Reading this makes me smile. Thank you

Quite simple: The content of a post saying "wow" is of roughly the same value as upvoting, but takes people reading the comments more time to parse, without adding anything useful to the conversation.

I find the "General Conduct" section of SA rules explains that kind of thing simply and clearly and in terms that apply basically across the entire internet. http://www.somethingawful.com/forum-rules/forum-rules/ The HN rules kind of don't explain this kind of thing as they assume you're tech- and internet-savvy already.

It's a perfectly respectable response but as I understand it HN wants to keep noise to a minimum, and I guess the downvoters think that since "wow" doesn't actually contribute to discussion in any substantial way it should not be here. Don't take it personally, I think it's just an attempt to keep the thread clean.

You have to keep in mind that even the humans on HN are robots or robotic in nature. Wanton externalizations of emotional states is undefined behavior and simply treated as noise by the hive mind.

Thank you guys for taking the time to explain. I will contribute more than just "wow" next time. I was just fascinated. I opened up the page and began hearing conversations! Since it was like 4 AM my time, I realized: most of the noise would be quiet.

So I click to the other side of the world.. where there was plenty of "noise"! It's quite interesting to listen to people on the other side of the world... as my side is sleeping, they are awake and business as usual.

When the skies are peaceful, at least when the radio waves are showing that the world is conducting normal business, there is comfort in knowing that.