Can Twitter determine whether you and your significant other will break up?
A recent survey by the online dating site OkCupid suggests that it actually can. After surveying 833,000 of its members about their Twitter usage, results showed that frequent Twitter users' relationships were 5 percent to 10 percent shorter than those who did not use the social networking site.
"People who Tweet live their life in shorter bursts," says Christian Rudder, OkCupid's co-founder and editorial director. While OkCupid is not a research institution, its findings do support an ongoing concern about how technology is affecting personal relationships in the 21st century. Psychologist Sherry Turkle of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology says that although social networking sites and technological devices have made it easier for people to connect, they have also undermined real intimacy.
"We're texting at a distance," says Turkle. "We're using inanimate objects to convince ourselves that even when we're alone, we feel together. And then when we're with each other, we put ourselves in situations where we feel alone — constantly on our mobile devices."
It's pretty sad how obsessed our society has become with staying connected to the Internet, our phones, social networking sites — everything but human beings. Technology is great, but only when it's used in moderation. The world will not come to an end if you put your phone away at dinner or don't check your email at the top of the hour. As much as we rely on technology, the reality is that Facebook, Twitter and phones won't keep you warm at night, so why not pay attention to the person who can?
Read more at Obama to Hold Facebook Town Hall.
In other news: Law Student Complains of Too Much Black Representation on Campus.