Fans of Twitter laud the micro blogging site it for its ability to clue individuals in on what’s happening “now” and for its “real time” analysis of trends so current, they aren’t even trendy yet.

And Adam Wilson trumped them all this earlier this month with a tweet so “in the now,” he completely bypassed typing it… the tweet went out straight from his mind to the Twitteratti masses.

It should be mentioned that Adam Wilson is a biomedical engineering doctoral student at the University of Wisconsin Madison researching technology that could one day aid individuals who otherwise cannot communicate, but it’s hard to get past the the-future-is-now-and-it’s-so-freakin-cool factor.

The tweet in question was 23 characters long and read, “using EEG to send tweet.” In reality, the process is still slow and clunky, with users strapping a brain monitor on and crafting a message letter by letter from an alphabet flashing on a computer screen.

In a release, Wilson further explained how the technology worked: "The way this works is that all the letters come up, and each one of them flashes individually. And what your brain does is, if you're looking at the 'R' on the screen and all the other letters are flashing, nothing happens. But when the 'R' flashes, your brain says, 'Hey, wait a minute. Something's different about what I was just paying attention to.' And you see a momentary change in brain activity."

Click to see Wilson’s mind reader in action.

Advances in medical technology aside, it’s notable how Twitter lent itself to the promotion of a mind reading device. Critics often blast Twitter as a collection of unfiltered musings containing nothing of value. As ESPN’s Bill Simmons so bluntly put it, the Twitterati’s mindset toward writing can be summed up as, “’here are my half-baked thoughts about absolutely anything and I'm not even going to attempt to entertain you.’"

With that thought, perhaps it’s time to stop describing Twitter as “real-time” and start touting it as a peek into the collective mind of the Internet.

(Image courtesy of UW-Madison)

You can find me too: @LifeTipsLady 

Tweet tweet!

Fans of pioneering online sports writer/pop-culture critic Bill Simmons have been bugging the ESPN.com columnist to join the increasing number of journalists tweeting on Twitter. His thoughtful response:

...Twitter and Facebook reflect where our writing is going thanks to the Internet. In 15 years, writing went from "reflecting on what happened and putting together some coherent thoughts" to "reflecting on what happened as quickly as possible" to "reflecting on what's happening as it's happening" to "here are my half-baked thoughts about absolutely anything and I'm not even going to attempt to entertain you," or as I like to call it, Twitter/Facebook Syndrome.

I've long maintained that social media enthusiasts who claim Twitter and Facebook are communication devices for networking and sharing are off base. The driving force behind Web 2.0 is exhibitionism and expression. This is particularly evident if you take a look at Facebook’s application directory sorted by “Most Active Users:”

• Super Wall - The best way to find and share entertaining videos, pictures, graffiti, and more with your friends!
• Causes - Make a difference, on Facebook!
• Top Friends - Own your profile with Top Friends! Now you can CUSTOMIZE your Top Friends Profile! Choose your skin, add music and more. Give and receive exclusive awards, show off your mood and keep tabs on the people you really care about with Top Friends News!

Each app allows the user to essentially shout out to other users, “HERE I AM, I AM WRITING ON YOUR PROFILE WALL, I AM CONCERNED ABOUT THESE THINGS, I AM BEST FRIENDS WITH ALL THESE WONDERFULY ATTRACTIVE HIPSTERS!”

It is the exhibitionist quality of Twitter is what makes it a success with users (though not a money maker, as I may have mentioned), because everyone tweeting wants to be heard -- or read. Unfortunately, as Bill Simmons observes, many of them have nothing interesting to say.

For proof, check out Twit or Not, an addictive take on the infamous Hot or Not which allows users to vote which tweets are the most boring. Go ahead and kill a couple hours. I just did.