Data FLOOD
reading sample
back to Table of ContentsPreface
Since the first German edition in the year 1997, the flood of data has only increased.
The statements I made at the time about the drivers and characteristics of the flood of data are more relevant today than ever.
I have therefore made no changes to the text.
This English version is based on the German 3rd edition, which was published as an e-book in 2017.
Dieter Joensson in July 2023
Preface to the first German
edition
Have you ever wondered why you are so curious?
Perhaps you too will answer: Because I would like to know “everything” if possible.
But why do
you want to know everything? Sometimes you find out news that you would
rather not have known.
If you think about it, you will see that there is a certain compulsion behind your curiosity. You could find out where this compulsion comes from in this book (in short form also in the Extract at the end of the book).
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Compared to animal intelligence, human intelligence is known to
have reached a remarkable level of development. As if that weren't
enough, we also constantly try to increase our intelligence (especially
our group intelligence) with technical aids. Chapter 1 of this book outlines the breadth and intensity with which we are promoting the expansion of these tools worldwide. At first glance, the development of modern information technology is nothing more than a technical and economic matter.
In fact, however, the entire development of information technology as a human "intelligence amplifier technology" is fundamentally biophysical in its development. By the way, due to the same compulsion that keeps every single animal and every human being permanently curious.
It was my concern to clarify this. The whole book is ultimately just about information - the basic building blocks of all intelligence.
Without looking at the cited writings by Horst Völz, Nikolaj Petrovich, Heinz Liebscher, Michael Wolkenstein, Amitai Etzioni, Norbert Wiener and many others, I would not have even guessed the variety of problems contained in the apparently harmless term "information".
I have all these authors to thank.
Dieter Joensson (pronounced: jónson)
