Ontology of Time: Expressions of Time in Information Systems

This paper deals with expressions of time in information systems and information science. It is presented in two parts: Expressions of time in information science and their implications; and socio-cultural aspects of the concept of time and its implications to information studies. The first part presented in this paper deals mostly with expressions of those aspects of time not affected by cultural differences. Knowledge and its valid modes of conceptualization are briefly discussed. Introduces the concept of time and its association with information and knowledge. An information system is a time-delay mechanism. Expressions of the parameter time in studies in information science domain may be viewed from three perspectives: (1) the qualitative and quantitative expressions of time in the information science domain, based on analogies and models mainly borrowed from other disciplines; (2) time as a unifying and correlating concept among a variety of disciplines, including information science; and (3) the rapid developments in the information field, such as, information and communication technologies, and their implications and impact on, individual and group behaviour. Briefly discusses: time-binding social function of communica-tion; role of cultural cooperation and cohesion for human survival; information and entropy; models of knowledge diffusion – Boltzman equation; heat conduction, and other time-dependent models; Mandelbrot model; Goffman-Newill epidemic model; random Boolean network; power-law degree distribution; voter model. Other topics discussed include: knowledge obsolescence over time; Zipf and Bradford distributions. Also considers sociological and behavioural aspects relating to research communications; acceleration of the pace of life in knowledge society environment and its consequences. Barriers to the wider acceptance and spread of new ideas are mentioned. Some research issues are raised (The second part will be presented in another essay).