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1 78 Million Facebook Users May Die This Year 2011

Does Facebook really have more than 500 million "active" users?

According to data from digital-legacy planning firm Entrustet, a big portion of these users will soon no longer be considered "active," by any reasonable measure. The company compared Facebook usership data with average death rates from the Center for Disease Control, and discovered that this year, around 480,000 Facebook users may pass away in the U.S., and 1.78 million worldwide. These figures are only likely to grow year to year, especially as Facebook expands pass the 600 million user mark.



So many profiles now fall out of the range of an "active" user. Beyond the deceased, there are endless duplicate accounts--Entrustet found that 150% of 20- to 24-year-olds in the U.S. are on Facebook--not exactly a plausible tally. Whats more, a recent Gartner report estimated that in the coming years, roughly one in every ten of your friends on Facebook and other social networks will be nonhuman, meaning theyll be "social bots," automated profiles created by brands and organizations to engage consumers.

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A music video with a penny arcade that animates a song called ‘Ma’agalim’ by Jane Bordeaux.

Thanks to Dan and everyone else who recommended these.

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0580 s13 ms 31 CIE May June 2013 Papers

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