About hashtags: I definitely think their techno-utilitarian value is often misunderstood. However, what I find interesting about hashtags (probably because of my position as an anthropologist…) is their role in cultural transmission of learned behaviors. For instance, the tagging system on Tumblr is often used to make subliminal jokes on reblogged posts–not exactly the intended usage, but one that Tumblr users are acculturated into.

Or what about the idea on Tumblr (and, to a much lesser extent, Twitter) that you “can’t tag hate”–so, for example, the tag #JustinBieber is for people are going to share positive messages about him and shouldn’t be usurped by haters. This norm is a cultural idea, not a technical one.

I guess what I’m saying is that hashtagging is a pretty fruitful area of study for people who use it for its intended purpose (like you guys and your awesome food truck project) as well as for people who study how people use it incorrectly (the Tumblr users who just tag as a way of being funny) or use it in a way slightly different from its intended purpose (the cultural idea on Tumblr that tags should only be utilized by fans, not anti-fans).