The conversion of information from its transmitted form to a form that can be interpreted. In information theory, the encoded message is the thought or idea converted into speech or language.
The process of converting spoken or signed words or numbers into written symbols. An important intellectual skill, basic to much learning, encoding poses significant problems for many people with brain dysfunction. A child with learning disabilities, especially dyslexia, for example, may see printed words upside down, backward, or distorted in a variety of ways and so may have trouble encoding the symbols. Similarly, a child with dyscalculia may have trouble encoding and working with mathematical symbols. Such children may also have trouble with the reverse process, decoding.
The initial step in the process of memory, often referred to as registration, involves the capturing of information through one of the senses, such as hearing or vision. This information is then processed and prepared by the brain for storage, enabling its retrieval when necessary.