4 units
Fall 2002
T Th 10:30 - 12:00, 202 South Hall
Course Overview
Three hours of lecture per week. Organization, representation,
and access to information. Categorization, indexing, and content
analysis. Data structures. Design and maintenance of databases,
indexes, classification schemes, and thesauri. Use of codes, formats,
and standards. Analysis and evaluation of search and navigation
techniques.
This is a required introductory course for SIMS masters students
covering the practices, issues, and theoretical foundations of organizing
and analyzing information and information content for the purpose
of providing intellectual access to textual and non-textual information
resources. This course will introduce students to the principles
of information storage and retrieval systems and databases. Students
will learn how effective information search and retrieval is interrelated
with the organization and description of information to be retrieved.
Students will also learn to use a set of tools and procedures for
organizing information, and will become familiar with the techniques
involved in conducting effective searches of print and online information
resources.
Course Mission Statement
This course is intended to prepare you to design, develop and use
information systems. We will explore the practices, issues and theoretical
foundations of organizing and analyzing information and information
content for the purpose of providing intellectual access to textual
and non-textual information resources. This course will introduce
you to the principles of information storage and retrieval systems
and databases. You will learn how effective information search and
retrieval is interrelated with the organization and description
of information to be retrieved. You will also learn to use a set
of tools and procedures for organizing information, and will become
familiar with the techniques involved in conducting effective searches
of print and online information resources. The course also introduces
the major types of information retrieval systems, the different
theoretical foundations underlying these systems, and the methods
and measures that can be used to evaluate them.
These topics will be examined through readings, discussion, hands-on
experience using various information organization and retrieval
systems, and through assignments designed to help explore the capabilities
and utility of different organization and retrieval systems.