Final - Plurk

The concept of Plurk as a unique environment, a virtual collective of shared experiences (through the individual relation), requires more deliberation than perhaps most “outsiders” would be willing to allow it. The general, uninformed consensus appears to be that this is an unnecessary byproduct of technology, a sort of recycled form of lesser communication. However, when applied to the theory of the Other, as discussed in Radical Alterity, Plurk becomes a device suitable for becoming the Other through anonymity and code.
Plurk is in essence an extension of the self, shared. Announcements of the personal thought status are central to the function of Plurk. But the rules of normal communication do not apply. In the Plurk environment, communication is sharpened, abbreviated. The very layout of Plurk creates a concentrated space, where only specific thoughts can be shared at once. This limiting of individual elaboration creates a more efficient, collaborative machine of thought. Each individual Plurk is one node in a larger web of Superthought, a linking of small ideas forming a massive organism of information and speculation.
Now, this tends to give the impression of a program catering only to ideas of importance and other such grandiose and pretentious forms of logic. On the contrary, Plurk thrives in the superfluous, the afterthought, the illogical. It preserves the art of abstract thought, something that has been lost to the masses for quite some time. But logical conclusions have always been made by taking illogical steps.
And so we have this term, Superthought. “Super” to denote the grand, large, (at times superfluous) and “thought” an abbreviation to afterthought. The Grand Afterthought. The content discussed in Plurk is not always of relative importance to daily life, but it is the theory behind Superthought that is so exciting. We now have a real form of nanocommunication that links a larger group together. We have effectively created a communication organism. Similar to the way nanomachines such as the nants of Postsingular operate, Plurk creates a hive-mind device where each individual is one link to a greater form of communication.
Could Plurk lead to a practical use of nanocomm? Surely it is easy to imagine a scenario in which this would be helpful. Consider it’s capabilities in warfare: Hundreds, thousands of soldiers relaying small pieces of personal observation which is all linked to a program designed to organize and combine information. Imagine real-time mapping, automated tactical stratagems created not by machine but by the collaborative input of a multitude of sources. The speed of information processing would be rapid but human, the result Super but the input nano.
Plurk also has another unique quality, which is the involvement of strangers in the personal issues of another. It is common to see Plurkers discuss relatively unimportant topics with complete strangers. However, this adds to a recognized unity in the Plurk environment. In Plurk, one can address a variety of issues that might not generally appear in outside communication. This creates a haven for the taboo, a place where all topics can be discussed.
In Nanotext, the Plurk experience is informal. It is sarcastic, wry and at times confrontational. This is the play form of nanocomm, the general use of it. What is to come is the workplace form, the science form. The creation of a community in Plurk serves to create a virtual anti-standard of communication, maintaining the life of Superthought and freedom from logic. There is no doubt a connection between small and large, and Plurk is an example of the marriage of both.