On the few recent occasions that I have dragged myself to a friend’s house, or vice versa, we spend most of the time staring at our smart phones and tablets. What exactly is the benefit of physical proximity in that scenario? “Check out this funny tweet I just sent” doesn’t really count as conversation, does it? And there’s always the one poor guy who didn’t bring his laptop and has to continually ask one of us to check his scores for him. He might as well be watching the game through a hole in a wooden fence like a cartoon character from the 1930s. (via Football on television: Why none of my friends wants to watch football with me. – Slate Magazine)