A Brief History of Information Science

Information, from a broad perspective, is structured, processed and organised information, which gives context to other data. It allows decision making about various situations and also gives a better understanding of the subject. For instance, a single consumer’s sale in a restaurant is multiple data including the price per head, number of tables and the number of preferences for food. The restaurant uses all this data, when deciding on offering the best price per head, make special offers for specific customers or simply create a discount scheme for a particular number of customers.

In today’s competitive business atmosphere, businesses need to stay ahead of competitors through effective and well-planned information management. Information science helps them achieve this goal by transforming large quantities of available information into usable information. Information science involves collecting, managing, storing and analysing information that is relevant to a business. It creates new knowledge and allows organizations to make better decisions in real-time.

Knowledge and information can be used to make better decisions, save money and save lives. It has been an enigma how information science came into being. However, it was recognized as a need by various companies in the past for technological advancement and profit maximization. Today, it is used to create and provide services that help people, companies and the government to make better informed decisions.

Today, there are numerous types of information systems that provide various functions. These include enterprise information systems, business information systems and medical information systems. There are also applications in areas such as education, social services, transportation and manufacturing. With the use of computers and internet, information can be shared among various organisations, individuals and other entities. This enables them to work together and share information in a more efficient manner.

However, before information science became popular, it was mostly handled by those involved in the scientific and engineering communities. Nowadays, it is being used at all levels including business, economics and politics. For example, economic policies that are formulated by governmental leaders are being based on information science. Similarly, educational policies that are created and administered at the national level are also being informed by the use of information science. In social service, the role of information science is playing is very significant. In fact, these days, governments allot a major part of their budget for information and communication technology.

The major benefits of information science are evident to all. It helps to make better informed decisions, help to create or develop products and help to resolve various social issues. With the growing number of technologies being developed everyday, the scope of using information science is increasing day by day. Thus, it is definitely a promising area of endeavour.