Loss of information

Loss of information describes the mostly undesired loss of information during an information flow in a communication . This problem dealing with the communication of persons Communication Studies those in technical communication information theory . Loss of information is possible with any type of communication; it is subject to various causes and effects.

It can also arise through technical processes ( information logistics / information transfer ) or deliberately through manipulation (e.g. through information control or sabotage ).

causes

Loss of information can occur in various situations:

Losses in transmission , e.g. B. by interruption of a communication link , incompatibility or the overflow of a storage medium, lead to incomplete messages.

Losses caused in principle can result from conversion between different coding formats when recording and reproducing information. Example: finite resolution in signal sampling (see sampling theorem )

Errors in the decoding result in partial or complete loss of information at receiver . Example: If the recipient does not have the ability to convert the information into a format that he can use, it is useless to him.

The compression of data can lead to data loss. In information theory, for example, a measure of the information content is defined using the concept of lossless compressibility. (cf. entropy in the information-theoretical sense )

Process- related losses can also occur when processing information, e.g. processing numerical information with limited computational accuracy ( rounding errors ).

In physical systems, information about initial conditions and states can be lost (cf. entropy in the physical sense ).

effect

Loss of information may result in conflicts , e.g. B. technical defects and system breakdowns .

Occurrence

Interpersonal communication

In interpersonal communication ( conversation and correspondence ). During a conversation, a loss of information through the use of a foreign language , a wrong pronunciation , a wrong articulation or a different sociolect can lead to a wrong or incomplete understanding. This creates a communication problem .

Example: Very often information is lost in the game of Silent Mail .

technology

In technology, information losses can occur in communicating machines or programs during remote data transmission or data exchange in networks if they are interrupted (connection disruption or incorrect operation) or incorrectly transmitted (problem with signal processing ).

Examples

Loss of information can occur, for example: In the

Telecommunication in the event of an abrupt loss of communication or
Data processing when files have not been backed up (see data loss )
sabotage

Effects

technical defect , e.g. B. Power failure
Human error , e.g. B. Misunderstanding
Chain reaction

Precautions

planning

execution

Control mechanisms , e.g. B. Quality assurance measures
optimization
Design and control of the process organization

Culture

A large amount of information in cultural history was often lost at the end of epochs . In addition to social, cultural and religious achievements, especially scientific achievements were lost in the phenomenon . The more information that was accumulated, the more that was lost in the decline. A particularly large amount of information is recognizable when high cultures collapse . An example of this are the achievements of antiquity , which, after their end in Western Europe, were initially or could not be paid any attention to for many centuries. The culture in medieval Europe then moved on a lower level for a long time, although the ancient heritage was never completely lost and was largely preserved in Byzantium .

Information is faded out or negated during transculturation .