Information, Knowledge and Agile Creativity

The purpose of this book is to question the relationships involved in decision making and the systems designed to support it: decision support systems (DSS). The focus is on how these systems are engineered; to stop and think about the questions to be asked throughout the engineering process and, in particular, about the impact designers’ choices have on these systems. This therefore involves identifying the elements of the problem of decision support systems engineering: the main objects and dimensions to be considered and the relationships they involve, issues at the levels of the decision-maker, of the organization (and even of society), the general approach to which to subscribe and so on.

This book presents a theory of consciousness which is unique and sustainable in nature, based on physiological and cognitive-linguistic principles controlled by a number of socio-psycho-economic factors. In order to anchor this theory, which draws upon various disciplines, the author presents a number of different theories, all of which have been abundantly studied by scientists from both a theoretical and experimental standpoint, including models of social organization, ego theories, theories of the motivational system in psychology, theories of the motivational system in neurosciences, language modeling and computational modeling of motivation. The theory presented in this book is based on the hypothesis that an individual’s main activities are developed by self-motivation, managed as an informational need. This is described in chapters covering self-motivation on a day-to-day basis, the notion of need, the hypothesis and control of cognitive self-motivation and a model of self-motivation which associates language and physiology. The subject of knowledge extraction is also covered, including the impact of self-motivation on written information, non-transversal and transversal text-mining techniques and the fields of interest of text mining. Contents: 1. Consciousness: an Ancient and Current Topic of Study. 2. Self-motivation on a Daily Basis. 3. The Notion of Need. 4. The Models of Social Organization. 5. Self Theories. 6. Theories of Motivation in Psychology. 7. Theories of Motivation in Neurosciences. 8. Language Modeling. 9. Computational Modeling of Motivation. 10. Hypothesis and Control of Cognitive Self-Motivation. 11. A Model of Self-Motivation which Associates Language and Physiology. 12. Impact of Self-Motivation on Written Information. 13. Non-Transversal Text Mining Techniques. 14. Transversal Text Mining Techniques. 15. Fields of Interest for Text Mining. About the Authors Nicolas Turenne is a researcher at INRA in the Science and Society team at the University of Paris-Est Marne la Vall?e in France. He specializes in knowledge extraction from texts with theoretical research into relational and stochastic models. His research topics also concern the sociology of uses, food and environmental sciences, and bioinformatics.

In the field of health, information practices and the organization of knowledge constitute a major challenge today. The practices of the medical profession, or of patients, are evolving under the influence of digital technology. At the same time, the way in which medical knowledge is organized, represented and mediated is also evolving.

Information Practices and Knowledge in Health addresses the different aspects of the field of specialized medical and health information; it focuses on the informational practices of professionals in the sector, of patients and, more broadly, of citizens with regards to their health. This book also considers the systems that are used for organizing knowledge in this field.

More and more organizations are becoming aware of the importance of tacit and explicit knowledge owned by their members which corresponds to their experience and accumulated knowledge about the firm activities. However, considering the large amount of knowledge created and used in the organization, especially with the evolution of information and communications technologies, the firm must first determine the specific knowledge on which it is necessary to focus. Creating activities to enhance identification, preservation, and use of this knowledge is a powerful mean to improve the level of economical performance of the organization. Thus, companies invest on knowledge management programs, in order to develop a knowledge sharing and collaboration culture, to amplify individual and organizational learning, to make easier accessing and transferring knowledge, and to insure knowledge preservation. Several researches can be considered to develop knowledge management programs supported by information and knowledge systems, according to their context, their culture and the stakeholders' viewpoints.

