The Modern Invention of Information: Discourse, History, and Power

Rating:
Summary: Rethinking information
Review: This is an important book. It introduces and discusses founders of documentation and information science who are not well known in the USA because many of their main work were written in French. After the introduction the second chapter presents the works of Paul Otlet and Suzanne Briet, the third chapter introduces Information Theory, Cybernetics and the Discourse of "Man", the fourth chapter Pierre Lévy and the "Virtual", the fifth chapter Heidegger and Benjamin. The concluding chapter discusses "Information" and the Role of Critical Theory.
Ronald Day presents an important line of development as a background for understanding our modern conception of information. This conception is not without problems, and Days work is an important step for a necessary rethinking of information and information science.