A bold new theory is claiming that the humble kitchen fridge was the original inspiration for Facebook, drawing multiple parallels between the common household appliance and the rampant social media platform. Watsonia social scientist Jack Lewis presented the controversial hypothesis to trusted peers earlier this week, and is now shopping around for a way to make the idea go viral.

The premise is actually quite thought-provoking, and could change the way many people look at the modern world and the way we interact with our fellow humans. Lewis said the inspiration for the theory came to him earlier this year when he had opened his fridge door for the seventh time in less than two hours “just to have a look”.

From that light-bulb moment, he commenced researching the idea, and is now convinced that refrigerators must’ve had at least some small role in inspiring the current form of Facebook, if not inventing the whole thing. When Lewis presenting his theory this week, he left many esteemed social media theologians astounded by the accuracy of his observations.

In an extensive interview with The Watsonia Bugle, Lewis said, “Firstly, the kind of things that you stick on your fridge door are very similar to what you post on your Facebook wall. Photos, invitations to events, recipes, magnets that reflect your hobbies and interests, postcards from friends bragging about holidays, thank you notes, and amusing or inspirational quotes.”

Lewis then explained the interesting juxtaposition of what’s on your fridge door (i.e. things you’re happy for people to see) and what’s actually in your fridge (i.e. last week’s leftover pizza that you’re working your way through, and some unknown organism that has been growing unabated in a Tupperware container for the last two months at the back of the second shelf). He claimed that the conflict between the public persona of your fridge and its embarrassing reality provided a useful metaphor to describe the many Facebook users that portray a certain kind of online lifestyle that severely contradicts their actual lives.

In addition to those damning parallels, Lewis also mentioned a couple of minor similarities. He said, “How often do you just check Facebook because you’re bored? Bingo bango, that’s just like opening your fridge when you’re bored, in the vain hope that something will have changed in there even though deep down you know it will just contain the same stuff you saw half an hour ago. Plus, have you ever over used Facebook after a few beers? You get the point. Facebook is essentially a fridge.”

While Lewis is hoping to at least get a TED Talk to present his new theory, he’s also happy to share it in any way he can. Tell your friends, they’ll love it.

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