The online world can be very expressive, but I don't think that gesture necessarily translates to the online world. Instead, I think that online conversations have adapted to the point where there is a new means of expression. There are smiley faces, asterisks to denote sarcasm, acronyms, etc. Each of these things portrays a certain emotion or tone, but it does not necessarily have a direct translation to a human gesture. For example, when a person types "lol" that doesn't necessarily mean he or she is actually laughing out loud. More likely, the person just found a comment humorous, and "lol" is the only way to express that via online conversations. In addition, some physical gestures are involuntary, but convey a great deal (giggles, frowns, raising of eyebrows, clenching of fists). In an online conversation, a person has more time to consider his or her response.