An index to ‘now’, in real time – that’s Twitter

At a deep level, the web – in particular the use of social media – has connected us to each other in ways that few other technologies have. Some years ago – in a decidedly ‘pre-Twitter’ period – I said that “the web [was] a reflection of who we are”… in many ways, what I meant was that the web is really a digital manifestation of our collective humanity.

Put simply, in 2009, it seems to me that this is why Twitter has become so hot in so many fields. My sense is that Twitter is set to revolutionize the way we think, share and work together in the digital age. However, I’m still surprised how few librarians have eavesdropped on the conversation thus far….

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Looking to get the word out, my colleague Mary-Doug Wright and I have decided we needed to write something for an upcoming issue of a health library journal about Twitter. I’m taking a first crack at it, and I’m enjoying the process but look forward to working with Mary-Doug. To boot, collaborative writing, speaking and teaching are three activities on my New Year’s resolution list for 2009.

So what’s so great about Twitter anyway? Here are a few nascent ideas:

– Twitter is a global index to ‘now’ – what people are thinking ‘in real time’;

– Twitter permits social networks to meet around a virtual water cooler in real time;

– Twitter is a virtual online town-square where people meet and provide support digitally;

– in practical terms, Twitter is open-access, unfettered, free information flow;

– a wildly easy way to stay connected with online networks @ a single point of entry;

– efficient way to see ‘status updates’ of family and friends

– Twitter permits thinking ‘on the fly’; monitoring ideas & thoughts; breaking news;

– an important productivity tool; face-to-face meetings get up to speed much quicker

– Twitter is also a potentially powerful research and information dissemination tool;

– a potent warning system for university campuses for weather problems & terrorism;

– some Twitter feeds, once they ‘mature’, are mini-web conferences on the go

I’m sure you’ll have other ideas. Please share them (or share your critique). ~Dean

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References

1. ‘Maple Leaf’ Twitter: Why aren’t more Canadian Librarians on Twitter? UBC Google scholar blog. December 31st, 2008
2. “Of Canadian librarians and Twitter”. MeldInMed blog, January 1st 2009
3. Top 20 Twitter Posts of 2008. Search Engine Journal. December 2008
4. Skiba DJ. Nursing education 2.0: Twitter & tweets. Can you post a nugget of knowledge in 140 characters or less? Nurs Educ Pers 2008 Mar-Apr;29(2):110-2.