INLS 180-01 Day 1 Notes

Aug. 22, 2001

 

  1. Introductions and personal goals
  2. Course overview  (syllabus and notes on WWW)
  3. Assignments and labs
    1. Subscribe to inls180_002

 

Joining a List using Email

            You can also join a list by sending a message to Lyris (never to the

list!). For example, if Jane Doe wants to join a open list called Forum, she

would send subscribe forum jane doe as the body of her mail message to

listserv@unc.edu (the email address for the Lyris software controlling the

Forum list), leaving the Subject: field blank. For example:

                        To: listserv@unc.edu

                        From: jdoe@email.unc.edu

                        Subject:

                        --------------------------------

                        subscribe forum jane doe

 

Posting a Message to the List

            To send or post a message to the list, send an email message to the

address listname@listserv.unc.edu. Enter the subject and content information

as you normally would.

 

 

        b. Search the web for definitions of three terms:

            communication

            information

            interaction

        For each term, decide which definition you like best, and post it to the class list. Be sure to give the source of the definition!

 

c.       Labs on M & W 12:30-1:30 (go over rationale and waiver procedure)

d.       Term Projects (see syllabus)

e.       Readings

Reading assignments—each person leads one discussion.

 

  1. Information Theory ala Shannon

 

Source—(transmitter/encoder)----[  channel   ]----(receiver/decoder)--Destination

                                                             |

                                                             |

                                                            noise

 

Three levels of communication problem

            Accuracy of transmission (technical problem)

            Degree of meaning (semantic problem)

            Effect of transmission (effectiveness problem)

Do not confuse information with meaning!!

 

Shannon assumes communication initiated by SELECTING a desired message from a set of possible messages

 

Then, information is the amount of uncertainty in the SOURCE (not the message).  This the amount of entropy (randomness).  “Information is a measure of one’s freedom of choices when one selects a message.” P. 9

 

A search grammar providing 32 commands (or 32 icons in a graphic language) implies 5 bits of information (log 322=5) assumes 32 commands are independent and equally likely at a given time, and that exactly one will be selected.  This works fine for a simple, one unit message (a battlefield command, an executive decision, etc.) but for human communication, conditional probability comes into play since the number of possible selections available once one is made may vary (leads to coding theory), complicating the technical subproblems (unit size, channel capacity, noise effects, etc.)

 

What is important is to understand that the technical problem in information theory can be precisely defined.  The human-information interaction problem (semantic and effectiveness) cannot.

 

 

Reading responsibilities:

(discuss tentative assignments)

 

Readings for next week:

Pierce, J. (1972) Communication.  Scientific American, 227(3), 31-41

Schramm, W. (1973). Channels and audiences.  In Ithiel Pool, Wilbur Schramm, Nathan Maccoby & Edwin Parker, (Eds.), Handbook of communication.  Chicago: Rand McNally.  116-140.

 

5. One-minute paper concept

What was the big point you learned in class today?

What is the main, unanswered question you leave class with today?