G. Macgregor on Nature of Information in 21st Century Essay (Critical Writing)

Introduction

This paper is a critique of the article “The Nature of Information in the 21^st century” by George Macgregor. I discuss some of the points raised in the article and analyze the same from the perspective of other authors as well as my opinion on the same.

Information as a resource

The 21^st century has seen information as a resource being used alongside the traditional sources of production, namely land, labor, and capital. It is increasingly common to refer to information as a resource or “raw material” that goes as an input into the processes of production. This is particularly relevant in the case of companies operating in what is called the “information technology” sector. In these companies, the key resource is the information, and the value produced by these companies is measured in terms of information as an input and output as well. Thus, as the article states, though Microsoft produces “physical” output in terms of disks and the like, the real value is derived from the information contained in them. One of the key challenges facing us is to measure information as a resource and ascribe value to it. As Toffler (2006) says, the emerging “knowledge economy” would witness a seismic shift in terms of how wealth is going to be created and distributed. Thus, knowledge would effectively lubricate the wheels of capitalism, and the future belongs to those who can effectively leverage information to their advantage. This can be seen in the emergence of the high-profile software and services sector as a pillar of the modern economy.

Characteristics of Information

As the author points out in his article, while information shares some of the characteristics with the other resources like land, labor, and capital, nonetheless, there are significant differences in the way information as a resource is used and the value multiplied by increased usage rather than decreased as with the case of other resources. This has to do with the very nature of information, and some of the characteristics of information as described by Cleveland (1985) are that it is: expandable, compressible, transportable, diffusive, and shareable. The point about information not being subject to the laws of thermodynamics is made in the article in question as well by Cleveland. The point here is that we do not move from order to disorder or increasing entropy when we deal with information as a resource.

Information overload

With the advent of the world wide web, billions of websites have been created that peddle information about virtually any topic under the sun. What this means is that we are very well susceptible to what is known as “information overload.” Thus, with our television screens projecting images in bits and “sound bytes” gaining currency, our attention spans are short, and our “knowledge” is superficial. This has led to an overall “dumbing down” of the masses and one of the perils of the information age. At the same time, the internet can be seen as an “uber library,” nonetheless, the way in which the information is being conveyed makes us hark back to a “brick and mortar” library for solace. The task of managing the information has led to the creation of “Knowledge Management” divisions in many organizations, and these are full-fledged entities in their own right.

A Flat world?

The other point that the author makes is about how access to information is being seen as a right in the 21^st century. We have seen the proliferation of websites with “free” content and the availability of vast storehouses of knowledge literally at the click of a mouse button. The very fact that this critique relies on the web to research the content shows the pervasive nature of the internet economy. And with this access to information comes a lowering of the “entry barriers” that were the bane of businesses in the traditional economies. As champions of globalization like Friedman (2005) argue, there has been a “flattening” of the world due to the emergence of technology and communications, and this leads to an even playing ground for all. However, there have been notes of dissent with this view which take the position that “access to information” itself is a value-driven activity and getting it within one’s grasp is a difficult process. And there are others like the former Fed chairman, Alan Greenspan, who used the term “irrational exuberance” to refer to the prevailing mood in 2001 and 2002 about the hyped-up success of the “dot com” era. The fact that these companies crashed and the whole business model of revenue by “eyeballs” was questioned makes us think about how much valuable information adds to the business.

Conclusion

With the changing nature of the economy driven by information as a resource, the strategies to deal with the same need to be evaluated, and organizations and governments everywhere need to recognize the unique nature of information and its flows as well as its value as a resource.

Reference

Toffler, Alvin; Revolutionary Wealth, Alfred A. Knopf; 2006; New York.

Cleveland, Harlan; The Knowledge Executive: Leadership in an Information Society; Truman Talley Books; 1985; New York.

Friedman, Thomas; The World is Flat: A brief history of the 21^st century; The Penguin Press; 2005; New York.

Greenspan, Alan; The Challenge of Central Banking in a Democratic Society; 1996.