– The purpose of this paper is to find a structure of information expressed in signs. Analysis shows that the arrow of time must be included in its constituent elements.
– The objective was achieved by discussing some important concepts of sign, both philosophical and semiotic. The results were then applied to a case study and also referred to collecting, searching and processing information.
– The results of the research are as follows: a sign structure useful for information science is composed of five elements: the sign itself, the sender of an information's content, the recipient of the information's content, a context in which a sign appears and a situation (or an object) in reality to which a sign refers. The place of the arrow of time is in the element called a context.
– Further research should concentrate on the following subjects: the active or passive role of a person in sign-situations; and the sign as a subjective/objective entity.
– Such a solution seems to be useful in the area of information science.
– Two new ideas have appeared in this paper: the five-element conception of sign with a place for the arrow of time; and applying this idea into an analysis case study and research on collecting, searching and processing information.
