EightBlack.

I always get a chuckle when I look at Google’s annual compilation of “most searched topics” or most popular themes for the year. While the “zeitgeist” is far from representative of the global population, it just shows that there are way too many people with way too much time on their hands.

For example, I’m not sure why people are searching for the term “Chinese New Year” when it’s a safe assumption that it is exactly what it refers to. Anna Nicole Smith - (and I know we shouldn’t speak ill of the dead), but seriously, she was yet another small slice of what’s wrong with America.

It baffles me why people are searching for the “IRS”, the US equivalent of our ATO (Australian Tax Office) when in fact, all we try to do for most of our working lives, is avoid them altogether. It’s a bit like searching for “prostate exam”. You know it’s painful, why confirm it in writing?

I could go on. But I’m starting to lose the will to continue typing…

From the Google Zeitgeist home page:

Zeitgeist Explained

zeit·geist | Pronunciation: ‘tsIt-”gIst, ‘zIt | Function: noun | Etymology: German, from Zeit (time) + Geist (spirit) | Date: 1884 | Meaning: the general intellectual, moral, and cultural climate of an era.

The 2007 results must have put a smile on Steve Jobs face. The most popular search term, both in the US and globally was the ubiquitous “iPhone”.

Here’s the fastest rising list - both US and global.

The reference to social networking and video sites should be no surprise. But it should also prove to you that both mediums are no longer “fads”. Ignore at your peril.

As a parent, I can understand the “transformers” listing - and I reckon my 7 year old son was responsible for half the queries to come out of Australia alone!

You can check out the Zeitgeist in all it’s glory here. I’m actually writing to Google now as we speak, as I am convinced they’ve made a monumental error.

There was no reference to the Collingwood Football Club. Maybe they ran out of server space…

* All images courtesy Google 

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This entry was posted on Thursday, January 10th, 2008 at 12:38 pm and is filed under Google, Search Engines. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.