Measuring the Uncertain – Remarks on Entropy and Information

According to original Shannon"s concept entropy is
the measure assigned to the spectrum of possible states of
a given system. A cognitive subject can reduce his/her uncertainty
through gaining some information. Incoming information
can change the subject"s knowledge in two ways: it may
either eliminate some possible states or it can change the
way the subject "partitions" the world. The former situation
corresponds to gaining some knowledge in the way of
empirical examining the world – the result of an experiment
reduces our uncertainty of the world by selecting of the
whole spectrum of expectable answers to the
"experimental question� those which may be the most
probable. We claim that the expectable answers are not
declarations stated by "the World� but result from our
ability predict "the World"s� behavior. Such predictions are
based upon a certain metaphysical model of "the World� as
well as upon the theoretical background.