UNIT 2 – INFORMATION SYSTEMS

1. Preoccupation with information and knowledge as an individual, organizational and societal resource is stronger today than at any other time in history. During the past few centuries great advances have been made in the human capability to record, store, and reproduce information. All the technological advances together¹ have made information a new basic resource, ranking alongside² material and energy resources in importance.

2. The term “information” refers to facts and opinions provided and received during the course of daily life. Information as a concept has many meanings, from everyday usage to technical settings. The concept of information is closely related to notions of constraint, communication, control, data, form, instruction, knowledge, meaning, mental stimulus, pattern, perception, and representation. Information is that which adds to human knowledge. Information becomes data when it enters an information technology system; but at the output side, it becomes information again when a person has access to it. Information is useful knowledge derived from raw data. It is an essential resource of any organization. The value of information is assessed on the basis of quality, quantity, relevance and timeliness and is determined by those who use it to make decisions. Interest to information phenomena has increased dramatically in the 20^th century. On the commercial side the information service industry has become one of the newer industries worldwide. Almost all other industries – manufacturing and service are increasingly concerned with information and its handling.

3. The term “system” has been used repeatedly. It applies the concepts to information systems in particular. In the broadest sense³ a system is simply a set of components that interact to accomplish some purpose. Systems are, in fact, all around us. We have a complex nervous system. We communicate by means of language, a highly-developed system of words and symbols that convey meanings. We live according to an economic system. A business is a system too; its parts are: marketing, manufacturing, sales, research, accounting, and personnel, these parts all work together, and each of these parts being a system itself. We begin to see (понимать) how pervasive systems are. The system’s purpose is its reason for existing. Complex information systems came into existence through people. Technology has developed at a soaring rate⁴, but the most important aspect of any system is the human know-how and use of ideas to harness the computer so that it performs the required task. To be of any use⁵, a computer-based information system must function properly, be easy to use, and suit the organization for which it has been designed.

4. Information systems are a means by which data flows from one person or department to another, and it can encompass everything from interoffice mail and telephone links to a computer system that generates information for various users. An information system is a system of information sets needed for decision and signaling in a larger system containing subsystems for collecting, storing, processing and distributing information sets. Information systems “in fact” serve all the systems. They link together the different components in such a way that they can effectively work toward the same purpose, and they are increasingly being developed to receive and process data using on-line methods. The purposes of information systems are to process input, maintain files of data and produce information, reports and other output. Information systems consist of subsystems, including hardware, software, and data storage for files and databases. The particular set of subsystems, that is, the specific equipment, programmes, files, and procedures comprise an information systems application. Many information systems are implemented with generic “off-the-shelf” software⁶ rather than with custom-built programmes⁷.

5. Creating an information system. Although there are many ways to create an information system the basic underlying design process is generally the same. This process begins with a determination of the organization’s information needs. Many organizations have a strategic plan. Organizations should make sure that any proposed information system would be in sync⁷ with the overall mission and strategy. The objectives for an information system should make sense⁸ in terms of organizational plans, financial and technical resources and competition.

Design Stages. The designing of the information systems involves four stages: 1) preliminary problem definition, 2) conceptual design, 3) detailed design, and 4) implementation.

Preliminary Problem Definition. The first task is to determine in detail the information needs, the constraints limiting the system, and the objectives. Constraints are limitations. There are external governmental regulation, and internal constraints. Probably the most common internal constraint on the development of an information system is the cost.

Conceptual Design. During this stage, information generated in the preliminary problem definition stage is used to develop alternative designs that meet the organization’s criteria.

Detailed Design. During this stage, detailed performance specifications are established. Information system experts select and develop hardware and software components. They map information flow, develop specialized programs, and define databases. They create a model of the information system, a prototype, which they evaluate, test, refine, and reevaluate until it meets the stated requirements.

Implementation. During this final stage, models of the information system are connected and tested. As operational problems are identified and corrected, one module after another is added and tested. Eventually, the entire system is assembled and tested for all conceivable types of errors. Corrections continue to be made until the information system’s performance satisfies all the criteria.

6. Electronic information systems are a phenomenon of the second half of the 20^th century. The versatility of modern information systems stems from their ability to represent information electronically as digital signals and manipulate it automatically at exceedingly high speeds. Information systems based on a high – speed digital computer are an extremely efficient means of manipulating and modifying stored data, and recorded information, and they are able to carry out diverse tasks, they:

- provide rapid high-resolution access to corpora of information⁸, and

better (higher) accuracy and improved consistency

- can perform scientific and engineering calculations

- conduct searches of bibliographic literature

- provide tutorial instruction in various subjects

- assist in design and manufacturing activities

- make decisions for solving non-numerical problems (e.g. those related to medical diagnosis or mineral exploration) with so-called expert software systems⁹, and they even

- generate new information, and make countless other applications both large and small.

7. Computer-based information systems are able to perform calculations, analyses, classifications, and correlations at levels of complexity and efficiency far exceeding human capabilities. An information system is a computer-based system with the defining characteristic that provides information to users in one or more organizations. Information services provide mechanisms to locate documents nearly instantaneously. Powerful information-transforming technologies now available or under development – data/text to graphics, speech to printed text, one natural language to another – broaden the availability of information and enhance human problem-solving capabilities.

