Google’s new search engine, Google Trends, isn’t a typical breed. It doesn’t look up articles pertaining to the searched term, but rather breaks down the history of how popular the term has been, and the top cities, regions and languages in which the term has been searched.

It is a useful tool to get a grasp on important issues in the public sphere. A search for the term “gay marriage”, for instance, shows the topic peaking during the lead up to the US presidential elections in 2004, then a lull during 2005, only to rise again this year, as it is again being used as campaign fodder for the US midterm elections.

It is also a shows the popularity of consumer products. Searching for “ipod” reveals little interest in 2004, then a huge peak around Christmas 2005. Google Trends also shows Australians are more interested in searching for “McDonalds” than anyone else in the world.

The site can also give insight into local culture and public opinion. For example, a quick search for “guns” shows Phoenix, Arizona, is the city most interested in the subject. Not surprisingly, every city in the top ten is from the United States, with the exception of Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Canada holds the top three slots for the term “drugs”. Interestingly, San Diego, California, is number six for searching both “drugs” and “straight edge”.

“Sex” is searched more in the Vietnamese language than in any other. Ironically, the United Kingdom’s Birmingham is the number one city to search both “porn” and “heaven”. (It makes one wonder if web surfers there are starting to feel a bit guilty about their internet activities.) While, “Birmingham” is searched more in Solihull, UK, than in Birmingham.

A look into the term “impeach” yeilds all top ten cities from the United States. Austin, Texas, ranks number two in searches for “Bush” and number 10 in “Nixon” searches. Perhaps they see a correlation.

Finally, people looking for a significant other in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, might have difficulty with mixed messages, as the city ranks number one in searches for both “love” and “hate”.