Introduction to Knowledge Systems

Access to knowledge (knowledge management) and the ability to use it wisely (knowledge application) have always been the hallmark of successful individuals, companies, and nations. This is no less true for agriculture and natural resource management than it is for all other knowledge intensive activities. Before the mid-1920's, gains in agricultural and natural resource management productivity resulted largely from improvements in the application of human and animal power. Between the 1920's and 1950, mechanical power largely replaced human and animal power in the United States, resulting in enormous productivity increases. Since 1950, increases in agricultural and natural resource management productivity have resulted from improvements in knowledge management and application which led to the development of genetic engineering and improved hybrids, fertilizer, data-gathering and control technologies, and pesticides.

The methods we use to create, evaluate, organize and distribute knowledge define the field of knowledge management. Until recently, knowledge management had changed little since the invention of the printing press in the middle of the fifteen century. Our repositories of knowledge still largely consist of static, linear print media. Recent technological advances, however, have introduced new tools for improving knowledge management methods. These include (1) the electronic computer (ca. 1942-present), (2) knowledge-based systems (ca. 1956-present), (3) hypertext concepts and software (ca. 1960-present), and (4) the Internet telecommunications system (ca. 1986-present). In combination, these four information technological developments are revolutionizing the way people think and the way the world works just as profoundly as the earlier invention of the printing press. The better we understand how to create, organize, manage, and deliver knowledge, the more efficient we will be as producers, distributors, and consumers of knowledge.

Decision-support capabilities (knowledge application) in natural resource management have been challenged to satisfy an ever-growing demand for useful knowledge tailored to individual problems and needs. In other words, we need ways to get the right knowledge, to the right people, at the right time, in the right form. This is particularly important as natural resource management moves from a difficult multiple-resource management paradigm to an even more difficult ecosystem management paradigm. The need for better and more powerful knowledge application aids has become urgent.