What is Information: Definition and 999 Discussions
Information can be thought of as the resolution of uncertainty; it answers the question of "What an entity is" and thus defines both its essence and the nature of its characteristics. The concept of information has different meanings in different contexts. Thus the concept becomes synonymous to notions of constraint, communication, control, data, form, education, knowledge, meaning, understanding, mental stimuli, pattern, perception, proposition, representation, and entropy.
Information is associated with data. The difference is that information resolves uncertainty. Data can represent redundant symbols, but approaches information through optimal data compression.
Information can be transmitted in time, via data storage, and space, via communication and telecommunication. Information is expressed either as the content of a message or through direct or indirect observation. That which is perceived can be construed as a message in its own right, and in that sense, information is always conveyed as the content of a message.
Information can be encoded into various forms for transmission and interpretation (for example, information may be encoded into a sequence of signs, or transmitted via a signal). It can also be encrypted for safe storage and communication.
The uncertainty of an event is measured by its probability of occurrence. Uncertainty is inversely proportional to the probability of occurrence. Information theory takes advantage of this fact by concluding that more uncertain events require more information to resolve their uncertainty. The bit is a typical unit of information. It is 'that which reduces uncertainty by half'. Other units such as the nat may be used. For example, the information encoded in one "fair" coin flip is log2(2/1) = 1 bit, and in two fair coin flips is log2(4/1) = 2 bits. A 2011 Science article estimated that 97% of technologically stored information was already in digital bits in 2007, and that the year 2002 was the beginning of the digital age for information storage (with digital storage capacity bypassing analog for the first time).
In his book THE BLACK HOLE WAR, 2008, Leonard Susskind makes the following comments around page 135-137:
In the following he happens to be referring to a Planck scale cube...let's ignore that specific geometric shape...
(Later in the book of course he describes his holographic...
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Hi,
I have a square grid that represents a landscape, each grid cell is forested or non-forested. I am calculating 2 different forest fragmentation metrics. Because there is a finite number of combinations of forest and nonforest cells, there is a finite number of possible values for each...
All of the data one has relative to the Internet, such as passwords/usernames to sites, bookmarks, history, and all the so forth are stored on the computer, right? Therefore, if another user uses the same internet connection line (port, router, etc...) with another computer (his/her own...
I would like to ask for a piece of advice on references on following issue:
Any (macroscopic) bifurcation of dynamical system generates some new information (or loss of information). In particular, when the dynamical system is loosing stability (i.e. stable equilibria becomes unstable) some new...
What's your Age? How about the Age of Consciousness?
When we respectfully acknowledge all sentient life. When artificial life and physics in general become indistinguishable from biology. When all of our thoughts are self-determined. When science allows awareness beyond immediate...
Is there some place or some website where it will collect and post the information of international physics conferences or symposiums like MG12, loops09 etc. ?
Thx!
What is the resolution of the black hole information paradox?
According to quantum theory, information — whether it describes the velocity of a particle or the precise manner in which ink marks or pixels are arranged on a document — cannot disappear from the universe. But the physicists Kip...
I would like to compute the power distribution that maximizes the sum data rate of a certain communication scheme. The expression follows from the sum of the rate of four messages which interfere with each other. A certain amount of power (here 1 Watt) is assigned to these messages, and there is...
This question is about the relationship between information, entropy and heat.
I think it was in the 1970's the Hawking claimed "information is lost in black hole evaporation". This did not mean it was just inaccessible, but that it has literally disappeared, gone forever.
In the Black...
Suppose a physical quantity needs to be represented in pictorial form...for example distance.
Such value represented should have 3 parts -
1)Orientation -
Or the angle that it makes to the axes of the Cartesian coordinate system under which things are being observed. In the 2 images below...
it takes light about 8 minutes to reach Earth from the sun, and I've heard it said information cannot be transmitted faster than the speed of light. if the sun blinked out of existence, steady stream of light indicating to you the the sun still exists would last for 8 minutes, but could you not...
Hello there my fellow physics fact finders,
As the title suggests, I was wondering if we use infrared and radio waves to communicate information because they're the only waves that can carry information, or just because they're the safest.
Which actually brings me on to another question, how...
When someone asks the question why can some stuff go faster than c, they get the answer that "it's not a transfer of information- special relativity says that no INFORMATION can travel faster than light."
Why don't processes such as phase velocity and entangelment transmit information? What...
I want to be a physics major and I am very interested Astrophysics as a final career path. However recently, after reading a few books about it I have become interested in Information Theory and the prospect of Quantum Computers. I have a very strong Math, Physics, and Computer Science...
