What Would You Consider to Be the Advantages and Disadvantages of the ‘Information Society’ to Which We Belong?
Introduction
In many societies today, evidence exists of an increase in information that has opened a floodgate of knowledge, thereby putting a dent into human ignorance and significantly changing various aspects of life including education, communication, business and societal living. It is this prevalence of information that has led to the birth of what theoreticians refer to as the ‘information society’.
It is not known exactly when the information society came into being, but it is believed that originated in Japan in 1964 according to (Duff, 1996 p. 119). Moreover, (Martin, 1995 p. 2) also notes that Masuda, one of its founders came to the realization that “the making of information values became the formative force for the development of society.” This new society also conceptualized in the mind of the economist, Fritz Machlup, who studied the role of knowledge in American societies. He felt especially concerned about how certain practices restricted competition, particularly, the patent system. He observed the cost of the patent system in contrast to its benefits, and consequently, was forced to inquire into the educational system. He investigated how the United States, as a nation, produced knowledge. His inquiry led him not only to investigate scientific and technical information, but all schooling, elementary though graduate education. He was able to distinguish five division of the knowledge sector and, as a consequence, calculated that in 1959 twenty-nine percent (29%) of the Gross National Product (GNP) in the United States of America had been produced in knowledge industries.
Other proponents of the concept include Peter Drucker who has argued that there is a transition from an economy based on material goods to one based on knowledge. Yet another line of argument is that of Daniel Bell who pointed out that the number of employees producing services and information is an indicator for the informational character of a society. He adds further
In many societies today, evidence exists of an increase in information that has opened a floodgate of knowledge, thereby putting a dent into human ignorance and significantly changing various aspects of life including education, communication, business and societal living. It is this prevalence of information that has led to the birth of what theoreticians refer to as the ‘information society’.
It is not known exactly when the information society came into being, but it is believed that originated in Japan in 1964 according to (Duff, 1996 p. 119). Moreover, (Martin, 1995 p. 2) also notes that Masuda, one of its founders came to the realization that “the making of information values became the formative force for the development of society.” This new society also conceptualized in the mind of the economist, Fritz Machlup, who studied the role of knowledge in American societies. He felt especially concerned about how certain practices restricted competition, particularly, the patent system. He observed the cost of the patent system in contrast to its benefits, and consequently, was forced to inquire into the educational system. He investigated how the United States, as a nation, produced knowledge. His inquiry led him not only to investigate scientific and technical information, but all schooling, elementary though graduate education. He was able to distinguish five division of the knowledge sector and, as a consequence, calculated that in 1959 twenty-nine percent (29%) of the Gross National Product (GNP) in the United States of America had been produced in knowledge industries.
Other proponents of the concept include Peter Drucker who has argued that there is a transition from an economy based on material goods to one based on knowledge. Yet another line of argument is that of Daniel Bell who pointed out that the number of employees producing services and information is an indicator for the informational character of a society. He adds further
Bibliography: Advantages of information technology & competitive disadvantages of information (Finance) (2006). Retrieved March 21, from, http://www.dartcreations.com/business-tree/at-fi/advantages_of_information_technology Answers.com Information society Buckland, M. (1991). Information as thing. Journal of the American Society for information science , 42, 351-360. Crawford, S. (1983). The origin and development of a concept: the information society. Missouri: Washington University. CP3349 and CP4018: work in the information society, (1988). Retrieved February 28, 2009, from http://www.scit.wlv.ac.uk/~cm1988/CP3349%20SLAPA/telecommuting .htm Fairthorne, R London: Butterworthss. Fox, C. J. (1983). Information & misinformation. West Port:, CT. Greenwood. Living & working in the information society. (2004) Retrieved March 15, 2009, from http://actrav.it.cilo.org/actrav-english/telearn/global/ilo/seura/euli2.htm Llwyd, R Martin, W.J. (1995). The global information society (2nd ed.). Aldershot: Gower. Machlup, F. (1993). Semantic quirks in studies of information. In F, Machlup & U. Mansfield (Eds), The study of information interdisciplinary messages. 641-67.1 Some advantages and disadvantages of informational technology: Small Business Bible.org Stonier, T. Towards a new theory of information (1991). Journal of Information Science, 17, 257-263 . Webster, F. (2004) The information society reader (preview). Retrieved March 21, 2009, fromhttp://books.google.com/books?id-5glMH8h2hpwC&printsec=frontcover&dg=information+society#PPA4 Webster, F Wikipedia, free encyclopedia , Information society. Retrieved March 21, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_society World Summit on the Information Society : Newsroom (2005)