What a great quote!
Tadhg Ó Raghallaigh is on NPR’s Science Friday right now…no, I’m not twittering about it!…and he came out with the phrase (“Ambient Temperature Around a Problem”), as a way of describing how an agency such as the EPA can use social networking tools to gather intel to help them sort out issues and potential solutions.
Interesting that with the RIGHT group of followers, one can use Twitter to gather information as well as disseminate information quickly and without spending a lot of time. Transparently. And, without permission. Hmmm! Sounds like something out of the Anarchist’s Cookbook as much as the Cluetrain Manifesto. Indeed, on top of the mention of the NPR story, is a blog article about how terrorists might use Twitter. A duh.
I’ve spent a fair amount on animal books, and they truly are examples of excellence in publishing. I am so incredibly jealous of anyone with an O’Reilly shrine like this one:
As a big fan of the O’Reilly empire…Tim’s continual redefinition and re-engineering of the meaning of Web 2.0 means that it will will eventually make sense as a business proposition. As currently defined, Web 2.0 is really nothing more than a way of talking about (and commercializing) resurgence of the web, but it’s important for lawyers to understand that that Web 2.0 companies leverage user information.
Why? Because lawyers tend not to ask for the opinions of others. We’re supposed to know everything. If we ask, it’s other lawyers, books and treatises. All very conservative.
But, what if lawyers start to open to the web? What if they built a channel on twitter,–open only to lawyers, that lawyers could use to ask about case theories in real-time. Chances are, lawyers would begin by using it to ask about the ruling history of cranky old judges, but eventually, they could use it to do case law shouts outs. To test theories amongst peers and to weigh in on drafts about legislation sure to be circultaed by the Obama administration.
This is why companies who just throw a few cute widgets on their websites are throwing away money. Gathering information from users without using it is NOT Web 2.0. For Web 2.0, you need to think deeply about what data means to you and how you can participate in the international feedback loops created by broad adoption of Internet standards.
With the right tweaking, other functions (such as real-time, cross-jurisdictional investigation of criminal defendants) aren’t far behind, so I look forward to the continued evolution of Web 2.0+ in the legal space.
What it might take, however, is for Twitter to publish a more conservative channel,–after all, only cool lawyers will admit to being twits.
