Most-Googled 'is it safe' queries vary wildly by state
Ever wonder what “Enquiring minds want to know?”
ASecureLife.com, a company that reviews home security systems, stun guns and tasers, among other services, said it set researchers loose to find out the answer to the age-old question the National Enquirer once used to promote tales of alien invasions and political peccadilloes.
The company’s team used Google to find out the most commonly Googled “Is it safe?” question asked in each state.
A snapshot of their finding reflects wild variations from one state to the next.
Given the recent E. coli outbreak linked to romaine lettuce, nine states across the nation wanted to know “Is it safe to eat romaine?”
In Pennsylvania, as in three other states, the inquiry was “Is it safe to use Facebook?”
Sorting out answers could take a lifetime. When we Googled that question Monday morning, Google came back with 1.7 billion answers in less than half a second.
In Ohio, meanwhile, researchers found the all encompassing concern of the day was “Is it safe to swallow chewing gum?”
No word on how many Buckeyes actually asked that question.
New Yorkers, on the other hand, wanted to know about the safety of Airbnb, the online service that lists rooms or homes for overnight stays worldwide. Go south to West Virginia and the question of the day was about the safety of melatonin, the supplement famed for helping insomniacs get a little shuteye.
Deb Erdley is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Deb at derdley@triblive.com.
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