What Is Information History?

Isis 114 (4):747-768 (2023)
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Abstract

The aims and approaches of the emergent field of information history are explored in a Socratic dialogue. The philosopher Aspasia and her student Socrates are on their return to Athens from the harbor town of Piraeus when they begin discussing the proper subject of information history. After some deliberation, they come to realize that information history is not about information per se. Instead, information history seeks to provide a historical understanding of the nature of information practices—activities that include collecting, organizing, and preserving, among others. In the end, they conclude that information history is the study of information becoming information.

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References found in this work

Is semantic information meaningful data?Luciano Floridi - 2005 - Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 70 (2):351-370.
The concept of information in biology.John Maynard Smith - 2000 - Philosophy of Science 67 (2):177-194.
The extended replicator.Kim Sterelny, Kelly C. Smith & Michael Dickison - 1996 - Biology and Philosophy 11 (3):377-403.

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