[JimtheCoder]

Yes! Public transit is mentioned, so this is now a certified HN thread.

But seriously, whenever I go for a walk, people with dogs are the only ones I see stopping and interacting with each other.

It seems like the dogs have the right idea, and they take their humans with them...

[ncr100]

In my opinion, I see this as affirming that sharing resources can facilitate human interaction.

In this case "personal space". I speculate this increase in interaction is dogs facilitate boundaries being crossed with people.

Boundaries like: they sniff (suggesting something important is smelly, to us all with noses), stare (eye contact communicating starts), make odd sounds (prompting communication), are furry + warm (texturally appealing for touching), and they are usually naked (shocking taboo trigger). In short, they are "an experience" to most nearby humans.

Extrapolating, when one person depends on another person, this can deepen a relationship (good / bad). So, to increase human interactions, increase number of scenarios where we depend upon each other.

[hammock]

Note also that dogs themselves will interact with just about every dog they see, even moreso than the dog owners interact with each other.