Interesting Facts

According to research published in Research in Nature Neuroscience, people with a busy social life appear to have more volume in a specific part of the brain called the amygdala. (The amygdala region of the brain is already linked to emotional and mental well being, and now it appears to be larger in people with complex social networks.  So it looks as if size does matter.) 

According to the Petplan pet census 50% of people in the UK think that having a pet improves their social life. (In fact 72% of respondents said that strangers were more likely to interact with them if they were with their pet.  Now of course this could be a good or a bad thing, depending on the stranger, but  it looks like if you want to improve your English, get a dog and move to the UK.)

Scientists at Cambridge University say they have located the brain areas that may determine how sociable a person is. (Warm, sentimental people tend to have more brain tissue in the outer strip of the brain just above the eyes and in a structure deep in the brain's centre. Interestingly these are the same zones that allow people to enjoy chocolate and sex. So, being sociable has its own rewards.) Source: European Journal of Neuroscience.