The plain fact about information science...is that its practitioners do not know what they are talking about and are unable to describe the product they are trying to produce. (16 references) (Author)

A brief account of the design and implementation of the first full-time one-year post-graduate course in science information work in Israel is presented. (Author/AB)

This concise survey of the vast literature currently available in field-of-systems thinking and cybernetics discusses the areas of systems philosophy, systems analysis (mathematical systems theory), empirical systems research, and systems engineering, and outlines contributions of selected scholars. A bibliography of 148 books and papers is…

Considers the differences between information user groups with regard to characteristic patterns in the use of information and the dimensions of value by which users evaluate and analyze information. Twenty references are cited. (FM)

Discusses the inadequacy of translations of Aristotle's "Rhetoric," particularly three passages from the commonly used translation by Lane Cooper. The misleading nature of these passages is cited as a major cause for the lack of understanding of Aristotle. (JMF)

Argues that learning is an invariant process best understood from a dialectical perspective which demands that learning be viewed as an interaction between the organism and the environment. This view is contrasted with traditional operant approaches and with a Piagetian approach. (Author/DB)

Responds to W. S. Cooper's article on utility-theoretic indexing (Journal of the American Society for Information Science, v29 n3) and posits that the method's claim to predictive success rests solely on its appeal to the consequences of decisions. (FM)

Answers Patrick Wilson's criticism of the theory of utility-theoretic indexing (Journal of the American Society for Information Science, v30 n3) and defends the theory on the basis of its analytic capability. (FM)

Explores the concept of cataloging, analyzes its functions and operations, and holds that as a control system bibliographic organization is subject to the laws of cybernetics. The role of relevance and the limitations of some regulatory devices are examined. (FM)

Responds to a paper by Brant Burleson and continues the dispute regarding whether argument-as-product or argument-as-interaction should be regarded as the paradigm case or exemplar of argument. Defends the primacy of the interactional view by reference to the shortcomings of the serial predicative view. (JMF)

Discusses the isolation of the field of communications from other disciplines and the inattention of communications to the increasing convergence on information and communication in other disciplines. Maps the convergence by surveying the authors commonly cited in the fields of cognitive science, humanities, and semiotics. (MS)

Provides a preliminary examination of the relationships which exist between the disciplines of communication and computer science. Isolates the original principles which determined the development of computer science. Suggests how these early formation principles had and continue to have on the study of communication. Focuses on the seminal role…

Describes a method for compressing tomographic images obtained using Positron Emission Tomography (PET) and Magnetic Resonance (MR) by applying transform compression using all available dimensions. This takes maximum advantage of redundancy of the data, allowing significant increases in compression efficiency and performance. (13 references) (KRN)

Discusses a flexible, high performance subband coding system. Residual vector quantization is discussed as a basis for coding subbands, and subband decomposition and bit allocation issues are covered. Experimental results showing the quality achievable at low bit rates are presented. (13 references) (KRN)