Figure It Out: Getting From Information to Understanding :: UXmatters

Understanding does not proceed simply from examining data; it comes from examining data in a particular context. Data is useless until we know what it means. To understand its meaning, we need not only to ask the right question; we also need the appropriate instruments with which to measure the data in a meaningful process of sorting and descriptio

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Understanding is a cognitive function through which humans gather information from their environment in order to make sense of it and create a context in which they can interact with it. With a good understanding of the environment, humans are able to avoid dangers and take advantage of opportunities for food, reproduction, and shelter.

The emphasis in all these cases is on knowledge being “actionable” because of the business context, and on knowledge being a refinement of information because that’s how we extracted value from data. That may be a useful way of thinking about the value of information, but it’s pretty far from what knowledge has been during its 2,500 year history. T

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