Google's Zeitgeist 2011: What has the world been searching for?

Every year Google publishes its Zeitgeist, a trip down the winding rabbit hole of the internet, which looks at the way the world has been searching over the past 12 months and it’s always a very interesting read.

The year of 2011 saw lots of crazy things occupy our time online, like pop sensation Rebecca Black (hmm), the over-hyped Google+ and the still not released iPhone 5. What a dull and fickle bunch we are.

Let’s take a look at some of the other (hopefully more interesting) findings from Google Zeitgeist….

The fastest rising search in the United Kingdom throughout the year was the Royal Wedding. This is hardly a surprise considering lots of people pretended to be disinterested in the run up to the big day then during the broadcast the most unexpected characters turned into patriotic, flag-waving revellers.

The top 10 how to section of the website is a little worrying, with “how to snog” and “how to flirt” featured as two of the top searches. Come on guys, have a little bit more confidence.

It seems many of us are inquisitive when it comes to tech, with the top 10 list for what is featuring terms like “what is icloud” and “what is 4d”. Strange new fitness craze zumba came in at number 8, which is hardly surprising considering it sounds like a planet, not a cheesy dance class.

The fastest rising movies throughout 2011 don’t really match up with the best movies of the year (in our opinion), with Breaking Dawn in at number one thanks to the millions of little twi-hards out there and Final Destination 5, Mean Girls 2 and Scream 4 taking the other top spots. We just hope people were searching for details of terrible and unnecessary sequels and not examples of the best cinema on offer.

The fastest rising people section is a mix of very talented individuals, crazy celebrities (we’re looking at you Mr Sheen) and some great people who unfortunately passed away this year, like Steve Jobs and Amy Winehouse.