The graph above depicts the trend in US Google searches for the phrase “stem cells” over the last 3.5 years. An annotated graph and a little discussion follow the jump.
OK, here’s that graph again with a few points highlighted:
A: It looks like search interest for stem cells peaked right before the 2004 elections. That’s probably not surprising given how hyped the issue was during that year’s presidential race.
B 1,2,3: In what seems to be a recurring pattern, interest in stem cells dips considerably right at the end of the last three years.
C: The latest point on the graph is also just about the lowest. In fact, the end of June does represent the lowest point if you take out the end of year dips (and even two of those don’t register as low as this past June).
Google Trends can also lists the top cities for a selected search. Here’s the top-5 for the last three-plus years:
1. Baltimore, MD
2. Boston, MA
3. Pittsburgh, PA
4. Philadelphia, PA
5. St Louis, MO
No real surprises there. And if you’re wondering about San Diego and all its biotech firms, it ranked No. 8.
With the presidential cycle cranking up again, it’ll be interesting to see if stem cell searches also swing upward. The lack of attention in the interim might not be such a bad thing, though. Having a whole nation waiting in the hallway outside the lab asking every so often if you’re done yet wouldn’t seem to create a productive research atmosphere.
Caveats: Google doesn’t provide a frame of reference for the search results, so we’re not sure what the scale is for the Y axis in these graphs. Also, Google states that these graphs are estimations of search data and contain a certain number of approximations.
-Greg Dahlmann
graphs: Google Trends