Information science has for a long time been drawing on the knowledge produced in psychology and related fields. This is reasonable, for the central issue in information science concerns individual users navigating information spaces such as libraries, databases, and the Internet. Thus, information seeking is the fundamental problem in information science, while other problems, such as document representation, are subordinate. This book proposes a general theory of information seeking as a theoretical basis for information science. The volume begins with an examination of subject representation and retrieval. It then considers subject analysis and the organization of knowledge, the interpretational processes by which documents are analyzed, and their explicit subject retrieval data are created. Existing theories are then criticized from four epistemological perspectives, and the author argues that information science should be based on methodological collectivism, in which society, rather than the individual, determines the meaning of knowledge. The work then analyzes information seeking as a methodologically collectivistic activity. The volume begins with an examination of subject representation and retrieval. It then considers subject analysis and the organization of knowledge, the interpretational processes by which documents are analyzed, and their explicit subject retrieval data are created. Existing theories are then criticized from four epistemological perspectives, and the author argues that information science should be based on methodological collectivism, in which society, rather than the individual, determines the meaning of knowledge. The work then analyzes information seeking as a methodologically collectivistic activity.

Information science has for a long time been drawing on the knowledge produced in psychology and related fields. This is reasonable, for the central issue in information science concerns individual users navigating information spaces such as libraries, databases, and the Internet. Thus, information seeking is the fundamental problem in information science, while other problems, such as document representation, are subordinate. This book proposes a general theory of information seeking as a theoretical basis for information science. The volume begins with an examination of subject representation and retrieval. It then considers subject analysis and the organization of knowledge, the interpretational processes by which documents are analyzed, and their explicit subject retrieval data are created. Existing theories are then criticized from four epistemological perspectives, and the author argues that information science should be based on methodological collectivism, in which society, rather than the individual, determines the meaning of knowledge. The work then analyzes information seeking as a methodologically collectivistic activity. The volume begins with an examination of subject representation and retrieval. It then considers subject analysis and the organization of knowledge, the interpretational processes by which documents are analyzed, and their explicit subject retrieval data are created. Existing theories are then criticized from four epistemological perspectives, and the author argues that information science should be based on methodological collectivism, in which society, rather than the individual, determines the meaning of knowledge. The work then analyzes information seeking as a methodologically collectivistic activity.

This book looks at the pervasive naming of information that libraries undertake as a matter of course through representation of subjects. It examines the 19th century foundations, current standards, and canonical application of internationally used classification (Melvil Dewey and his decimal scheme) and subject headings (Charles Cutter and the Library of Congress Subject Headings). It will be of interest to librarians, information scholars, professionals, and researchers.

Information representation and retrieval : an overview -- Information representation I : basic approaches -- Information representation II : other related topics -- Language in information representation and retrieval -- Retrieval techniques and query representation -- Retrieval approaches -- Information retrieval models -- Information retrieval systems -- Retrieval of information unique in content or format -- The user dimension in information representation and retrieval -- Evaluation of information representation and retrieval -- Artificial intelligence in information representation and retrieval.

With the increasingly complex and ubiquitous data available through modern technology, digital information is being utilized daily by academics and professionals of all disciplines and career paths. Information Seeking Behavior and Technology Adoption: Theories and Trends brings together the many theories and meta-theories that make information science relevant across different disciplines. Highlighting theories that had their base in the early days of text-based information and expanding to the digitization of the Internet, this book is an essential reference source for those involved in the education and training of the next-generation of information science professionals, as well as those who are currently working on the design and development of our current information products, systems, and services.

This is the 68th volume (supplement 31) in a series which examines library and information science.

The Elements of Knowledge Organization is a unique and original work introducing the fundamental concepts related to the field of Knowledge Organization (KO). There is no other book like it currently available. The author begins the book with a comprehensive discussion of “knowledge” and its associated theories. He then presents a thorough discussion of the philosophical underpinnings of knowledge organization. The author walks the reader through the Knowledge Organization domain expanding the core topics of ontologies, taxonomies, classification, metadata, thesauri and domain analysis. The author also presents the compelling challenges associated with the organization of knowledge. This is the first book focused on the concepts and theories associated with KO domain. Prior to this book, individuals wishing to study Knowledge Organization in its broadest sense would generally collocate their own resources, navigating the various methods and models and perhaps inadvertently excluding relevant materials. This text cohesively links key and related KO material and provides a deeper understanding of the domain in its broadest sense and with enough detail to truly investigate its many facets. This book will be useful to both graduate and undergraduate students in the computer science and information science domains both as a text and as a reference book. It will also be valuable to researchers and practitioners in the industry who are working on website development, database administration, data mining, data warehousing and data for search engines. The book is also beneficial to anyone interested in the concepts and theories associated with the organization of knowledge. Dr. Richard P. Smiraglia is a world-renowned author who is well published in the Knowledge Organization domain. Dr. Smiraglia is editor-in-chief of the journal Knowledge Organization, published by Ergon-Verlag of Würzburg. He is a professor and member of the Information Organization Research Group at the School of Information Studies at University of Wisconsin Milwaukee.

A growing field of inquiry, biosemiotics is a theory of cognition and communication that unites the living and the cultural world. What is missing from this theory, however, is the unification of the information and computational realms of the non-living natural and technical world. Cybersemiotics provides such a framework. By integrating cybernetic information theory into the unique semiotic framework of C.S. Peirce, Søren Brier attempts to find a unified conceptual framework that encompasses the complex area of information, cognition, and communication science. This integration is performed through Niklas Luhmann's autopoietic systems theory of social communication. The link between cybernetics and semiotics is, further, an ethological and evolutionary theory of embodiment combined with Lakoff and Johnson's 'philosophy in the flesh.' This demands the development of a transdisciplinary philosophy of knowledge as much common sense as it is cultured in the humanities and the sciences. Such an epistemological and ontological framework is also developed in this volume. Cybersemiotics not only builds a bridge between science and culture, it provides a framework that encompasses them both. The cybersemiotic framework offers a platform for a new level of global dialogue between knowledge systems, including a view of science that does not compete with religion but offers the possibility for mutual and fruitful exchange.

"This book provides a comprehensive reference source on next generation Web technologies and their applications"--Provided by publisher.

Classification now has to encompass ’non-physical’ media such as the Internet, yet still ensure access to knowledge held in traditional physical forms on library shelves. What does this mean for the future, and can classification cope with the virtual library? Written by a group of internationally-known specialists, this book reassesses traditional classification principles and the extent to which they provide the right basis for modern information storage and retrieval. First posing the radical question of whether classification is still really necessary, the book proceeds by emphasizing the need for systematic knowledge organization, with two chapters concentrating on classification in relation to IT and the Internet. Later chapters re-examine how present systems - Dewey Decimal Classification, Universal Decimal Classification and Library of Congress Classification - are likely to adapt, and provide a wealth of information sources for investigating the subject further. The Future of Classification delves deep into what makes knowledge-seeking successful. Those studying information storage and retrieval, and managers wanting to improve retrieval methods on which their service depends should read it.