Information Graphics: Simplification of logic processes

                                                                        (Source:as below image)
(To celebrate the achievement of another,)

Information Graphics is an accurate way of displaying information or data through a concise graphical representation. In layman parlance, “Infographics” is every symbol or flow of symbols that convey a meaning through an idea rather than language. Infographics once shared a common heritage with language when the Hieroglyphics were considered pictorial representations and not meaningful words. Infographics is currently being applied to the decoding of the symbolic language of the ancient Indus valley civilization.

From these primeval beginnings almost lost in the mists of time, Infographics continues to play a vital role in several modern applications. Infographics retains an edge due to its ability to get ingrained faster and longer into the human brain. Infographics provides direct instructions cutting through the verboseness of the language I type. The application of Infographics that I think is really cool is in the field of Man Machine interface. Think I, Robot.

                                               (Source: blog of Scott Sheppard: "http://labs.blogs.com/its_alive_in_the_lab/2008/05/index.html")

The interface between humans and the AI in a computer gets more and more complex every time Microsoft brings a new OS out. Yet the primary computer language remains Boolean expressed in the forms of 0’s and 1’s. As more and more people seek access to computers for more complex tasks a certain amount of programming control is handed over to the user. A simple example can be seen from the MS OS. The early generation Windows 98 had very few plugins, if any. Most plugins could only be activated by using the complicated MS-DOS shell. The ability to configure the system, either its hardware or software was limited at best. Compare that to the Windows 7 or if you can imagine, the future Windows 8. The possibility and intricacies appear limitless and therein lays a flaw in the system. 

Computer programming is based on choices the user makes. In a way it is governed by the Heisenberg uncertainty principle. As the number of options grow large the effectiveness/hardiness of the program decreases and this leads to increase chances of malfunction. In common speak computers become smart enough to interpret inputs in ways they were not intended to. Consider a complicated software that flies a personal air vehicle (refer Post on PAV’s here). An error could be disastrous. Neither could the program be simplified to give greater power to the human operator because he/she might want to know as little about flying as I do about Justin Bieber. So we enter the crunch paradox where over simplification or complication can lead to disaster. The only way out is a radical change in the system of programming.

                                                 

 

 (Source:www.nasa.gov; heuristic based graphical coding)

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                 (Source:www.javaworld.com; command based graphical coding)

Unlike Graphical User interfaces (GUI’s) which display a pictorial work desk but maintains a Boolean computer language, Infographics can reach out to both the user and a computer mainframe because in essence it is symbolic logic. Computer algorithms have historically been described as sequential steps which execute a logic function but another effective and efficient way to represent algorithms is a flow chart. Flow charts contain symbols with meaning. If you work the Boolean command under the overall architecture of a flow chart you create symbolic programming instead of Object oriented programming. OOPs creates a multitude of objects varying types and functions but symbolic programming concerns itself with just two absolutes; an information or algorithm and the sequence of graphics that represent it. So rather than having the user and computer in two different pages, with the user barraging a stream of orders, unaware of what the computer is going through, by working through a sequence of Infographics he remains an equal player in grasping the notion of what’s going on.

                            (Source:www.math.ucdavis.edu; Electric circuit example of infographic representation )

Infographics has already found a hardware application in the form of different network topologies. In a way akin to how the invention of math made calculations child play, the application of Infographics have allowed net-workers to create networks of unparalleled complexity and power. Its application in the realm of electricity has yielded electric and logic circuits that power some of the best super computers in the world.

Neatly put, Infographics brings the best out of math and logic. It uses a little known but very powerful part of our brain that strongly identifies with symbols. It allows us to reduce noise in transmission of ideas be it through programs or diagrams. While being hard and resilient to anomalies it retains the flexibility to add branching pathways of newer ideas, information or options. I wonder if you could put this post up as an Infographic.

Information beyond IT

How valuable is Information?

Information is power. The IT industry for example is one of the prime reasons why India can claim to be a fast growing global economic power. Yet the lack of proper dissemination of this information can lead to great loss and waste of resources. Take the town of Pondicherry, where I grew up as a kid. Many of my friends there are persevering and successful students. Yet they will not leave their town because of their prejudiced ideas of what lies outside. This inhibition is a barrier to their progress. Looking around I realize how ubiquitous this problem really is.

A large number of students choose to become engineers and doctors. Partly thanks to the IT success there seems to be no shortage of people willing to choose the former career. India does however have a shortage of nearly ten million workers in teaching, medical and allied fields. We have a shortage of trained and experienced faculty to teach the budding engineers. We have a shortage of nurses to protect us from the rising health risks. We have a shortage of scientists, researchers to further development. We have few capable administrators to run this country. The opportunities available in these fields do not make it through to the masses drowned in the race to become engineers and the lucrative offers of the IT industry.
If even a small percentage of these bright people could choose careers beyond the precedent fields then they would register a phenomenal change on the country.

Getting this to happen will not be easy in a nation as massive as India. The government alone cannot take all the necessary steps. Firstly the concept of choice should be made clear to the people. That is, one need not choose between merely two professions to succeed in life. There are whole arrays of careers just waiting to be explored. As people we need to cast off the suspicions and nervousness that envelopes career choice. We need to widen our minds and guess how we do that? By getting and spreading more information! And so the cycle continues.

I strongly believe that as long as humanity remains a dynamic species there will be no break from this cycle. In the second world the absence of this cycle in certain areas is a sign of stagnation or hangover from the third world experiences. I strongly believe in the intellectual vitality of the people of India. As the scars of past sufferings slowly heal away we will build a new society with broader mindsets and ensure better information is available to the people. That is how we will grow.