The High Five: sun’s out, man buns out

Winter and summer. George and Amal. Barbie and Ken. These classic duos were among the top searches from this week.

Changing of the seasons

This Wednesday was summer solstice in the northern hemisphere—which means in other parts of the world, winter is coming. The cities searching the most for “first day of summer” are in Southern California (don’t they have good weather all year?), while New Zealanders are searching the most for “first day of winter.” And around the world, people are searching 3,200 percent more for summer than winter.

Is it hot out here, or is it just me?

For some, summer was a little too much this week. It was so hot in Phoenix, AZ that planes couldn’t take off safely, prompting searches like “too hot to fly in Phoenix, “Phoenix airport delays,” and “Phoenix high temperature today.” Other U.S. cities that were searching most for weather: New Orleans, Las Vegas, Chicago and New York.

Bambinos and amigos     

George and Amal Clooney welcomed twins earlier this month, but this week people were more interested in George’s other big news: the sale of his tequila company, Casamigos. Top-searched questions included, “Where can I buy Casamigos tequila?” “How much is a bottle of Casamigos tequila?” and “Who bought George Clooney’s tequila?” In fact, search interest in tequila shot 350 percent higher than vodka.

Meat lovers are ticked off

Doctors are reporting that bites from the so-called Lone Star Tick can cause red meat allergies. But is it real? How can people avoid it? And why is it called the Lone Star Tick? These are the questions people are curious about. Most people searching for the lone star tick (named for a star-shaped mark on its back) aren’t actually in the Lone Star state—the top states searching were Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, Arkansas and Maryland.

Ken gets a makeover

This week, Mattel unveiled a new cast of Ken dolls, the biggest revamp since 1961. These new Kens come in different shapes and sizes, including “broad” and “slim” body types, leading searchers to look for “dad bod Ken doll” and “diverse ken dolls.” But in the end it wasn’t Ken’s new bod that had people searching—it was his hairstyle. One new Ken is sporting a highly-contested accessory from the past few years: the man bun. The internet couldn’t resist satirizing man bun Ken’s personality, fitness habits and political leanings, and search interest in "man bun ken" spiked 300 percent higher than “dad bod Ken.”