59% of Emirati Twitter users are women

This may sound like a surprising statistics, but according to a recent independent study by Emirati journalist, Ahmad Al Mansour, 59% of Emirati Twitter users are female in comparison to 41% of male Emirati users.

The study was conducted to gain deeper insight into the factors contributing to the burst of Twitter growth in the region, specifically the UAE. Other interesting findings show that Emirati’s mainly use Twitter as a social networking platform to meet and connect with others, and have largely only taken to Twitter within the last couple of years.

See the full story here.

Emirati women trust Twitter over Facebook

In a separate survey by Hessah Hareb, researcher at Dubai’s Zayed University, it has been found that “female Emiratis are digitally confident and competent”, Tweeting on average seven times a day in comparison to the global average of one post per day. The study found that these posts are largely personal thoughts and philosophy, with very few Tweets about news or current affairs.

Interestingly, the study additionally found that Emirati women as taking to Twitter, but leaving Facebook in large numbers due to their mistrust of privacy settings, and the increasingly “awkward” layout.

See the full story here.

The new Twitter

Twitter this week rolled out their new look profiles pages. Adopting a Timeline-like cover display on main pages, the site now allows for more visual creativity and personalization.

Here’s a bit of inspiration courtesy of Mashable!

Not changed yours yet? Learn how to here.

Winklevoss Twins back social networking

After a short stint in the world of acting, with star roles in the Wonderful Pistachios ad, the Winklevoss Twins are back at the social networking game! Best known for their disputed role over the prolonged “who created Facebook” saga, the twins are now backing SumZero, a professional networking site created in 2008 by fellow disputer, Divya Narendra.

Accoridng to WSJ, SumZero describes itself as “the largest online community for hedge fund, mutual fund and private equity professionals,” and has users from funds including Greenlight, Pershing Square and Weiss Asset Management.

Read the full story here.

**Emoticon turns 30! **

Born September 19, 1982, the emoticon (a portmanteau of emotion and icon) turned 30 this week! Born on the internet, what used to be a simple textual smiley face has certainly been through a fair few changes over the years with adoption on multiple tech platforms.

In celebration, here are some rather disturbing smileys on famous faces, courtesy of Mashable.

Read more about the history of the emoticon here.