Information

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Related Books:


The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood
(James Gleick)

Labyrinths: Selected Stories and Other Writings
(Jorge Luis Borges)

The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains
(Nicholas Carr)

Too Much to Know: Managing Scholarly Information before the Modern Age
(Ann M. Blair)

Information and the Nature of Reality: From Physics to Metaphysics

Incidental Music:

Best Foot Forward
(DJ Shadow)
Opening
(Philip Glass)
I Need Something Stronger
(Unkle)
Organ Donor
(DJ Shadow)
Chor der Engel
(Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin)
Etude No. 5
(Philip Glass)
Information
Interviewer(s): 
Steve Paulson
Anne Strainchamps
Jim Fleming
Guest(s): 
James Gleick
Ann M Blair
Nicholas Carr
Paul Davies
Producer(s): 
Steve Paulson
09.04.2011

We’ve all heard we live in “the information age,” but what does this mean?  We’ll give you a short history of information – from talking drums onward.  But do we now have too much information?  We’ll hear how information overload is actually re-wiring our brains.  Also, the new theory in physics that information may be the basic fabric of the universe.

  1. James Gleick on the History of Information

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    James Gleick's "The Information" is a sweeping history of information, going back to the invention of writing and the African tradition of talking drums.  He tells Steve Paulson that the invention of information technologies has changed the very nature of consciousness.

    4.142855
    Average: 4.1 (42 votes)

  2. Borges' "Library of Babel" reading

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    Borges' "The Library of Babel" has inspired generations of writers and now, many scientists.  Here, we read several excerpts from the story. 

    4.65
    Average: 4.7 (20 votes)

  3. Nicholas Carr on Internet and the Brain

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    Nicholas Carr believes the Internet is rewiring the human brain with its instant access to all sorts of information.  Are we losing our ability to focus on one thing for any length of time?

    4.142855
    Average: 4.1 (28 votes)

  4. Ann Blair on Information Overload

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    Information overload seems to be the quintessential 21st century problem.  Actually, people have worried about this for centuries, going back to the ancient Romans.  Ann Blair provides a short history of information-gathering.

    4.0625
    Average: 4.1 (32 votes)

  5. Paul Davies on Physics of Information

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    What are the basic buildings blocks of the universe?  Some physicists now say they're not subatomic particles or even the laws of physics, but information itself.  Physicist Paul Davies explains.

    4.451615
    Average: 4.5 (31 votes)