Last week Twitter was touting its most popular topics, and this week Facebook follows suit with its own list. Where Twitter had a lot of current events and unusual conversational topics on its list, Facebook also features some perennial subjects, such as sports, religion and family. But the most interesting item on the list is the No. 1  slot, devoted to Facebook applications, such as the ubiquitous social game Farmville.

What does that say about how those two platforms are being used? I think it suggests that Facebook is the more personal of the two networks. Twitter is a broadcasting tool — which is why SmartBrief is all over it — while Facebook is less about sharing information or making new connections and more about living your life online — whatever that means to you. From a business angle, it wouldn’t surprise me if building a connection on Facebook was more valuable than a Twitter connection — think of it as the difference between hanging out with someone in their house or talking to them at a bar. One feels a lot more organic and more personal, while the other is better for turning a lot of heads in a hurry.

Is Facebook really the more personal network? Are there things you’d say on Facebook, but not on Twitter? How about the other way around?

Related posts:

1. The social network that gets spies talking
2. Facebook and privacy: What’s in it for me?
3. Proceed with caution: Everyday dangers of social media, part 2