More than half of those surveyed have had a one night stand, with the average having occurred within the last six months. The results also indicated that Brits engage in sexual intercourse an average of twice per week, each romping lasting about 20 minutes.

With the explosion of sites such as Match, OKCupid, eHarmony, and Zoosk, the idea that more and more people are turning to technology to satisfy their primal urges isn’t particularly surprising. It certainly adds a whole new layer to our posting earlier today about Facebook increasing “face-to-face” time. What some readers may not know is that until January 2008, Facebook’s “looking for” field also contained the options “random play” and “whatever I can get”, an explicitly sex-driven focus which Zuckerberg has been eschewing, moreso with his recent portrayal in The Social Network.

But it seems not so long ago that the notion of “meeting someone online” was particularly taboo, eliciting stern warnings of “be careful”, “call me”, “go with a friend” and the like. But as anyone on Facebook can tell you, our personal information is more readily accessible than ever, and with that a verification of identity, which may cause people to have greater assurance in just who it is they’re meeting.

Looking at how courtship and dating have evolved in the last 10 years, the next 10 should prove to be particularly transformative. Will we be sending e-roses while watching Netflix from our respective beds?

What do you think? Have you ever made that special friend request?

Image found via This is London