How a Cute Facebook Game Shaped the Modern Internet

"Viscerally satisfying" ... a FarmVille player in 2008. Photo: David J Green/Lifestyle/Alamy

Facebook users of a certain age may recall a particularly abandoned farm animal that popped up in their feeds during the platform's heyday. The lonely cow would wander into FarmVille players' pastures, frowning and eyes glistening with tears. "She's feeling really sad and needs a new home," read an accompanying caption, asking you to adopt the cow or ask your friends for help. Ignore the cow's plea, and she'd presumably be left friendless and without food. Message your friends about it, and you'd be accelerating the spread of ...