Deal with information and uncertainty properly and efficiently using tools emerging from generalized information theory Uncertainty and Information: Foundations of Generalized Information Theory contains comprehensive and up-to-date coverage of results that have emerged from a research program begun by the author in the early 1990s under the name «generalized information theory» (GIT). This ongoing research program aims to develop a formal mathematical treatment of the interrelated concepts of uncertainty and information in all their varieties. In GIT, as in classical information theory, uncertainty (predictive, retrodictive, diagnostic, prescriptive, and the like) is viewed as a manifestation of information deficiency, while information is viewed as anything capable of reducing the uncertainty. A broad conceptual framework for GIT is obtained by expanding the formalized language of classical set theory to include more expressive formalized languages based on fuzzy sets of various types, and by expanding classical theory of additive measures to include more expressive non-additive measures of various types. This landmark book examines each of several theories for dealing with particular types of uncertainty at the following four levels: * Mathematical formalization of the conceived type of uncertainty * Calculus for manipulating this particular type of uncertainty * Justifiable ways of measuring the amount of uncertainty in any situation formalizable in the theory * Methodological aspects of the theory With extensive use of examples and illustrations to clarify complex material and demonstrate practical applications, generous historical and bibliographical notes, end-of-chapter exercises to test readers' newfound knowledge, glossaries, and an Instructor's Manual, this is an excellent graduate-level textbook, as well as an outstanding reference for researchers and practitioners who deal with the various problems involving uncertainty and information. An Instructor's Manual presenting detailed solutions to all the problems in the book is available from the Wiley editorial department.

Information is an element of knowledge that can be stored, processed or transmitted. It is linked to concepts of communication, data, knowledge or representation. In a context of steady increase in the mass of information it is difficult to know what information to look for and where to find them. Computer techniques exist to facilitate this research and allow relevant information extraction. Recommendation systems introduced the notions inherent to the recommendation, based, inter alia, information search, filtering, machine learning, collaborative approaches. It also deals with the assessment of such systems and has various applications.

Integrating empirical, conceptual, and theoretical approaches, this book presents the thinking of researchers and experts in the fields of cybersecurity, cyberdefense, and information warfare. The aim of this book is to analyze the processes of information warfare and cyberwarfare through the historical, operational and strategic perspectives of cyberattacks. Cyberwar and Information Warfare is of extreme use to experts in security studies and intelligence studies, defense universities, ministries of defense and security, and anyone studying political sciences, international relations, geopolitics, information technologies, etc.

This book includes two parts. The first part is more theoretical and general, and it covers fundamental principles: geospatial climate data measurement; spatial analysis, mapping and climate; geographical information, remote sensing and climatology; and geographical information for initialisation of forecasting and climate models. The second part describes geographical information used in various climate applications of importance today, related to risk: urban climate; air pollution; hydrological problems linked to climatology; forest fires.

This book provides a practical approach to harnessing knowledge in organizations. Its focus is on knowledge sharing, tacit knowing, and a view of knowledge as an accomplishment in social interaction. The aim of this book is to explore and show how the phenomena of trust, risk and identity, as contexts constructed by speakers themselves, influence and mediate knowledge sharing in organizational encounters. The research particularly reveals how tacit knowledge (knowing), affects the scope and directions of everyday conversation. The first part of the book presents a comprehensive critical appraisal and analysis of the field of organizational knowledge management, followed by an introduction to the theory and methodology of discourse analysis, and a view of tacit knowing drawn from studies in implicit learning. The second part reports the detailed analysis and findings of original field research, investigating how participants in regular organizational meetings, including a discussion forum, manage the business of sharing knowledge. From the perspective of the research methodology, drawing on Discursive Psychology, knowledge is approached as an accomplishment in social interaction, with talk and text shown to be constructive, functional and action-oriented. Presents a rigorous, evidence-based approach to Knowledge Management using original research Approaches discourse as the location of knowledge work, and the site to which knowledge management practice should be focused Positions the actions of knowledge work in everyday talk and text, thus giving practitioners a ready toolset to improve their strategies, practices and understanding of knowledge within organizations Knowledge and Discourse Matters: Relocating Knowledge Management’s Sphere of Interest onto Language is a great reference for organizational leaders, knowledge managers, and human resource managers. Dr. Lesley Crane is an independent consultant specializing in knowledge management, and technology supported learning for adults (e-learning). Much of her consultancy work involves providing strategic advice and research on the effective use of e-content, e-tools and the use of new technologies in the delivery of teaching and learning. Prior to working as a consultant, Lesley was Managing Director of her own SME business specializing in creative e-learning design and development for public and private sector organizations.