Google news posted a story about how many Mexicans are living virtual lives as they stay indoors to keep themselves safe from the swine flu. This could turn out to be an interesting case study about how social networking could be used in the future.
What I found quite interesting are the examples of teenagers getting bored staying on the computer all day. I think this can serve to dispel the myth that social networking is going to turn us all into couch potatoes. It seems evident that social networking is simply another way to “socialize”, but it can not replace actual human interaction. Given the opportunity, I think most of us would much rather socialize in person, but when we can’t do that, virtual socialization fills the gap.
