Which Subjects Are on the Verge of Going Mainstream in 2018?

The Annual Topics and Trends Report by Facebook IQ was released Wednesday, and here are some of the subjects that are “on the cusp of going mainstream,” according to research from Facebook IQ and third parties: Artificial intelligence: Conversation on Facebook about AI has grown by 4.55 times since 2016, while deep learning has seen a rise of 2.4 times and computer programming is up 6.39 times. Augmented reality: Since January 2016, conversations about AR on the social network are up by 9.67 times, and discussion about mixed reality has skyrocketed by 122.09 times. Digital currency: Talk about blockchain has leaped by a massive 146.94 times on Facebook since January 2016, while cryptocurrency has seen a 13.98 times increase and digital currency is up by 3.32 times. Female empowerment: A Facebook IQ study earlier this year showed that women were on average 1.85 times more likely to be interested in a movie trailer following an ad featuring a woman dressed as a firefighter compared with an ad depicting a woman in revealing clothing. 75 percent of female respondents believe brands must stop portraying women as sex symbol, while 45 percent of men prefer to shop from brands that promote gender equality. Since January 2016, online conversation has grown across the terms gender role (2.34 times), women’s empowerment (1.05 times) and Wonder Woman (2.18 times). Mindful practices: Chakra has seen a jump of 5.36 times in online conversation since January 2016, while introspection (48.71 times) and meditation (2.12 times) are also trending upward. Millennials and the culture of work: Millennials will make up one-half of the global workforce by 2020, and Facebook IQ found that since January 2016, online talk has shot up about the Enneagram of Personality (22.19 times), Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (1.84 times) and personality (4.17 times). International cuisine and flavors: People online since January 2016 have been hungry for Bangladeshi cuisine (up 7.9 times), adobada (up 1.82 times) and chicken feet (up 1.43 times), and the social network’s research arm said Dosas, shawarmas and south Indian cuisine all trended, as well. Science: Conversation about this past summer’s eclipse soared by 5.38 times, while animated short Infinite Paradox of the Grand Hotel by David Hilbert and its over 8 million views spurred a 15.48 times increase in talk about Hilbert’s paradox of the Grand Hotel. The History of the World From Start to Finish tallied more than 9 million views, leading to a 28.91 times increase in online discussion about history of the world. Facebook IQ said in the introduction to its report, “Due to the size of the Facebook platform, we have a unique vantage point to see which conversations are growing at scale and taking hold, and which are simply a ﬂash in the pan. Our ﬁndings are grounded in real data and real ﬁndings from Facebook’s 2 billion users.”