Dragonball Rolls Into First Place

The search term “World Cup” was quickly kicked to the curb as Brazil emerged as the winner, according to the Terra Lycos 50 most popular user searches for the week ending June 29, 2002. The former first place term dropped to fourth and the more generic term “soccer” plummeted from twenty-third to forty-fifth place.

It could be another four years before those terms gain popularity again.

The Japanese anime series known as Dragonball took over the dominant position, moving up from the second spot, and Lycos notes that it hasn’t been out of the top ten since the measurement system’s inception in August 1999. A possible successor to the Dragonball throne could be the new anime hit Yu-Gi-Oh!, ranked number 33 this week.

Making what seems to be a permanent mark is the term “tattoos,” moving up from number four to number two. Like Dragonball, the search term has appeared on the Lycos 50 for 150 weeks.

Terms with substantial longevity (50 to 150 consecutive weeks) are awarded the honor of being placed in the Lycos 50 Elite. Last week’s popular searches that belong in that esteemed category are:

• “Britney Spears,” in fifth place, has made the grade for 150 weeks, as did “Pamela Anderson,” who is holding steady in the eighth spot. “Jennifer Lopez” kept them company for the duration, and appears at number 24 last week.
• Interestingly, file-swapper “Morpheus” (in ninth place) has been popular for 56 weeks, while third place “KaZaA” has only been on the list for 34 weeks.
• Newly renamed pro wrestling organization “WWE” has moved up from 16 to ten, also spending 150 weeks on the Lycos list.
• “Las Vegas,” on the list for 150 weeks, is at number 11. Lycos notes that Vegas is the only city to ever make the list, and searches for the term remained high despite the temporary lapse in general searches for tourism and airlines following the Sept. 11 attacks.
• Video game “Final Fantasy” ranks number 13 for the week, and has appeared on the Lycos 50 for 148 weeks.
• “Harry Potter” drops from ten to 14, spending 105 weeks in the Lycos 50.
• “The Bible” also experienced a drop in popularity, going from 27 to 29. The placement is unusual as Lycos notes that the book usually ranks somewhere between 15 and 25. The Bible has been on the list for 147 weeks, and Lycos surmises that measurement determinations were a factor in the book not being on the list every single week since the beginning.
• “Marijuana” lights up the list at number 38, racking up 39 consecutive weeks. Lycos indicated that marijuana searches go up when schools are in session, and down when they are not. The term disappears from the list every year during the week between Christmas and New Year’s.

Debuting on the Lycos 50 for the week ending June 29 are these terms:

• “U.S. Postal Service” appeared at number 12 just as the rates increased.
• “Amtrak” (number 15) made the list as a result of recent news items and congressional hearings.
• Sadly, “The Who” appears on the list (number 17), as Internet users searched for information about the death of John Entwistle.
• “Bonnaroo,” a three-day camping and music festival in Manchester, Tenn., shows up at number 20.
• Other first-timers last week were: “Wimbledon” (number 31); “WorldCom” (number 35); “West Coast Choppers” (number 37); tennis ace “Daniela Hantuchova” (number 40); “Jennifer Aniston” (number 43); and “Ashanti” (number 47).

Lycos 50 for the week ending June 29, 2002
Current Position	Search Term	Last Week’s Position
1	Dragonball	#2
2	Tattoos	#4
3	KaZaA	#3
4	World Cup	#1
5	Britney Spears	5
6	Anna Kournikova	#26
7	Colorado and Arizona Wildfires	#6
8	Pamela Anderson	#8
9	Morpheus	#7
10	WWE	#16
11	Las Vegas	#11
12	U.S. Postal Service	New
13	Final Fantasy	#14
14	Harry Potter	#10
15	Amtrak	New
16	Eminem	#13
17	The Who	New
18	Texas Lottery	#33
19	NBA	#42
20	Bonnaroo	New
21	Brooke Burke	#20
22	Spider-Man	#12
23	Golf	#19
24	Jennifer Lopez	#25
25	Grand Theft Auto 3	#22
26	Baseball	#29
27	Martha Stewart	#35
28	Avril Lavigne	#36
29	The Bible	#27
30	Star Wars	#17
31	Wimbledon	New
32	Nelly	#46
33	Yu-Gi-Oh!	#30
34	Audiogalaxy	#9
35	Worldcom	New
36	NASCAR	#24
37	West Coast Choppers	New
38	Marijuana	#38
39	Playstation 2	#34
40	Daniela Hantuchova	New
41	Big Brother UK	#31
42	Stone Cold Steve Austin	#18
43	Jennifer Aniston	New
44	WinMX	#41
45	Soccer	#23
46	IRS	#40
47	Ashanti	New
48	The Sims	#39
49	Anorexia	#47
50	Elizabeth Smart	#21
Source: Terra Lycos