Information and its types
Information is what we know about the world and events around us. We find out how we receive it, what types it has and how a computer stores it.
All topics (6 of 11)
Chapter 1. Getting to know the computer
Chapter 2. Files and folders
Chapter 3. Information
Chapter 4. Working with text and graphics
Information is what we know about the world, objects and events around us. A weather forecast, a class timetable and a friend’s words are all information. We receive information through our senses: the eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin.
Depending on how we receive it, information falls into five kinds: what we see, hear, smell, taste and feel by touch. We take in pictures, writing and traffic lights with our eyes, and music, speech and a bell with our ears. The smell of a ripe apple tells us that it is ripe, and a hot kettle warns us of a burn when we touch it.
By the form of presentation, information can be text, numbers, pictures, sound or video. The same information can be given in different ways. For example, today’s weather can be told in words, written as “25 degrees, warm”, or shown by drawing a sun.
A computer also works with information. It stores text, pictures, sound and video as a sequence of zeros and ones. Four main actions are done with information: receiving, storing, transmitting and processing it.
Key takeaways
- Information is what we know about the world around us.
- We receive information through our senses.
- By how it is received, information can be seen, heard, smelled, tasted or felt by touch.
- By its form, information can be text, numbers, a picture, sound or video.
- A computer stores all information as zeros and ones.
Practice tasks
- Write down five pieces of information you are receiving in the classroom and show which sense organ receives each one.
- Decide in what form each piece of information is given: a page of a book, an air temperature of 25 degrees, a school bell, a road sign, a cartoon.
- Tell a classmate the story of your favorite fairy tale first in words, then show it with three pictures. Which way was easier to understand?
Review questions
Test yourself: think first, then reveal the answer.
1What is information? Give an example.Show answerHide answer
What we know about the world around us, for example a weather forecast or a class timetable.2Into what kinds is information divided by the way it is received?Show answerHide answer
Seen (visual), heard (auditory), smelled, tasted and felt by touch (tactile).3In what form does a computer store information?Show answerHide answer
As a sequence of zeros and ones.
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