Which of the following means of communications is it safe to transmit sensitive data such as a credit card number or a social security number through:
1) cell phone
2) landline phone
3) fax
4) snail mail
?
I have been trying to use google to get an answer to this question, but that did...
Here's what for me was a fascinating (and straight forward) description of How Jacob Beckenstein concluded information is displayed on the horizon of the black hole. The formulas are so simple and the results so profound I wanted to post them here...I'd never seen this before...
This is...
From what I think, any physical value has at most 3 parts -
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2) Position - This is the translational stuff...exactly from which point to which...
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Can...
Does anyone know of work on the philosophy of information? I am thinking along the lines of on abstraction and the related question about reality especially of mathematics? Kant was wrong, Plato not deep enough, Wittgenstein wants to make it a language problem. There must be something more current.
Right guys i am on my 3rd year at uni doing computer network management & design, i have passed everything apart from network design and I am having to take a resit.
I don't understand information theory AT ALL.
They went over it in class but made no sense, i also asked the tutor to...
Hello everyone,
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just likes radios and such. i had a brief discussion with my math teacher on the subject, my math teacher was an electonical engineer at Bell Laboratories for 10 years, and i asked if its possible with radio, can't it be done with any light? He said yes. what i didnt ask him was, how exactly it...
Hey guys,
Got this question for a small essay:
"Explain how observations of electron impact ionization scattering from inert gas atoms provide information on the interaction potential, the electron momentum distributions of the electronic shells of the atom and the angular momentum of the...
http://arxiv.org/abs/0905.2292
A new physical principle: Information Causality
Authors: M. Pawlowski, T. Paterek, D. Kaszlikowski, V. Scarani, A. Winter, M. Zukowski
(Submitted on 14 May 2009)
Abstract: Quantum physics exhibits many remarkable features. For example, it gives...
Hey-
I've read these forums for a couple of months, I'm sort of a nerd, so i enjoy working out problems even if i never post solutions to them. :).
Anyways, I do have a question.
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I have 3 questions regarding BM
1. Trans-plankian problem
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I was curious if, when someone dies, are the informetion, such as memories, stored in the brain lost? Is it possible to extract that information without somehow bringing life back into the person?
Help with STL container list for INformation Manager!
I'm trying to create a info manager like rolodex.
Rolodex.cpp
List() function
void Rolodex::List()
{
list<string>::iterator cIterator;
for (cIterator = cardlist.begin(); cIterator != cardlist.end(); ++cIterator)
{...
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http://arxiv.org/abs/0903.4315
The role of information in gravity
Authors: M. Spaans
(Submitted on 25 Mar 2009)
Abstract: It is argued that particle-specific information on energy-momentum affects the strength of gravity. This form of gravity has no free parameters, preserves...
can information be transmitted faster than c in inflationary cosmology where with a large positive cosmological constant, space is itself expanding in an exponential faster than c manner?
This question might rather be posted in Biology but since the information paradox is usually the subject of black hole physics I thought physicists may be better placed to answer it.
The fact that information may be lost in black holes is considered a paradox, information is believed to be...
Hello,
I was wondering how I could express a geometric quantity which has only magnitude and direction but no orientation (sense)? and perform ordinary operation on that.
For example:
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hi, this just came into my mind yesterday (while trying to sleep)..
i've got a very long, unstretchable ribbon. one end is installed on a plug of laser beam (turned off). the other end is in my hand. the ribbon is 5 light seconds long.
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a) i'd see the...
I'm an undergraduate physics student and I'm looking for a MSc program at a european university (taught in English), related to quantum information, quantum optics etc. Any opinions?
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The true...
Given the equation y=x + 1, x=2. Then y=3, I have just clearly specified Exactly where a particle is in 2 dimensions, it is at the location (2,3) in the Cartesian plane. If given the information of where a particle is in 2 dimensions is it possible to find its location in the 3rd dimension?
Hi,
I need some good amount of information regarding the types of control surfaces being used to control and maneuver the missiles. i couldn't find this stuff on my own. so, please help me.
thanks in anticipation
Abhishek
Hey guys, I was looking for this information all over the internet and couldn't find ANYTHING.
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OK, well this is probably a pretty basic problem. I understand all of it except for one part.
Homework Statement
If F(x)=\int^{x}_{0} sin(t)dt, where x \geq 0, what is the maximum value of F?
Homework Equations
F(x)=\int^{x}_{0} sin(t)dt
The Attempt at a Solution...