Figurative information is ... Features of the information

Information is one of the most important things that humanity has. It would be difficult to imagine our culture, and even the most people, if it were not. What is called information? What properties does it have? What types of it are divided? What do you mean by information processes? How is it perceived? The author will try to answer these and many other questions within the framework of the article.

What is called information: its types

By information is meant the meaning that is contained in the objects of the surrounding reality. It can be perceived as sound vibrations or reflections from the surfaces of objects. Based on the field of application, these levels of information are distinguished:

• Socio-political;
• Physiological;
• Socio-economic;
• Scientific and technical;
• Chemical and biological.

You can also divide into views, depending on its mode of presentation:

• Text information;
• Graphic;
• Character;
• Sound.

There is also a division into types of information, depending on its internal nature.

1. Constant (static) or variable (dynamic).
2. Input (primary), intermediate (derivative) and final (output).
3. Managing and informative.
4. Subjective and objective.

On the semantic load, there are different useful or useful information.

If there is a desire to understand the nuances with which information is provided, informatics will help to understand in more detail the relationships that exist between different data. In this case, it is best to get acquainted with cybernetics, which studies the possibilities of influencing information to achieve the desired result. And this article claims only to provide a theoretical basis.

Properties of information

When a person receives any data, he checks them according to the following parameters:

• Completeness;
• value;
• Reliability;
• relevance;
• clarity;
• Persuasiveness;
• Short.

Now let's look at how data is perceived from the environment.

Perception of information

It is not difficult to understand that five senses are used for this: hearing, sight, smell, taste and touch. And for the first two, about 90% of all data falls.

Information that can be perceived by a person in a written or spoken form is called a symbolic or symbolic one. So, if we consider the Russian language, then our text is formed from letters, numbers, dots, commas, brackets and similar notation. But these signs are considered not written, but sound. Linguists designate them as phonemes. From them words are formed, and then phrases. And this state of affairs is not strange, because at first there was a speech, and only then writing.

What is figurative information?

This is a specific type of data that can not be shifted to a specific sequence. That is, you can not imagine it as a text, a schema, or something like that.

Visual information is what does not need the presence of symbolic communication channels. For her, one amorphous enough. In other words, it does not have a specific physical carrier, a distinct structure and clear boundaries.

Figurative information is vibration, light and elements similar to them. So, the sun emits rays in all directions. It is a source of light, but not by it. In this case, it is impossible to represent the carrier. Of course, we know that there are such particles as photons, and they are light, but we can not display them in an understandable way as a notebook or printout of a text file.

Figurative information is an aspect that, in spite of the impossibility of ordinary expression, is extremely valuable. So, if a volcano wakes up and the earth trembles (or there is simply a high probability of such a process), although there are no specific prerequisites, everyone understands that it is better not to build a house in this place - the probability of destruction is very high.

What is iconic information?

Signed information refers to data that can be encoded by a certain sequence of symbols. They can be stated as text, formulas, schemes and so on. This is the so-called classical information, which is the object of cybernetics research and serves as the basis of modern information technology.

Data of this type is amenable to translating into a sequence of bits that can be transmitted over a communication channel. Further, there is a subsequent decoding and acquaintance with the content. As you can see, these features of information are manifested here, that it can be transmitted without loss or with a slight distortion of meaning.

Data transfer

Information between people can be transmitted through a letter or speech. All possible variants are called languages of communication. Signed form also refers to them. It is divided into the following types:

1. Natural languages. This can include everything that has an oral and written form: Belarusian, Ukrainian, Russian, Polish, Czech, Slovenian and others.
2. Formal (artificial) languages. Examples include mathematical, physical, musical records, as well as program code.

Each of the presented languages is supplied with its own alphabet, by which is meant a set of symbols representing specific signs. Speaking about formal languages, the process of creating and using them is easier, thanks to the possibilities of providing data in unambiguous meaning.

Processes

The information is processed, stored and transmitted. For this, certain actions are performed, which are called processes.

For storage, external media can be used: papyrus, parchment, paper, film, disks, flash drives and so on. Moreover, if you look closely, then the person himself is a repository of information: it is in the brain and genes.

Transmission is a two-way process, in which there is always a source (sender) and a receiver (receiver). Telecommunications (radio, television, computer networks) or air that carries sound waves can be used as a communication channel . As sources and receivers of data can act not / animate objects.

Storage

People store information either in their own memory or on external media. What we remember is always available to us. An example is the home address, your phone number. But to call someone with whom communication is not regular, you will need to use your address book.

Carrying out analogies with a computer, human memory can be called operational, i.e. Such that instantly reproduces the stored information. And what about the data of encyclopedias, directories, disks? They are the external memory of a person.

Because of the unreliability of the internal one, both kinds are used. In addition, with the help of external memory it is possible to transfer knowledge between generations, while preserving their high accuracy. And together they are a stored general information that is accessible to a person.

Broadcast

It should be noted that we often have to take part in the process of data exchange. One of two important components is the transfer of information. It can be carried out during direct conversation, through correspondence or with the use of technical means of communication: television, radio, telephone. Each person alternately changes the roles of the source and receiver, depending on the activity.

During the transfer, the data may be distorted or lost if the quality of the information channels leaves much to be desired. Remember the conversation on the phone when there was a bad connection.

There are different types of gear. Thus, text information is performed on certain media: papyrus, parchment, paper. But this is not the only possible option. Useful information can be transmitted in general on any medium: plaques, shards, hard disks and other objects.

Treatment

This is the last kind of information processes. Let's start with a well-known example - solving a mathematical problem. Let's say we have the values of the sides of the rectangle, and we need to find its area. To solve a problem, in addition to a certain set of data, we still need to know the mathematical rule by which we can achieve our goal. In this case, the processing process is concluded in that the new information we get with the help of calculations made over the original.

But this is only one of the possible options. And not every process of processing is a mathematical calculation. Remember the contents of the books of Arthur Conan Doyle about Sherlock Holmes. The protagonist as the initial information has only confusing indications of people (often also contradictory) and circumstantial evidence. But with the help of logical reasoning Holmes still managed to clarify the events and expose the criminals. Such actions can be seen and familiarized with modern forensic science.

So, human logic is also a system of rules, thanks to which data processing takes place, and one information is obtained on the basis of another. But that's not all. The processing process does not have to be related to the receipt of new data or information.

Look at the language teachers who check the essays "Whom I want to be when grown up" or "My adventures in the summer". They search for errors, correct them, and make appropriate assessments. This is also one of the possible options for data processing. And this process is carried out without making changes to their contents. It is difficult to imagine a situation when the teacher will add new facts or points of view to the composition. Only the form changes, not the contents.

Another example is the translation of the test into another language. Again, the form is modified, but not the content. And the final example of information processing is its coding, during which it gets a kind that will make reading much more difficult for everyone to whom it is not intended.