Information and Systems

BA 471 - Information Systems

Information:

Living organisms, some machines and aggregated types; e.g., organizations need it to function properly.

Example: trial & error:

Eat raw potato --> not so good --> cook potato first --> much better.

All learning requires information: facts, rules of inference, corroborations, falsifications (K.R. Popper: 1902 - 1994).

Information enables learning through the application of memory and logic (induction and deduction).

Enrico Fermi (1901-1954): There are two possible outcomes: If the result confirms the hypothesis, then you've made a measurement. If the result is contrary to the hypothesis, then you've made a discovery.

Information is distinguished from data through relevance.

Relevance as a logical construct:

Tautologies: e.g., All crows are black or not black.

Redundancies:

Capacity
Coal
Cooling
Develop

1
Large
No
Water
Yes

2
Medium
Yes
Water
No

3
Medium
No
Air
Yes

4
Large
No
Air
Yes

5
Small
No
Air
No

6
Small
No
Water
No

7
Medium
No
Water
Yes

8
Small
Yes
Air
No

9
Medium
Yes
Air
No

10
Large
Yes
Air
Yes

Capacity	Small			Medium				Large
Cooling	Water	Air		Water		Air		Water	Air
Coal	No	Yes	No	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	No

Develop	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10

Capacity
Small
Medium
Large

Cooling
-
Water
Air
-

Coal
-
Yes
No
Yes
No
-

Develop
No
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes

1
2
3
4
5
6

Capacity
Small
Medium
Large

Coal
-
Yes
No
-

Develop
No
No
Yes
Yes

1
2
3
4

Relevance as an empirical construct: Information reduces future uncertainty.

Problem: Can you spot the information (relevant data)? Monty Hall Puzzle:

Information may not be accurate:

Precision.

Reliability.

Information must be timely.

Information should be checked: Quality Assurance (QA) and Quality Control (QC).

Immaterial; can be stored on computers; nonphysical.

It's everywhere, but costly to get. Hence, it's a commodity.

We have much more than we think: let's go find it (data mining)!

By discrete pattern recognition:

1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, ?

23, 5, 12, 3, 15, 13, ?

100, 365, 24, 60, ?

By trend pattern recognition: e.g., Linear regression.

Formal: Information Theory (Shannon).

Systems:

Heylighen et al.: "...however complex or diverse the world that we experience, its organization can be described by concepts and principles which are independent from the specific domain at which we are looking."

von Bertalanffy: "A system is an entity which maintains its existence through the mutual interaction of its parts."

A system is a conceptualization of reality. System is a cognitive (human) construct.

Elements.

Relationships.

Structure.

Systems are dynamic; i.e., they have behavior.

State.

State transitions: S _t+1 = S_t + B

State space.

Environment and boundary.

Inputs transfer messages (information or energy) from the environment or from elements to other elements.

Outputs transfer messages (or energy) from the elements to other elements or to the environment.

Open systems accept input from the environment; closed systems do not.

Systems have no inherent boundaries and hence are not inherently open or closed (Hence, Heylighen's insistence on domain independence).

Systems which change their behavior patterns as a consequence of their openness are adaptive systems.

Feedback: an input to an element as a response to a previous output by the same element.

control elements: elements whose input is under control of a decision maker.

An element can be a system by itself (subsystem).

An element modeled as if it has no structure (elements & relationships) is a black box.

Problem: Can you model a standard heating system consisting of a thermostat (itself consisting of a heat-sensing device such as a thermistor, a set point and a switch), a furnace, rooms, raditors or air ducts, etc.? Does the system have feedbacks? Does it have control elements?

Second Law of Thermodynamics: The entropy {S=kLnW} of a closed system never decreases and increases whenever possible ( the entropy page).

To maintain or decrease entropy, a system must use energy; i.e., increase entropy elsewhere.

Problem: does the concept of entropy apply to information systems? How?

Information Systems:

O'Brien (2001): "a group of interrelated components working together towards a common goal by accepting inputs and producing outputs in an organized transformation process." (p. 40).

Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS):

"A system, whether automated or manual, that comprises people, machines, and/or methods organized to collect, process, transmit, and disseminate data that represent user information."

"Any telecommunications and/or computer related equipment or interconnected system or subsystems of equipment that is used in the acquisition, storage, manipulation, management, movement, control, display, switching, interchange, transmission, or reception of voice and/or data, and includes software, firmware, and hardware."

"The entire infrastructure, organization, personnel, and components for the collection, processing, storage, transmission, display, dissemination, and disposition of information."

Jessup/Valacich (2003): "Information systems are combinations of hardware, software and telecommunications networks that people build and use to collect, create and distribute useful data, typically in organizational settings."
Stair & Reynolds (p. 15): "a set of interrelated elements or components that collect (input), manipulate (process) and store, and disseminate (output) data and information and provide a feedback mechanism to meet an objective."
Problem: Can you do better?

An information system: Building as a Learning Tool BLT:

BLT System Architecture