Dalkir (2005) defines metadata as “information about physical structures, data types, access methods, and actual content” (p. 169). Taylor (2003) defines metadata as “structured data which describes the characteristics of a resource. It shares many similar characteristics to the cataloguing that takes place in libraries, museums, and archives. The term "meta" derives from the Greek word denoting a nature of a higher order or more fundamental kind. A metadata record consists of a number of pre-defined elements representing specific attributes of a resource, and each element can have one or more values.” Following is an interesting link that provides additional information and examples of metadata: http://www.library.uq.edu.au/iad/ctmeta4.html
On the subject of meta-knowledge, Abrams (2000) offers some interesting insights and links meta-knowledge to tacit knowledge in his presentation on knowledge mapping. In describing the meta-knowledge of experienced workers, Abrams (2000) argues that it is the “Old-Hands’ meta-knowledge of knowledge that novices need: document, application, methodology, expert, etc.” (p. 37). This includes such things as description of the content, qualification of the author/expert, authentication, location of knowledge, intended purpose, usefulness, usability, deployment, availability, leverage, interpretation, and potential knowledge gaps (Abrams, 2000, pp. 37-39). In contrast, when describing the tacit knowledge of novices, Abrams (2000) points to the challenges they face and the “meta-knowledge [novices possess] of strengths and weakness of knowledge infrastructure [including]:
- Ways that do or don’t work to get an expert to help.
- Who to talk to find out who knows or where to find the answer.
- Who sits at the intersection of many different communities and personal networks with visibility and access
- Who has organized their metaknowledge and can transmit it without actually having to be reached “face to face” on the phone.
- The limitations of knowledge retrieval systems under urgency.
- Workarounds for knowledge retrieval system limitations.
- When and why training does or doesn’t work. (p. 41)
Some tools and organizations for knowledge mapping include:
- MindManager (http://www.mindjet.com/)
- IHMC (http://cmap.ihmc.us/)
- knetmap (http://www.knetmap.com/)
References:
Abrams, K. (2000, May). Knowledge mapping quick start. Paper presented at 2000 APQC Annual Conference. Retrieved April 15, 2008, from http://www.apqc.org/portal/apqc/ksn?paf_gear_id=contentgearhome&paf_dm=full&pageselect=detail&docid=110657
Dalkir, K. (2005). Knowledge management in theory and practice. Burlington, MA: Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann.
Taylor, C. (2003). An introduction to metadata. Retrieved April 15, 2008 from http://www.library.uq.edu.au/iad/ctmeta4.html
- Robin
Copyright Robin Donnan 2008. All Rights Reserved.
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