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If Twitter really does reach the far recesses of the earth, then doesn't it make sense for us to harness that diversity of opinions? We've seen the effects of Twitter on emergency aid, nonprofit fundraising and political outreach. However, if we just want to crowdsource a simple question like "Which of these 3 movies should I see?" or "Which of these is your favorite blogging platform?" a simple poll would suffice. Below is a list of 6 services you can use to get the answers you need from your Twitter friends and followers:

We've argued in the past that Twitter can be a platform for serious discourse and our own Marshall Kirkpatrick famously stated last year that Twitter is even paying his rent (by which he meant that Twitter had become an invaluable tool in his blogging). But while Twitter can be a great facilitator of discussion, it can also be hard to follow and there's something of a steep learning curve for new users. The four startups below aim formalize the discussion in Twitter around organized polls.