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Sara Wilkie on 17 Sep 12"One of the key conceptual models of the information field is the "information spectrum," the hierarchy of data - information - knowledge - wisdom. I first learned this model from Bob Taylor, former dean of the Syracuse University School of information Studies, and it is explained in his book, Value-Added Processes in information Systems, Ablex, 1986, as the "Value-Added Spectrum," (p. 6). I teach this model to almost all of my classes, especially to my undergraduate students as part of developing an "information perspective" -- looking at the world through information-colored glasses. This is the way I explain the information spectrum (sometimes referred to as the DIKW hierarchy): Data = characters, symbols, numbers, signs whose meaning may or may not be apparent. information = data with labels or definition; data that has structure or relationships. Knowledge = collected, combined, organized, processed information for a purpose. Wisdom = knowledge over time; knowledge without thinking. "