Current Google Insights Trends: RIP "The Rev"

(AFP PHOTO / Frederic J. BROWN)

Searches for "The Rev," the stage name of Avenged Sevenfold drummer Jimmy Sullivan, top Google's list of trending topics this Monday, January 4.

The 28-year-old died at his home on December 28, prompting an outpouring of grief from Twitter users and Facebook fans."I can't believe it ," said one fan on the band's Facebook fan page "Good bye Sullivan. Rest in peace The Rev ..."

Lotteries were a trending topic this week, as a result of several high-jackpot new year's draws. Milli Piyango, the Turkish National Lottery, was the second most trending topic, whilst "resultado mega sena" and "mega sena," both referring to the Brazilian national lottery, took sixth and seventh place respectively.

New year-related topics were also popular, with Polish "?yczenia noworoczne" and "Happy New Year" in third and fifth place. "2010" was the tenth trending topic, whilst some people may have made getting a job their resolution - "pôle emploi", the French unemployment agency, was in eighth place. "Way2SMS," which allows free texts to Indian mobiles, experienced a 70 percent jump in search activity.

"Blue moon" was the fourth most searched for topic, as people looked for information on the astronomical phenomenon that occurred on New Year's Eve. The term refers to an exceptional 13th full moon of the year, which was visible on December 31. It is the origin of the phrase "once in a blue moon" - the next time two full moons are expected in a calendar month is August 2012.

The search terms with the most significant growth worldwide in the last seven days as measured by Google Insights, recorded on January 4 at 9:30 AM GMT are:

1. the rev (Breakout)
2. milli piyango (+1,750%)
3. ?yczenia noworoczne (+1,250%)
4. blue moon (+900%)
5. happy new year (+450%)
6. resultado mega sena (+200%)
7. mega sena (+200%)
8. pole emploi (+150%)
9. way2sms (+70%)
10. 2010 (+60%)