McDonald’s is an interesting place. The one on Rue de Passy, in the 16th arrondissement of Paris where old money lives, fascinates me. During winter, the seating area in the basement of this McDo—as the French call it—turns into a social space that usually does not exist in this wealthy neighborhood. Young children drag their grandparents who are dressed in thick fur coats into the fast-food chain; youthful backpackers tap into the free WiFi to check their emails and itineraries; and in the corner, a small group of homeless people huddle over their cups of coffee. The basement certainly doesn’t transform into a mega social networking event, but it pulls people from socially different paths and brings an alternate view to their regular field of vision.

Cities are built in ways that allow us to establish individual routines, but there also remain pockets that are capacious enough for the different corners of society to share a common space. As our daily path on the Internet become ritualized and more predictable (Gmail, check. Facebook, check. NYTimes, check), and as web portals becoming increasingly specialized to cater to consumer tribes, will there be space for a collision of unexpected social encounters? How will this alter the way we understand and experience search engines?

Above, a McDonald’s in Chicago’s theater district. The relevance of the picture? Perhaps a note to self to look beyond the theatrics of anti-corporate punching. The stuff on the ground’s usually more interesting.