Today's Buzz

• Can Facebook keep growing?
  Facebook says it has 1 billion active users, and is planning a marketing push to ensure that its growth continues. The network is targeting countries such as Japan, Russia and South Korea that have relatively low rates of Facebook use, as well as emerging markets such as Brazil. "Facebook's growth has to slow down at some point. ... But it seems clear that the world's largest social network still has plenty of room to become even bigger," Ben Parr writes. Advertising Age (tiered subscription model) (10/8), CNET (10/7)      

• Opinion: Facebook has sown the seeds of its own destruction
  USA TODAY (10/8)      

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• ResearchGate aims to storm the ivory tower of science publishing
  Berlin startup ResearchGate wants to be the Facebook of academic research, and with 2 million active users it may be on its way, Bobbie Johnson writes. Founder Ijad Madisch, a Harvard-trained virologist, says the network is attracting young researchers and may add a Klout-style reputation system that lets researchers publish data for community review. GigaOm (10/6)      

• StubHub scrambles after obscene tweet
  A Twitter operator for online-ticketing outfit StubHub was a little too enthusiastic on Friday about the start of the weekend, posting an obscene message about his desire to leave. The company posted a swift apology, saying the tweet had been "unauthorized." Mashable (10/5)      

• For politicians, posting to Tumblr beats kissing babies
  The campaigns of President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney are leaning on social networks, experts say. Facebook and Twitter are de rigueur, but the campaigns also are posting quirky clips to Tumblr and other sites in the hope of winning over younger voters. "The more people you talk to, the more likely you are to win. ... Social extends and amplifies that," says Zachary Moffatt, digital director for the Romney campaign. The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (10/7)      

• Other News

• Britain's prime minister gets a baptism by fire on Twitter
  The Guardian (London) (10/7)      

• Social media is as tempting as smoking or alcohol
  Resisting logging onto social media sites has become a top temptation, according to researchers at the University of Chicago. Facebook and Twitter now rank as similar to cigarettes, alcohol and sex, the researchers say. Los Angeles Times/Money & Co. blog (tiered subscription model) (10/5)      

• Pinterest is passé, L'Oréal's social media chief says
  Pinterest is getting boring, says Rachel Weiss of L'Oréal. While her company is still keeping an eye on brand-focused Pinterest developments, Weiss says she has stopped putting so much time and energy into playing around with the network. "I was making so many boards on Pinterest and then I just stopped and went back to Facebook," she says. Business Insider (10/7)      

• 6 marketing tips for businesses that are still anti-social
  Success with social media marketing is about forming relationships with your followers -- something that doesn't happen overnight, according to Kristin Slice of Three Dog Marketing. "You would not run into a marketing event, throw out a bunch of fliers and yell 'Do business with me!' " said Slice. It's also important to realize that some social networks may be better-suited to your business than others are. SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Social Media (10/8)      

• The rise of the social workforce
  Social media is changing the way that we do business, with many aspects of personal social networking seeping into the enterprise, says Edelman Digital managing director David Armano. "Anyone that works in a professional environment is increasingly becoming used to the social experience, the digital social experience that you get from networks like Facebook, Twitter, and Google+," Armano says. PSFK.com (10/7)      

• Got a college degree? You're qualified to be a human scarecrow
  Bangor University graduate Jamie Fox has found a job that lets him read and practice his ukulele while picking up a steady paycheck. Wearing a bright orange jacket, Fox sits in the middle of a field of crops and periodically honks an accordion or clatters a cowbell to scare off hungry birds. BBC (10/5)      

Top five news stories selected by SmartBrief on Social Media readers in the past week.

• Ugly debate tweet leaves KitchenAid in a spin (Los Angeles Times)

• The golden rule for Instagram users (YouTube)

• How Google+ could conquer mobile (TheNextWeb.com)

• There's more to life than clicks, Facebook tells advertisers (SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Social Media)

• Kitten photos are good for you, scientists say (BuzzFeed)

• Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.

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Facebook is cookie-cutter-ish. Facebook is boring. Facebook verges on the totally square." --Michael Wolff, writing in USA TODAY