It isn't quite surprising that many of us are awake in the midnight, self-diagnosing a headache or even studying world conspiracies. A scientist has now pioneered a study into late-night Google searches and has offered insights into the human psyche, explaining what we all have in common.
Dr. Seth Stephens-Davidowitz, a former Google data scientist with a PhD in economics from Harvard, in his data analysis, discovered that people google "how to roll a joint" between 1 to 2am. "Porn" is also the most popular late-night Google searches between late night and 2am.
Likewise, panic attacks, and health concerns happen late at about 3pm. And between 2 to 4am, people ask the big questions concerning the existence of life, free will and the meaning of consciousness. It's also at 3am on Saturdays that people tend to get drunk, committing spelling errors on the late-night Google searches, and even forgetting their passwords, according to the Vice.
What comes out disturbing is at about 3am, people begin making late-night Google searches like "kill Muslims," and these become the red flags of hate crimes later. These not-so-sane members of society reveal themselves in late-night Google searches, and the information can be potentially used to learn the cause of their aggressive and dangerous thoughts, that perhaps, sometimes they act on.
Stephens-Davidowitz also said, "All the lonely people kind of reveal themselves on Google." It roots from the thinking that their situation is unique and that there's something particular about themselves, according to WNYC. However, when put altogether with everyone else, a large number of people are seen doing the same thing at the same time - which is much predictable than we sometimes think.
Stephens-Davidowitz reached the conclusion that what is happening in the late-night Google searches is a combination of boredom, anxiety, and marijuana smoking which seems worth knowing it is a platform people reveal themselves to. Probably, that would open door to more findings related to human psyche in the future.
