The strange things people search for on the web
Monday, 4 August 2008
The internet is one of humanity’s great creations, an awe-inspiring gathering of our collective knowledge. So what do we like to search for on it? Well, mostly trivia or ways to make money.
Hitwise global research manager Bill Tancer has put together a list of some of the most searched for terms drawn from a database of 10 million US web users:
- Where is my stimulus check (cheque)?
- Where is Steve Bartman?
- Where is Lichtenstein?
- Where is my stimulus payment?
- Where is my stimulas [sic] check?
- Where is my tax refund?
- Where is heaven?
- Where is Bahrain?
- Where is the Grand Canyon?
- Where is my liver?
Four of the 10 are about money – either the stimulus payment being doled out by the US Government to kick-start its flagging economy, or tax refunds.
The others are a bit stranger. Lichtenstein is the location of the bank where the Lowy family, among others, are alleged to have stashed money, and Steve Bartman is a guy who was recently offered $25,000 to sign a picture of when he knocked the ball away from a fielder during a recent baseball championship.
The number seven query may be beyond even the power of Google to answer, and number 10, well, it makes you wonder what they teach in the schools over there.
Read more on search trends
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