RE: Karpatschof on information concept.

hi jerry--interesting observation. i hope you will develop this idea in the
conference.

allan

Please consider http://www.ecoisp.com/ <http://www.ecoisp.com/>

-----Original Message-----
From: fis@listas.unizar.es [mailto:fis@listas.unizar.es]On Behalf Of
jlrchand@erols.com
Sent: Wednesday, December 12, 2001 12:35 PM
To: Multiple recipients of list FIS
Subject: Re: Karpatschof on information concept.

Hjorland:

I look forward to learning more about these views of Karpatschof,
which seem to capture a notion I have sought to capture in other
terms.

However, I suspect that we must be very careful in distinguishing the
language of description. In particular, how can one distinguish
between a (mathematical) symbol as part of symbolic "information"
code and communication as an activity that links two systems?

Cheers

Jerry LR Chandler

>Dear FIS members, In 2000 was published a book that I would like to bring
to
>your attention. It is a very unusual book in many respects. Below I cite a
>little concerning its theorizing about information. Of course I'll be
>interested in responses and I also hope to see this book discussed and
>reviewed in the literature.
>
>
>
>Karpatschof, B. (2000). Human activity. Contributions to the
Anthropological
>Sciences from a Perspective of Activity Theory. Copenhagen: Dansk
>Psykologisk Forlag.
>
>
>Karpatschof (2000, pp. 131-132) :
>"Information
>
>The quality of a certain signal in relation to a certain release mechanism,
>the signal being a low energy phenomenon fulfilling some release
>specifications. [PARA]The signal is thus the indirect cause, and the
process
>of the release mechanism the direct cause of the resulting high energy
>reaction.
>
>The release mechanism itself is, of course, an emergent entity, when it is
>seen from a cosmological position. This is the precise agenda, for biogony
>and biogenesis to furnish theories with an analysis of this emergence. We
>can thus more precisely define:
>
>Release Mechanisms
>
>Systems having at their disposal a store of potential energy, the system
>being "designed" to let this energy out in a specific way, whenever trigged
>by a signal fulfilling the specifications of the release mechanism.
>
>It is now clear why there has been this tendency to consider information to
>be an obscure category that is in addition to the classical categories of
>physics. Information is indeed a new category, but it cannot be placed,
>eclectically, beside the prior physical categories. Information is a
>category, not beside, but indeed above the classical categories of physics.
>Therefore, information is neither directly reducible to these classical
>categories, nor is it a radically different category of another nature than
>mass and energy. Information is, in fact, the causal result of existing
>physical components and processes. Moreover, it is an emergent result of
>such physical entities. This is revealed in the systemic definition of
>information. It is a relational concept that includes the source, the
>signal, the release mechanism and the reaction as its relatants. One might
>ask where I place the category of information in my system of ontology.
>Should it be placed in the object field of cosmology, just as mass, energy
>and causality? Or, should it be placed in the object field of biology? My
>answer to this question will be the latter position. . ." (all emphasis in
>original)
>
>Kind regards,
>Birger
>
>
>
>-------------------------------
>Professor, Ph.D. Birger Hj�rland
>Royal School of Library and Information Science
>6 Birketinget
>DK-2300 Copenhagen S, DENMARK
>
>email: bh@db.dk
>phone: + 45 32 58 60 66
>fax: +45 32 84 02 01
>http://www.db.dk/bh/
>
>----
>Home adress:
>Tordisvej 16
>DK-2880 Bagsv�rd, DENMARK
>
>Phone: +45 44 98 80 02
Received on Wed Dec 12 20:20:20 2001