Is this why we're all addicted to social media?

Why do you go on Facebook or Twitter, or Instagram for that matter? To post pictures of yourself having a whale of a time, or to browse pics of your friends and 'friends' having a whale of a time? I know I have whiled many the hour away by getting drawn into the world of a long-lost school pal on Facebook or an oversharing celeb on Insta.

And apparently, this is nature taking its course.

According to Bruce Hood of Bristol University, social media addiction is all part of evolution, or more specifically it's about the shrinking of the human brain.

Around 20,000 years ago, the human brain began shrinking and Hood believes that this was because humans were starting to become domesticated and were turning into social creatures that thrive on gossip. Social media websites such as Facebook and Twitter provide the perfect outlets for our need of gossip.

"The fact that many people have a compulsion to engage with lots of people via social media isn’t really that surprising. Our brains have evolved for us to be social animals."

It's not all that surprising; back before social media sure weren't we all twitching our curtains and whispering about each other by the washing well?

Funnily enough, there's a downside to twitching on people on social media. While it is a good outlet for our social needs, we are unfortunately not expanding our mental horizons as a result.

"What’s interesting is that you might assume that the wider exposure to differing views that social media brings would make us all much more open-minded. What we see in reality of course is the opposite. People seem more likely to slot into niche groups of thought online than in real life.’

Via Metro

Who's the last person you spied on, on Facebook?