8. Interactive applications of networked multimedia¹⁰ computers may, for some, replace newspapers, compete with commercial broadcast television, and give new dimensions (зд. стандарты) to the future of education and training at all levels of society. Information systems are a major tool for improving the cost-effectiveness¹¹ of societal investments. The effects of the information systems applications have already been felt prominently in three domains: the economy, the governance of society, and the milieu of individual existence. Information systems are on-going. They continue to exist and are used as long as they are meaningful to the organization.

 

Notes:

1. All the technological advances together	– все направления технического прогресса вместе
2. …ranking alongside…	– занимающие ведущее место наряду с…
3. In the broadest sense…	– в самом широком смысле
4. at a soaring rate…	– стремительно
5. To be of any use…	– в любом применении
6. …“off-the-shelf” software…	– готовые (разработанные) программы
7. …in sync… 8. …should make sense… 9. …custom-built programmes…	– зд. в соответствии – должны иметь значение – программы на заказ
10. …access to corpora of information	– доступ к основной информации
11. …expert software systems	– экспертные системы
12. networked multimedia computers	– компьютеры с сетевым доступом
13. the cost-effectiveness	– прибыльность

Exercises

 

Ex. 1. Pronounce correctly:

preoccupy, preoccupation, preoccupied;

store, storage, data storage, stored data; medium, media, multimedia;

source, resource, material resources, energy resources;

produce, reproduce, producer, produced;

particular, particularly; apply, applied, application;

exist, existence; process, processes, processing, processed data;

technique, technical, technology, technologies, technological;

first, firm, prefer, verse, versatility, versatile;

analyse, analyses, analysis, analyst, analytic(al);

mean, means, meaning, meaningful, meaningless, by means of;

system, subsystem, information systems, computer-based information systems;

able, available, availability, ability, capability, human problem solving capability.

 

Ex. 2. Pay attention to the nouns in the function of an attribute:

energy resources; information phenomena; information service industries; information-transforming technologies; information systems applications; human know-how; interoffice mail; telephone links; data storage; on-line methods; expert software systems; human problem-solving capabilities; off-the-shelf software; manufacturing activities.

 

Ex. 3. Translate the following word combinations:

– great advances; all the technological advances together;

– to reproduce information; the information service industry;

– a new basic resource; pervasive systems;

– a set of components; a computer-based information system;

– at a soaring rate; interoffice mail; during the course of daily life;

– maintain files of data; engineering calculations;

– custom-built programs; an extremely efficient means of;

– a cost-effectiveness of societal investments;

– powerful information-transforming technologies;

– at levels of complexity and efficiency far exceeding human capabilities;

– the most important aspect of any system; to process data using on-line methods.

 

Ex. 4. Form pairs of synonyms:

a) advance, important, to use, to begin, purpose, to generate, progress, programme, to do, on-going, manufacturing, tool, process, data, software, essential, aim, equipment, to provide, to locate, to assist, on-line, produce

b) application, milieu, domain, instrument, to find, to give, apparatus, procedure, information, to generate, field (sphere), environment, application, to harness, to accomplish, production, to apply, essential, to help, to perform, continuous, real-time.

 

Ex. 5. Finish the following sentences:

1. Great advances have been made in the human capability to…

2. All the technological advances together have made information…

3. The information service industry has become…

4. In the broadest sense a system is simply a set of…

5. The most important aspect of any system is…

6. To be of any use, a computer-based information system must…

7. Information system is a means by…

8. Information systems link together…

9. The purposes of information systems are to…

10. Information systems consist of subsystems…

11. Information systems are an extremely efficient means of…

12. Information systems are able to carry out diverse tasks…

13. Powerful information transforming technologies broaden…

14. Interactive applications of networked multimedia computers may replace…

15. Information services provide mechanisms…

Ex. 6. Translate the following word combinations using the text:

– новый основной ресурс по важности наряду с материальными и энергетическими ресурсами;

– система – это совокупность (определенный набор) составляющих элементов;

– наиболее важный аспект любой системы – это человеческие знания;

– высоко-развитая система слов условных обозначений (символов), которые

несут (имеют) определенные значения;

– информационная система может охватывать все от…;

– многие информационные системы обеспечены готовыми программами;

– многосторонность (универсальность) современных информационных систем связана с …;

– информационные системы способны (могут) выполнять разнообразные задачи;

– …по уровню сложности и эффективности, намного превосходящие возможности человека;

– практически мгновенно;

– новые стандарты (параметры) для будущего образования и воспитания всех слоев общества;

– информационные системы являются основным инструментом повышения прибыльности инвестиций;

– информационные системы постоянно совершенствуются (развиваются).

Ex. 7. Useful English (read, translate and learn):

during the past few centuries; during the course of daily life;

all the technological advances together; interest to information phenomena;

a computer system generates information for various users;

are able to perform calculations at a very high speed;

information systems are a major tool; an extremely efficient means;

to carry out diverse tasks; in the broadest sense;

information systems are on-going; the information service industry.

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