Haiku 042509

sunrise
her opening act
birdsong

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Recently, we read the following:


New York Times: "Why I Am Obsessed With Twitter" (by Jenna Wortham)

"It’s official. The Oprah effect has worked its magic on Twitter.

"Since Oprah Winfrey’s first on-air tweet Friday, traffic to Twitter has jumped 43 percent, according to Hitwise, a Web tracker…. Personally, I’m obsessed with Twitter. I’m a fascinated voyeur, transfixed by the streams of bursts, musings, insights and complaints unfurling before my eyes.

"But many people, including the Times columnist Maureen Dowd, are wondering what all the fuss is about. Why would they possibly want to add yet another technological tool to their lives, on top of e-mail and Facebook and everything else that competes for their scarce time? ….

"Twitter is much more than the collective musings of the tech-savvy elite. It’s a window into the public mind, as my colleague Claire Cain Miller recently reported. Since the service tugs at our innermost navel-gazing ... the flood of messages can deliver surprising insights into the digital pulse….

"... Twitter in many ways delivers on the promises of the Internet. It reminds me of a quote by J.G. Ballard, whose recent death I learned about and was heartened to see mourned on Twitter.... [H]ere’s a slightly longer version:

" 'Twenty years ago, no one could have imagined the effects the Internet would have: entire relationships flourish, friendships prosper. … There’s a vast new intimacy and accidental poetry, not to mention the weirdest porn. The entire human experience seems to unveil itself like the surface of a new planet.' ”

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And we thought:

.... Another tool to encourage and enhance interconnectedness? Or to further increase distractions -- in our already-fractured lives? Whichever it is for now, intended or not,"Twitter, take a bow!" ....

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