Gossip as grooming? In 2001, a major cell phone company BT Cellnet commissioned researchers at a UK social research centre (SIRC), to verify if gossip was good for one’s health. If gossip was good for you, then SMS messages, Twittering and talking with friends on our cell phone, Smartphone or BlackBerry about the “latest news” could facilitate this “healthy” pursuit. Was this just another way to sell cell phones? Or is gossip actually good for your health?

Just enter your name at the Personas Project website and this innovative art project that is part of the Metropath(ologies) exhibit, currently on display at the MIT Museum by the Sociable Media Group from the MIT Media Lab will search the web for information and with its sophisticated natural language processing will create a portrait of your online identity.