"PSI Singapore" was Singapore's top trending search on Google in 2015

SINGAPORE - It may have been an eventful year for Singapore, but it was a familiar topic that Singaporeans searched for the most online.

"PSI Singapore" topped Google's list of trending searches in 2015, as locals sought the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) reading amid the haze that returned to Singapore from July until November.

Second on the search giant's list was Mr Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's founding Prime Minister who died in March. Two of his children, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Dr Lee Wei Ling, were also in the top 10 trending searches, placing at No. 10 and No. 9 respectively.

Other top searches of the year include the SEA Games, which were held in Singapore in June; WhatsApp Web, the web version of the popular messaging app; and Apple's iPhone 6s smartphone.

Rounding up the rest of the list is teenage blogger Amos Yee, the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers) virus and the Indonesia AirAsia Flight QZ8501, which crashed in December 2014, killing 162.

Events like the Sabah earthquake, the 2015 Singapore General Election and SG50 were also among the top searches in Singapore news.

In other lists released by Google as part of its annual Year in Search round-up, Hollywood movies like Jurassic World and Furious 7 dominated the trending movies of 2015, while Asian television shows like South Korean series She Was Pretty and Tears Of Heaven finished ahead of Western programmes like Game Of Thrones on the trending TV shows list.

Finally, it was the humble chicken breast that was the most searched-for recipe of the year, ahead of more sinful delights like durian cake, pineapple tarts and kueh bangkit.

This article was first published on Dec 16, 2015.
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