With 2018 coming to a close, Google has released the top ten most searched for news stories of the year. As it turns out, people couldn't get enough information about the World Cup, the Royal Wedding and midterm elections.
Thanks to Google's panopticon... err... search engine, we have a pretty good idea what people were searching for throughout the year and which stories had the biggest impact.
Check out the list below and then let us know, did Google nail it? Or did they miss a big story? (Kardashians notwithstanding).
France left it all on the field during one of the best World Cups in recent memory over the summer after they won their second World Cup title in a 4-2 victory against Croatia.
The World Cup, hosted this year in Russia, featured 32 teams and was the first time the event had been held in Eastern Europe. At an estimated cost of $14.2 billion, it was also the most expensive World Cup in history. A total of 64 matches were held at 12 venues across 11 cities in Russia.
Croatia's Luke Modric went home with the coveted Golden Ball, while Kylian Mbappe was honored as the best young player. England's Harry Kane was presented the Golden Boot for being the tournament's overall top scorer.
Despite weakening to a Category 1 storm, Hurricane Florence was a powerful storm that slammed into the border between North and South Carolina in September with devastating results. Several areas in the Carolinas received record-breaking rainfall, with nearly 36 inches of rain falling in Elizabethtown, North Carolina, alone - making it the wettest tropical cyclone ever recorded to hit the area.
At least 55 deaths are attributed to the storm, with damages estimated to reach at least $17.9 billion. One estimate for damage done by Florence in North Carolina is nearly $17 billion, more than Hurricane Matthew and Hurricane Floyd caused in that state combined.
Have you ever thought about winning the lotto? What if that lotto ticket was worth more than a billion and a half dollars? That was one of the biggest stories of 2018 as people across the nation had mega dreams watching the Mega Millions jackpot grow into one of the biggest cash prizes in history.
After months of no one hitting all six numbers, the jackpot had skyrocketed to $1.6 billion, igniting lotto fever across the United States.
But, all good things must come to an end, even your lotto fantasies. A so far unnamed resident in South Carolina managed to come up with all six numbers to win the $1.6 billion jackpot. But, for now, no one has stepped forward to claim the big win (if you live in South Carolina, it's time to recheck those jacket pockets folks).
The mysterious big winner still has until April 21, 2019 to claim their prize.
With the highest voter turnout since before World War I, it's not underselling it to say people took the 2018 midterms seriously.
After a contentious campaign, Democrats reclaimed the House of Representatives for the first time since 2010 after winning at least 40 seats, ending unified Republican control of government. Democrats also won control of seven state governorships and gained at least 350 state legislative seats in state elections across the country.
Republicans were able to expand their majority in the Senate by two seats after their candidates defeated Democratic incumbents in Indiana, Missouri, North Dakota and Florida. The 2018 midterms was the first time since 2002 that the party holding the White House was also able to gain Senate seats.
Democrats were able to defeat the Republican incumbent in Nevada as well as pick up the open Senate seat in Arizona.
One of the largest hurricanes to make landfall in the contiguous United States also occurred this year when Hurricane Michael slammed into Florida's Gulf Coast redrew shorelines and left communities devastated.
The thirteenth named storm of the season, Hurricane Michael made landfall on Oct. 10 and moved through the southeastern United States leaving damage and power outages in its wake. At least 60 people were killed by the storm that also caused more than $14.5 billion in damage - including at least $100 million in economic losses in Central America.
Cities on Florida's panhandle were devastated, including Mexico Beach and Panama City, which suffered through the brunt of the storm. Numerous homes were flattened and dozens of trees were felled over a wide swath of the panhandle.
With top sustained wins of 155 mph and a central pressure of 919 mbar at landfall, Hurricane Michael qualified as the most intense U.S. hurricane to make landfall since Hurricane Camille in 1969 and the fourth strongest overall to impact the U.S. mainland.
Hurricane Michael Slams Into Florida Panhandle As A Category 4 Storm
In one of the most contentious nominations to the Supreme Court since Clarence Thomas, the confirmation hearings for Brett Kavanaugh became one of the most talked about stories of the year.
At the end of the initial confirmation process, Kavanaugh was accused by Christine Blasey Ford of sexually assaulting her when they were in high school thirty-six years ago. Both Kavanaugh and Ford were questioned by the Senate Judiciary committee in a series of televised hearings that had everyone in the nation talking. In the meantime, two other women, Deborah Ramirez and Julie Swetnick, also alleged separate instances of sexual assault.
Kavanaugh categorically denied all accusations against him.
After the hearings, the Judiciary committee voted 11-10 along party lines to send Kavanaugh's nomination to the floor. Arizona Senator Jeff Flake requested a week-long FBI background investigation into the allegations before the allowing the Senate to take a final vote.
On Oct. 6, the Senate voted 50-48 to confirm Kavanaugh as an associate Justice to the Supreme Court.
Senate Votes To Confirm Brett Kavanaugh To The Supreme Court
On Feb. 14, 2018, a former student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida armed with an AR-15 walked onto the school's campus and opened fire, killing seventeen students and staff members, injuring seventeen other people, making it the deadliest mass shooting of 2018.
The shooting inspired many of the surviving students to pick up the issue of gun violence and led to the founding of Never Again MSD, an organization demanding legislative action on gun violence.
The suspect is currently in jail and awaiting trial on 17-counts of first-degree murder and 17-counts of attempted first-degree murder. He faces the death penalty or life without parole.
It was THE event of 2018 that everyone who is anyone was talking about. Former "Suits" actress Meghan Markel got hitched to Prince Harry in a ceremony held at St. George's Chapel, Windor that was watched by millions of people from around the world.
The event wasn't cheap The overall cost for the wedding rang in at a cool $40 million dollars (£32 million), all of which was paid for by the Royal Family, a fact that probably a relief for Meghan Markle's father (who already caused a stir after he was caught staging photos for paparazzi in return for money).
Hosted by South Korea, the 2018 Winter Olympics were one of the highlights of 2018 as 92 nations came together in beautiful PyeongChang for two weeks of spirited competition.
Chloe Kim captured America's heart and the Gold for the Snowboard Ladies' Halfpipe Final on day four, while Shaun White had a history making run on the Men's Halfpipe finals that was also good for his third gold medal in the event.
Norway set a record this year winning the most total medals at a single Winter Olympics with 39 - surpassing the United States' record of 37 at the 2010 Winter Games. The U.S. ended up with 9 Gold medals, 8 Silver, and 6 Bronze, for a total of 23 medals won.
With the president and Congress locked in yet another budget fight that could result in a second government shutdown this year, it's forgivable that you might have forgotten the government shut down once already this year.
The government went dark for three days in January while Congress and President Trump went back and forth over whether the government would continue to grant protections to those persons affected by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals as well as a dispute over funding a border wall between the United States and Mexico.
President Trump eventually signed a bill on Jan. 22 that reopened the government and extended its funding through ending the three day government shutdown.
The temporary funding measure was the fourth continuing resolution passed by Congress since September 2017.
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