Informationefficient

Informationefficient refers to the characteristic of a system, process, or method that achieves a high amount of information output or quality for a given level of resource expenditure, such as time, energy, bandwidth, or computation. The concept is cross-disciplinary, appearing in information theory, computer science, neuroscience, and engineering, where the goal is to maximize information gain while minimizing cost.

In information theory, information efficiency is often framed through metrics such as information rate per unit cost, or through rate-distortion tradeoffs that balance fidelity against resource use. In machine learning and data processing, information-efficient approaches seek to achieve desired performance with fewer samples, less computation, or lower data transmission requirements, using techniques like efficient encoding, active learning, model compression, and algorithmic optimization.

In sensor design and neurobiology, efficient coding describes how sensory representations and neural circuits encode the most informative aspects of the environment given metabolic constraints. In communications and data storage, information-efficient coding and compression reduce redundancy and improve throughput without sacrificing essential content.

Challenges in assessing information efficiency include defining appropriate cost functions, accounting for nonstationary data, and comparing systems with different objectives. Practical examples include event-driven sensors that emit data only on changes, adaptive sampling strategies, and compression schemes that preserve critical information while reducing bandwidth.

See also information theory, data compression, rate-distortion, active learning, and energy efficiency.