The lecture for week 11 informed students of data, information and knowledge. Data is statistics and such which is factual but on its own, is next to meaningless. It is when that data is collected and compared that patterns emerge and become information. From that information, we learn different things which we call knowledge. We must remember that information must always relate to the data from which it has been collected. Some examples of data can be prices, shares and exchange rates. Information can be anything from tables of census to minutes of a meeting. Knowledge comes in the form of things like press releases and marketing strategies.
Workshop
In the first part of the workshop for this week, students were asked to find dictionaries that described data, information and knowledge.
The first dictionary I found was www.onelook.com
(data) noun: a collection of facts from which conclusions may be drawn
(information) noun: knowledge acquired through study or experience or instruction (knowledge) noun: the psychological result of perception and learning and reasoning
The second dictionary I found was www.m-w.com
Data : factual information (as measurements or statistics) used as a basis for reasoning, discussion, or calculation
Information 2 a (1): knowledge obtained from investigation, study, or instruction (2): intelligence, news (3): facts, data
Knowledge 2 a (1): the fact or condition of knowing something with familiarity gained through experience or association
The third dictionary I found was www.yourdictionary.com
data (dāt′ə, dat′ə; Brit also dä′tə) facts or figures to be processed; evidence, records, statistics, etc. from which conclusions can be inferred; information
in•for•ma•tion (in′fər mā′ən) noun knowledge acquired in any manner; facts; data; learning; lore
knowl•edge (näl′ij) noun acquaintance with facts; range of information, awareness, or understanding
For the second activity, students were asked to create a visual representation of the transition from data to information to knowledge in MS Word. I chose to make a tree with the data being the roots, the information being the trunk and the leaves being the knowledge. To view a screenshot of my drawing, see below.
Understand the transition from data to information to knowledge is very helpful for a university student. From this, we can see that we must gather a vast amount of data and facts before we can see patterns emerge. From this, we can build information from the trends we see and eventually gain knowledge which we can use to strongly back up a point of view.
For the final task for this week’s workshop, students were asked to think of 5 organisations which collect information from its clients and why.
1. Phone companies (e.g. Telstra)
• So as they know when people are making more calls. This will assist pricing and special deals.
2. Police
• To find out where to place speed cameras and at what times they will be most effective.
3. Venues
• Understanding how many people will turn up when a show is being held. This way, enough money is charged per person so that a profit is made.
4. Online Games
• These often have polls so as they can find out who their target audience is and how to better the game for that audience.
5. Television
• News and current affair programs often hold polls which the public can phone in and vote on. This could assist in knowing what kind of news viewers want to see.
Readings
The first readings for this week included information on data information and knowledge. There were, however, two extra stages placed in the process which were referred to as ‘understanding’ and ‘wisdom’. Understanding being the ‘appreciation of "why"’ and wisdom being ‘evaluated understanding’.
The second reading indicated different organisations that may collect data. Most of these organisations were said to be linked to the government (in the United States). I was also made aware of why exactly certain journals are known as ‘scholarly’.
The third reading informed the reader of specific reasons data is collected and how powerful it is. A lot can be learned about a person by collecting data on a chosen topic. If you apply that to a community, you see just how powerful the knowledge you eventually gain can be.
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