Things We Learned Today

By Mimi

Note to those with relationships on shaky ground: you might be able to predict when your beau might pull the plug—or beat him to it. Such foresight is now thanks to Facebook. A group of curious Facebookers plumbed the site for pseudo-scientific purposes—or at least purposes useful to the broken-hearted (that is to say, depending on the day or time of year of the break-up, you may very well not be alone in your heartache).

Writer/designer/amateur statistician David McCandless and some of his colleagues looked at about 10,000 Facebook status updates over the course of a year, searching for words related to break-ups. They found that most break-ups happen on Mondays, right before spring break, two weeks before Christmas and at some point before summer (some people like to start the summer solo). The biggest plunge in break-ups came on Christmas day.

Sadly, the Facebook study can’t predict if you’re dating someone who will suddenly turn into a jerk or shut down emotionally. But if it results in a break-up, it’ll most likely happen on a Monday, right before spring break or the summer months and—the benefits of last-minute shopping now made plain—two weeks before Christmas.

If you undergo a break-up during the off-seasons, which appear to occur in early winter, throughout the summer and into fall, don’t worry, that’s why we’re here.