negation, conjunction, adverbs, adjectives, quantifiers and modal operators. The logic is interpretation theory. These elements—symbols, operators, and interpretation theory—are what give sequences of symbols meaning within a KR. ==See also== {{Portal|Information science|University}} * [[Outline of information science]] * [[Outline of information technology]] * [[Outline of library science]] ==References== {{Reflist|30em}} Buckland, Michael (2011). What kind of science ''can'' information science be? Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, published as early view October 2011. Ellis, D., Allen, D. and Wilson, T. 1999. Information Science and Information Systems: Conjunct Subjects Disjunct Disciplines. JASIS 50(12):1095-1107 (see also: http://www.cais-acsi.ca/proceedings/2000/monarch_2000.pdf ) Vickery; B. C. (1973). Information Systems. London: Butterworth. ==Further reading== * {{cite book|title=Encyclopedia of Information Science and Technology|first=Mehdi|last=Khosrow-Pour|isbn=1-59140-553-X|publisher=Idea Group Reference|date=2005-03-22}} ==External links== {{Wiktionary}} {{Wikiversity}} * [http://scientistsinformation.blogspot.com/ Scientists Information] * [http://www.success.co.il/is/index.html Knowledge Map of Information Science] * [http://jis.sagepub.com/ Journal of Information Science] * [http://dlist.sir.arizona.edu/ Digital Library of Information Science and Technology open access archive for the Information Sciences] * [http://www.mesc.usgs.gov/ISB/Science.asp Current Information Science Research at U.S. Geological Survey] * [http://www.pitt.edu/~jimjim/syllabus.htm Introduction to Information Science] * [http://www.twu.edu/library/Nitecki/ The Nitecki Trilogy] * [http://www.gseis.ucla.edu/faculty/bates/articles/Berkeley.html Information science at the University of California at Berkeley in the 1960s: a memoir of student days] * [http://www.libsci.sc.edu/bob/istchron/ISCNET/ISCHRON.HTM Chronology of Information Science and Technology] * [http://libres.curtin.edu.au/ LIBRES - Library and Information Science Research Electronic Journal - Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Western Australia] {{Social sciences-footer}} [[Category:Information science| ]] [[af:Inligtingkunde]] [[ar:علم المعلومات]] [[ca:Documentació]] [[cs:Informační věda]] [[da:Informationsvidenskab]] [[de:Informationswissenschaft]] [[et:Infoteadus]] [[el:Πληροφορική]] [[es:Documentación]] [[fa:علوم اطلاع‌رسانی]] [[fr:Science de l'information]] [[ko:정보과학]] [[id:Ilmu informasi]] [[he:מידענות]] [[lt:Informologija]] [[hu:Információtudomány]] [[nl:Informatiekunde]] [[ja:情報学]] [[no:Informasjonsvitenskap]] [[pt:Ciência da informação]] [[sk:Informatika]] [[sl:Informatika]] [[sv:Informationsvetenskap]] [[th:วิทยาการสารสนเทศ]] [[tr:Bilgi bilimi]] [[vi:Khoa học thông tin]] [[zh:信息学]]'