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April 15, 2009
Twitter Provides Glimpse into “World’s Collective Brain”
By Marian Short
A New York Times feature on Twitter refutes the usual charge leveled against it —inanity – and said that Tweets collectively form “a surprisingly useful tool for solving problems and providing insights into the digital mood.” Companies including Starbucks, Dell and Amazon, are using it to “tap into the world’s collective brain” and alter marketing in real-time.
First conceived as a tool to connect people who already knew each other, Twitter has lent itself to citizen news reportage during natural disasters and doctors consulting with colleagues, in addition to client-public engagement. According to recent Compete.com stats, Twitter has become the third largest online social network, joining Facebook and Myspace.
Paul Saffo, Silicon Valley futurist, described Twitter’s take on social media in this way: “Twitter reverses the notion of the group. Instead of creating the group you want, you send it and the group self-assembles.”
Read the New York Times “Putting Twitter’s World to Use” here.
Posted by staff at April 15, 2009 02:36 PM
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