Data and information
Data is raw facts and figures, whereas Data that has been given a meaning is data that has been processed and given context and meaning.
For example, a red traffic light is data. The context of the traffic light system gives this colour of light the meaning 'stop'. When you drive up to a red light, your brain takes in this data and processes it by attaching context and meaning. This gives you the information you need to act – stopping the car.
Example:
The numbers 01101101 are data. We do not know what they mean. Once we know this is an 8-bit binary number, we have context. Understanding the binary number system allows us to work out that 01101101 means 109 in decimal.
Now the data has been given context and meaning, we have information – 01101101 is an 8-bit binary number equivalent to 109 in decimal.
- Data = 01101101
- Context = 8-bit binary number
- Meaning = 109
If a different context was applied to the same binary string, a new meaning would be attached to the data. If we are told that 1101101 is ASCII code (rather than binary), the data has a different meaning – the letter 'm'.
The same data can produce different information, depending on context and meaning.
- Data = 01101101
- Context = 8 Bit ASCII
- Meaning = 'm'