Next: Introduction
A Discipline Independent
Definition of Information1
Robert M. Losee
Manning Hall, Room 100,
U. of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3360
Published in
J. of the American Society for Information Science
48 (3) 1997, 254-269.
(pdf of full article)
Abstract:
Information may be defined as
the characteristics of the
output of a process, these being
informative about the process and the input.
This discipline independent definition
may be applied to all domains, from physics
to epistemology.
Hierarchies of processes, linked
together, provide a communication channel
between each of the
corresponding functions and layers
in the hierarchies.
Models of communication (Shannon),
perception, observation, belief, and
knowledge are suggested that are
consistent with this conceptual
framework of information
as the value of the output of any process
in a hierarchy of processes.
Topics or definitions provided include
information,
value,
function,
argument,
process,
informative,
reversibility,
message,
channel,
inverse functions,
representation,
perception, belief, knowledge,
information loss,
perfect information,
incomplete information,
and
misinformation.
Bob Losee
1999-03-10