Chapter 8
In the human quest for understanding
Information Society
At the end of this chapter, the students should
be able to:
 Determine the human and social
impacts of the developments in the
information age
 Discuss the evolution of technology
from the ancient times up to the
present
 Illustrate how social media have
affected their lives
Humans are surrounded by technology
claiming to supply information: television,
smart phones, and internet devices among
others. However, do they all provide
information or just noise? More voices are
trying to get our attention but how can we be
sure that they share knowledge and the
truth?
To answer this basic question, a short
historical background might prove useful.
Before the printed word, the written word
was prevalent. Yet, the intent to carry
information has always been present
Information
A word is a combination of sounds
that represents something. It is this
significance which makes words distinct from
just any kind of vocal utterance. Words are
made up of sounds and yet they transmit
something more significant. They transmit a
message. The words are “informed” because
they carry “information” (Chiasson, 2006;
Ben-Naim, 2015). Words are informed with
meaning given by the speaker and intended
for the listener. Simply put, they communicate
meaning.
The Role of Language
the natural world, the ability to name and
classify objects found in nature was a first
step in knowing. Thus, the scientific search for
truth early on recognized the usefulness of
language and the ability it gave to make sense of
nature. For the ancient Greeks, language was an
object worthy of admiration. Words have
power
This kind of knowing sprang from the
Greek fascination and wonder at the power of
words and language. How is it possible that
one's idea can simultaneously exist in his/her
mind and in another's? How is it possible that
human beings can communicate through words
and thus form a community? Does the power of
the communicated word come from the speaker,
who is the thinker and the source, or from the
listener, who is the recipient of the
communication? However, you answer these
points, thinking in terms of a common system
being generated by the speaker and received by
the listener is useful in the pursuit of knowledge.
Science, from the Latin word scire (meaning to
know), is one kind of knowledge the Greeks
wanted to understand.
The idea of comprehending words as
more than just combinations of sounds led the
Greeks to seek out the principles of everyday
language. When talking to other people, for
example, a meaningful message is created using
ordinary sounds. Its meaning is also not
diminished by multiplication - the speaker can
use the same words repeatedly to talk to ten, a
hundred, or even a thousand people separately or
at the same time. Nevertheless, the same
message will be received by everyone. Words,
therefore, can function across space and time
without reducing their meaning.
 The first philosophers, as they thrashed
about groping for and seeking a unifying
principle in nature, sometimes hit upon things
such as fire or water. But they believed that
something was common in all of these. The
many seemingly different things in the
natural world must have a unifying factor.
There was an inside to be “understood.” They
sought for this meta phusis, literally meaning
“after nature” (De Chardin, 1965)
Plato's principle of "One and the Many”
refers to the underlying unity among diverse
beings in the natural world. For Plato, there is a
common intrinsic nature shared by different
objects, which determines their sense. Biologists
devised a way to illustrate this principle using a
system differentiating between genus and
species. Many species belong in one genus.
In the 21st century, we are aware more
than ever that there is rich diversity in nature,
which technology has allowed us to discover
(BANWA Natural Science, 2008).
Mathematics as the Language of
Nature
Technology in the modern world is the
fruit of science. Because the scientific method
helped people discover how nature behaves,
they were able to control nature with
technology. A more accurate statement is: Since
people have discovered the laws and language
of nature, they can develop technology that uses
these laws and language for their benefit. This
language is, of course, mathematics, the great
contribution of Isaac Newton. Nature can be
understood because it speaks in the language of
mathematics and the human brain, to a certain
extent, can comprehend this language (Wigner,
1960). Unfortunately, this fact is not always
appreciated.
TECHNOLOGICAL WORLD
The ability to think and conceptually
comprehend nature and the principles it follows
eventually leads to science. Even in ancient
times, Western thinkers harnessed the forces of
nature after understanding them better. Lost in
antiquity is the first sailing vessel that worked
through the power of the wind. Similarly, it was
never recorded when the early people realized
that fire has its own power and energy. Not all
early inventions are lost in time. However, hero
of Alexandria, for instance, would invent a
primitive steam engine in the first century
(Davies, 1990)
The power of the eidos, or idea, would
be witnessed in the succeeding centuries of
development in the West. The ancient
fascination with language gave rise to the
preservation of the words of earlier people at the
same time when the West weakened itself due to
internecine warfare and conflicts. Throughout
this dark period, the importance of the word-the
power to be informed as a human being led to
the transmission of ideas through hand-copying.
From this manual action would arise the
technology that would transform cultures the
printing press. The development of the printing
press, which may be regarded as the beginning
of a true revolution, could be dated to the 15th
century. Through this technology, the ancient
Greek idea that knowledge should be share and
communicated among the humans would be
done on a scale unimagine by its thinker. Using
the printing thoughts and ideas with each
other, forming communities of thinkers across
space and time (Connell, 1958).
The world has never looked back. This
technological invention allowed words and
scientific ideas to establish an instance, new
discoveries about the phenomenon of
electricity were eagerly absorbed by fellow
scientists who then utilized the science to create
other technological products. The radio was
built upon the wave nature of electricity and
magnetism, and from there, television followed .
In the age of information, the transmission of
ideas has undergone changes. Meaning the
depth are no longer conveyed strictly by
rhetoric but rather by its electronic replacement,
the digital signal or digital. Such a digital
world is a direct offspring of the processing
world of technology built upon the many
advances in science (Toffler, 1984).
A more modern example of technology feeding
upon itself is the 20th-century tour de force: the
World Wide Web through the internet. Sir Tim
Berners-Lee invented it is a way of addressing
data processing and information sharing
needs among scientists for the European
Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN).
CERN’s atom smasher produces a huge amount
of scientific data every second. It thus required
better data analyzers to work on the gathered
information in coordination with each other.
While the telegraph and telephone had allowed
the transmission of information to transcend
physical boundaries, processing a veritable
ocean and mountain of scientific data generated
by the atom smasher needed a new medium.
With the case of sharing information at
present, its reliability becomes compromised.
Anyone with a connection to other people can
produce contents which are showing half- truths
or even lies, giving rise to disinformation.
Social media also encourages building a
community of like-minded people. The creation
of these groups often reinforces biases and
beliefs based only on the content that they allow
within the community, forgoing the variation and
clash of ideas provided in real life. Worse, these
communities can be tapped by people in power
who may take advantage of these mechanisms
controlling public opinion and harassing those
who present opposing views – for their own
advantage. Meanwhile the easy access to
personal information makes one susceptible to
online predation, identity theft, and scamming
among others
Thus, it always pays to be vigilant in utilizing
these modern devices.
The technology applied when a sailor rigs up a
piece of cloth to catch the wind is the same one
that produces modern machines and devices,
albeit less complex. Nevertheless, human beings
have always found a way to address their needs
and discover new frontiers with scientific
thinking. Considering the many benefits, we get
from these technologies, we must also be
responsible in utilizing them to avoid harming
others and ourselves.
CHAPTER 8: INFORMATION SOCIETY
 Information
 The role of language
 Mathematics as the language of nature
 Technological world
 The world wide web
REFLECTION NO.8
1. Which developments in the information
age brought significant changes in the
way you live your life today?
2. How did the transmission of information
evolve from the ancient time up to the
present?
3. How did the printing press change the
course of history? What ideas were
spread using this invention?
4. Social media is a technology which
facilitates the sharing of information,
ideas, and other content in different parts
of the globe. If social media was
deactivated for a month in the country,
what could possibly happen?
5. Social media also poses certain risks
especially in the dissemination of false
information. As a student, how will you
use social media to ensure that you do
not propagate inaccurate and unreliable
information?