In David Weinberger’s “Too Big To Know” knowledge is considered to be “overload” and being “just data” that by itself is nothing until it is process- and the outcome information. The author states that information is to data what wine is to the vineyard- the delicious extract and distillate. So what does Weinberger means by “infrastructure of knowledge”? First one has to know what infrastructure means- it is simply “organizational structure needed for the operation of a society or enterprise. According to Weinberger you have to refine the data to produce information, and you have refined the information to generate something of greater value. You have got to call it something. How about “Knowledge”? that is a know-how that transforms “information into instructions,” such as knowing how a system works or how to make it work in a desired way.” For example the author give the illustration of understanding the world that far outruns our brain’s capacity has been filter, winnow and otherwise reduce to something more manageable, by using editorial filters. In essence knowledge has been about reducing what we need to know.
Thus, how can an understanding of knowledge infrastructure make us better researchers. Since we have established that infrastructure is about organizational structure, knowing how the “data” or “information” structure function is key. How does “data” or “information” sources work that will give the best knowledgeable output when researching. Is there an heirachy of information and how does it work?
