Facebook’s new test feature shows what you share in common with strangers

Facebook wants you to connect with strangers in a more meaningful way—or it’s at least going to show strangers things you have in common with them. The social network is testing out a new “things in common” feature in the US that will show tidbits of information about you when you do things like comment on public posts. It’ll show things like “Went to the University of so-and-so” or “From this part of the world.” It’ll only show information you’ve decided to make public. But whether this will be good or bad for public discourse is something we don’t know yet, especially if you’re discussing a hot-button topic. But Facebook hopes it helps people connect with each other.

"Knowing shared things in common helps people connect," the spokesperson told Engadget. "We're testing adding a 'things in common' label that will appear above comments from people who you're not friends with but you might have something in common with. Only information that people made publicly available on their profiles will be eligible to show up." There isn’t any word though if this feature will end up as an actual feature for the social network.