Information and Culture: Trends of Synthesis

Vokrysheva M.Y.

Russia, Samara,
Samara State Academy of Culture and Arts

Synthesis of information and culture is based on their similarity, differences and forms of mutual transformations. These are two phenomena which have much in common. First feature is globality (universality), which is expressed in versatility of relationships with reality and different ways of human activity.

Information is a key word of the modern epoch which results in appearance of such concepts as "information society" and "information civilization". There are no boundaries and continents for information - it is total and all-penetrating. Cultural boundaries are thus wide, as it is close to art, moral, religion, science and in a sense dissolves in them.

The second aspect, determining the similarity of these phenomena, is mutual interdependence of existing: cultural processes are realized through informational ones,- and vice versa. Effective functioning of culture is possible only through the mechanisms of acquiring, storing, processing and dissemination of information on the environment the culture lives in and on culture itself.

XX century man lives in a media environment which becomes a new sphere of existence, reality of modern culture.

New technologies (multimedia, audiovisual media) are inseparable from all layers of life. Media has become the main means of generating the modern culture, but not only transferring link. Videoculture plays an important role in the socialization and in the formation of value structures of the individuality.

Information and culture are both semiotic systems, which are characterized by semioticity and textuality. In the plurality of culture definitions one of them is a sum of artefacts, meanings, signs, i.e., an information process.

Animals code the information inside their body, and its transfer is realized by a genetic code. Culture comprises the system of means storing, processing and retrieving the information. This system is constantly enhancing. A new type of information mechanism is being formed. Information is being coded by outside structures, not relating to inner human organism. The social information is being created, it is expressed through sign systems and is a non-genetical mechanism of inheriting information. From this point of view culture may be defined as a social information which is acquiring, storing and disseminating in the society by means created by people.

Differences between the information and culture are observed on the level of exploring the world, developing inner ideas, which are generally summed up on the philosophical and aesthetic components, and information is based on scientific and technical elements.

Information is goods in the modern society, and very expensive, and that gives a chance for fusing the criteria of appreciating some cultural phenomena as truly valuable. Today human society should change deep, value motivation, harmonize worlds of culture and information. Value significance is one of the most important aspect in culture and the highest value is a human being. This humanistic approach to information is considered together with the idea of dominance of a man in information-cultural environment, of subjecting all components (knowledge, technologies, habits) to the human aspect.

Choosing basic spiritual values is more important for effective functioning of the society than information technologies which are serving the values of higher order.

Information and culture are those forces which may totally change the mode of life of a person or a society.

To make information the means of achieving higher life goals it is necessary to consider it in the context of moral, spirituality and culture.

The grounding for synthesis of information and culture comprises the principal of information. In science this principal means the main, determining coexistence of different trends and processes, source of development in nature and society, condition of stability.

As a vector of synthesis the interaction of information with different spheres of culture-before all-with the art and it's kinds, and also, with cultural institution and organizations should be considered. This approach opens a wide problematic field: "information and theatre", "information and music", "information and museums", "information and libraries" etc.

The basic fruit of art is a product which is "simultaneously" an artefact of culture and the carrier of the certain information - text. In it turn the information is realized through the text which may be examined as an independent product, having a content, sense and definite form (structure), organizing the content.

Aspectological approach to art and it's separate forms (from the informatics point of view) and information ( in artistic aspect) has a serious research perspective.

Therefore we may speak about the sphere of social communications as one of the most significant trends of synthesizing information and culture.

The essence of museum activity is changed, as museum values go out of museum premises, is alienated and begin an independent life. It happens thanks to reproducing and selling out the exhibits, involving the computer technologies into displays, transferring the masterpieces to CD-ROMs. A new phenomenon has appeared in the media, it is the novel specially intended for CD-ROM. This form of communication changes traditional opinions and the reader becomes not only co-author, but also a viewer, museum-goer and videoplayer at the same time. The next important vector of synthesis of information and culture is education. Conceptually founded system of education functions as a mechanism of practical realization of any society through the training the future agent. The most important feature of education is accounted to become the culturological trend in students training, it's orientation on culture-centered relation to the world and man?. The meaning of this perception presupposes the striving to authentic cultural values and pushing away the countercultural phenomena. So the aim of education is mastering the difference criteria. The formation of evaluative system in consciousness and behavior of the student represents the culturogical pivot of education.

As a vector of the information and culture synthesis there may appear the process of forming the information society which is more and more being discussed in modern Russian and foreign publications. The picture of it's genesis is shown in different countries, main features and different aspects of its functioning are analyzed, besides positive and negative effects on social life are tried to be appreciated. The main categories upon which the concept of information society is based have become categories "knowledge", "information", "culture".

They reflect resources unique by their character whose usage promotes their volume and value. They are considered as future resources because are regenerated by intellectual efforts of a man Information society is a condition of stable development, survival of civilization and preservation of biosphere of the planet. Before information played a secondary role, but now it shows its huge potential replacing materials and energetic resources.

Information and culture may be represented as two overlapping zones, the space between them forms the space which is called "information culture". It determines the man's culture of interaction with information. This interaction is realized on the social, individual levels; and both contexts display specific features of information and cultural processes in new synthetic forms.

To conclude, it should be noted that the path to the new reality lies in the synthesis of information and culture, through fusion of humanitarian, natural scientific and artistic ideas of exploring the world.