So... whatcha doin' over there on that laptop, denizens of the world? Well, according to a new study from Nielsen showing Internet usage in April 2010, 22% of the time, you're engaging with social media.

Yeah, 22% might not seem like a mammoth percentage, but you have to take into account the fact that this finding is on a global scale. Also, a few more telling takeaways from the report:

Currently, three quarters of Internet users worldwide visit a social network or blog when they go online — that's a 24% increase over last year.

Joe Average (the international version) spends 66% more time on these sites than he did a year ago — for example, your average user spent 6 hours on these sites in April 2010, while last year he spent 3 hours, 31 minutes.

Facebook, YouTube and Wikipedia make an appearance among the world's most popular brands.

We've seen ample proof of the burgeoning popularity of social media in the past — just two months ago, Nielsen reported similar growth — and it makes sense. Facebook has been giving Google a run for its money when it comes to traffic, and YouTube recently surpassed two billion views per day.

We'll have to see how social media usage shakes out as Facebook continues to accrue users, and YouTube dips its toe into the newsfeed business in an attempt to become a legit news source.

In the meantime, check out a few more highlights from the study:

Brazil boasts the largest percentage of Internet users visiting a social network –- 86%

Australians spend the most time on social networking sites: an average of 7 hours and 19 minutes in April — the U.S. and Italy came in second and third with six and a half hours each.

Facebook has the greatest share of the market in Italy in April 2010, garnering two-thirds of the active unique audience in April 2010. Australia, the U.S. and the UK came in on Italy's heels with more than 60% of active users visiting the site.

How much time do you spend on social networking sites? Has your hunger for social media contributed to this global increase?

image courtesy of iStockphoto, ugurkoban