We've all pretended to be interested in Bing, Facebook and Twitter's little statistics dumps. But as of today, we no longer need to stifle our yawns. Because the big one is here. Google Zeitgeist 2011.
As the world's most popular search engine, Google has its finger on the pulse when it comes to knowing exactly what we're interested in. And while Twitter, Facebook and Bing may pretend we're all hooked on TOWIE, Egyptian protests and trampy-looking girls, Google cuts to the heart of the matter and tells us what we really want.
And what we want to know is this. What is scampi?Google's Fastest Rising UK Searches of 2011
Here are the ten most exciting, intriguing and on trend things that happened this year. Prepare to be amazed.
Royal Wedding - The undoubted top story of the year on Google was the marriage of Prince William to Kate Middleton. Or, as we know her following the wedding, Princess Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Sister of a Her With the Nice Bottom. iPhone 5 - It's not out yet, and we're still excited about it. The untimely death of Steve Jobs has done nothing to diminish the UK's passion for Apple products. FIFA 12 - Yes, the third hottest search in 2011 was for a game with 2012 in the title. Some of us in the office can remember Leeds reserve 'keeper Mark Beeney's pixellated nose in FIFA 97, and we think today's gamers will harbour fond memories of Wayne Rooney's photorealistic mug in FIFA 12. Groupon - The UK's premier supplier of discount colonic irrigation and cut-price pedicures received more than its fair share of searches last year. Imagine the disappointment people felt when they realised there's not much worth buying iPad 2 - Yup. We still love Apple. Ryan Dunn - The late J ackass star died in June following a car crash. We'd like to think that most of these searches took users to YouTube clips of men setting each other on fire and leaping off of things. It's what he would have wanted. Adele - Popular song-warbler Adele ballooned in popularity this year, probably because everyone's forgotten that ridiculous "chasing pavements" song that blighted 2008. Good on them if they have. Minecraft - Online peasanthood simulator Minecraft lets you experience the joys of farming, mining and building your own rustic shack. And then attacks you with giant spiders. It's actually brilliant. Rebecca Black - If you missed out on her horrendous "Friday" song, count yourself lucky. And don't go searching for it. Trust us. Ed Sheeran - Ginger-haired Yorkshire singer Ed is only 20 and he's already on the Google Zeitgeist list. He's like an uglier Halifax-based Justin Bieber.
The Top "What Is?" Searches of 2011
We like asking Google questions. And Google like making a note of what questions we've been asking so it can embarrass us in December.
What is AV? - The Alternative Voting System was called Nick Clegg's "miserable little compromise". And with a tagline like that, there's no wonder that people voted against it. What is scampi? - Scampi is a fish-based food, involving various molluscs and white fish deep fried in breadcrumbs. It tastes nothing like Scampi Fries, which are a wheat-based pub snack. What are truffles? - Either a sort of fungus, or a type of chocolate. Don't mix the two up, because chocolate pasta isn't great. What are piles? - Are you sitting comfortably? If you aren't, you know what piles are. What is 4D? - It's a marketing gimmick What are cookies? - Either a baked snack food, or something that makes the internet work and that the EU doesn't understand in the slightest. The fools. What is copyright? - It's a legal device that's stopping you from reproducing this blog post on your scraped article site that's hosted in India. You know who you are What is zumba? - It's a fun way to get fit, ap parently. Our web designer prefers Boxercise. Bless him. What is iCloud? - Apple's attempt to brand cloud computing. It's the little "i" that gives the game away. What is probate? - It's the legal process of administering the estate of a deceased person by resolving all claims and distributing the deceased person's property. Apparently.
Rising and Falling People
Google have also let us know who's been hot in 2011, and who most certainly has not. Which is bad news for a cavalcade of X Factor contestants and a certain Deputy Prime Minister that nobody agrees with anymore
Rising:
Ryan Dunn (Deceased Jackass star) Adele (Singer) Rebecca Black (YouTube "sensation) Ed Sheeran (Singer) Amy Winehouse (Deceased singer) Charlie Sheen (Tiger-blooded Winner) Steve Jobs (Deceased entrepeneur) Kate Middleton (Future Queen) Nicki Minaj (Singer) Darren Criss (Actor/Singer)
Falling:
Nick Clegg (Politician) Maradona (Legendary footballer, ex-Argentina manager) Alicia Keys (Singer) Heidi Montag ("Media Personality") Alexandra Burke (X Factor Winner) Hayley Williams (Singer) Joe McElderry (X Factor Winner) Stephenie Meyer (Terrible author) Robert Pattinson (Terrible actor) Shakira (Singer)
Well, that's it for 2011 trends season. We'll be waiting patiently for December 2012 when we predict Google will be telling us that we've all been chatting about the London Olympics, Euro 2012 and the inexplicable popularity of someone who uploaded a funny video to YouTube.
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