Tag Archive for 'social media'

SocialForest: Twitter, Facebook, et al; A Discussion.

chris published on July 27, 2010 in superforest journal. 4 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

I deactivated my Facebook a few days ago, for the third time. I’ve always found it difficult to justify the so-called possession of one because of the seen and unseen implications such social media might have. What do I mean? Well, perhaps an erosion of interpersonal skills. Perhaps a fascination with superficiality. I’ve never even liked the phrase “social media.” It brings to mind the ills of advertising and the notion that society can be packaged and marketed. That said, I’m in the minority, and I’m still finding it possible to interact with my friends in meaningful ways. Maybe even more meaningful ways. But who knows, maybe I’m just a contrarian.

Photo by Moi

I see the potential for social media, though, and I’d like to utilize it in a way that’s conducive to spreading the word about SuperForest. Yes, we have a Twitter account and a Facebook account, but very few ideas about how to use them. We need your help.

What would you like to see SuperForest do with these websites?

What do you like to see on an ideal Facebook page? On an ideal Twitter account?

Do you have any examples of great uses of such websites?

We’d love to hear the answers to these questions as well as any suggestions you may have. You, the SuperForest reader, are the intended market for these ideas we’re giving away for free.

If that’s not a good use of social media, I don’t know what is. Let the discussion begin.

Findings: Trust the Human Race – Generally

chris published on February 9, 2010 in zeitgeist. 1 Comment Tags: , , , , .

It’s a relatively new field, the study of human choices regarding news and multi-format media. That said, a new University of Pennsylvania study, compiled with data from The New York Times, attempts to draw conclusions about just that.

To make sense of these trends in “virality,” the Penn researchers tracked more than 7,500 articles published from August 2008 to February 2009. They assessed each article’s popularity after controlling for factors like the time of day it was published online, the section in which it appeared and how much promotion it received on the Web home page.

A random sample of 3,000 of these articles was rated by independent readers for qualities like providing practical value or being surprising. The researchers also used computer algorithms to track the ratio of emotional words in an article and to assess the relative positivity or negativity.

The computer textual analysis could identify “affect-laden” articles like “Redefining Depression as Mere Sadness” or “When All Else Fails, Blaming the Patient Often Comes Next.” It distinguished positive articles like “Wide-Eyed New Arrivals Falling in Love With the City” from downers like “Germany: Baby Polar Bear’s Feeder Dies.”

More emotional stories were more likely to be e-mailed, the researchers found, and positive articles were shared more than negative ones.

Duh? Maybe, but who cares! Positivity win. It’s nice to see that positivity knows no political boundaries – the article, which you can read HERE, goes on to explain that “awe-inspiring” articles fared much better than articles that might be construed as “anxiety-causing”.

Super,

Chris