Poising queries to our online social networks is nothing new. When we need a restaurant recommendation or an opinion about a drainage pipe, we turn to those we know and deem more trustworthy than a soulless machine for their opinions.

Questions like:

“Attention Winos… Need recommendation on Light Wine?”

“Can I use this brow gel as clear mascara, too?“

A new survey conducted by MIT and Microsoft Research asked a sample set of social media users on the kinds of questions they tend to post online. Here were the results:

The core of social media, and it’s true power, lies in its ability to bring us all together. Our voices are amplified to those who want to hear us speak. We’re more connected, more collaborative and more useful as citizens in an ever-shrinking world.

Search companies like Google are advancing the way their technologies approach the semantic web. While the concept isn’t new, innovations in the way we compile this information will allow the user to one day more quickly find useful and trusted answers to their stupid questions.