A scientific version of popular social-networking site Twitter has been launched.
Called Sciencefeed, its owners describe it as a ‘real-time micro blogging tool designed for scientists”.
The aim is to speed up international scientific debate, with rapidfire exchanges of thought between informed academics.
Where Twitter users may comment on the latest fashions, Sciencefeed users are supposed to blog about cutting-edge research discoveries.
‘The world wide web was originally developed to spread research results easier and faster: I think with Sciencefeed we are giving something [of] the old meaning back to the web,” said Dr Ijad Madisch, founding member and chief executive of Sciencefeed.
The network will enable users to post ideas, feedback, reactions and resources. As with Twitter, they will be able to ‘follow” other users and monitor their posts, respond to their entries and comment on topics.
A communiqué from the service says: ‘This kind of instant backand-forth will produce spontaneous, dynamic exchange that used to be possible only in a face-to-face environment.”
It says one benefit of Sciencefeed is that the exchange is not required to be immediate: ‘Unlike instant-messaging services, users do not have to be online simultaneously to work together or stay updated. By following the postings of certain individuals, or within specific networks or groups, users can stay up to date on developments, quickly filter information according to their interests, and organise their resources.”
Sciencefeed will be compatible with other social media platforms, so users can share their posts with their contacts on Twitter, Facebook and FriendFeed and other similar services without having to log off from Sciencefeed.
Madisch says: ‘Sciencefeed is science as it happens. We hope that it will become a bridge between online scientific networking platforms, scientific databases and the wider online science world and enable scientists to conduct breakthrough research.” — University World News