1 Facebook Reveals 2011′s Most-Popular Status Trends

Facebook status updates played a starring role in the evolution of the world’s largest social network in 2011.

As several major changes to status updates (increased character limits, for example) rolled out throughout the year, Facebook data scientists kept their eyes focused on tracking the trends among those status updates.

Facebook unleashed that research late Tuesday night in their end-of-year Memology list, which each Decembersince 2009 has helped users understand the most-popular topics, cultural trends and acronyms on the site.

Similar to what was popular on Twitter in 2011, high-profile deaths triggered (see image above) plenty of discussions among you and your friends. On Facebook, the death’s of Osama bin Laden, Steve Jobs and Amy Winehouse incited heavy activity in status updates.

SEE ALSO: Beyonce’s Baby Bump Inspired More Tweets Per Second Than Steve Jobs’ Passing

“While it takes days of painstaking work to compile the data, it’s a rare chance to get an insight into what the world is talking about,” data scientist Eytan Bakshy told Mashable.

This year’s list also highlights the fastest-growing topic areas in news, entertainment and sports.

Most-Shared Articles:

This Mar. 15 New York Times interactive graphic compares satellite images of the damages of the Japan earthquake and tsunami.

2. What Teachers Really Want to Tell Parents

This Sep. 6 CNN story reveals that many teachers leave teaching because of their interactions with parents

3. No Your Zodiac Sign Hasn't Changed

This Jan. 13 CNN story addresses the scare earlier this year that the Zodiac signs had changed.

Movies:

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1. Harry Potter

“Wands are only as powerful as the wizards who use them. Some wizards just like to boast that theirs are bigger and better than other people’s.”

2. The Twilight Saga

3. Toy Story

4. Avatar

5. Jackass

6. Shrek

7. Saw

8. Pirates of the Caribbean

9. Fast & Furious

10. Titanic

Acronyms:

Two acronyms gradually seeped into your repertoire as the year progressed: “lms,” which is short for “like my status,” and “tbh,” which expands to “to be honest.” Facebook says “lms” is its fastest-growing acronym. We’re confident that this viral video — “Like Mah Status” — played some part in the acronym’s usage growth on Facebook. To see me mash up the acronyms into one status update, check out my Facebook profile.

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Musicians

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1. Rihanna

2. Bob Marley

3. Avril Lavigne

4. David Guetta

5. Enrique Iglesias

6. Usher

7. Lady Gaga

8. Metallica

9. Green Day

10. Black Eyed Peas

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Actors and TV Personalities

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1. Megan Fox

2. Vin Diesel

3. Adam Sandler

4. Selena Gomez

5. Will Smith

6. Taylor Lautner

7. Jackie Chan

8. Ashley Tisdale

9. DJ Pauly D

10. Kim Kardashian

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Fictional Characters

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1. Dr. House

2. Dory

3. Patrick Star

4. Mr. Bean

5. Upin & Ipin

6. Bob Esponja

7. Mario

8. Doraemon

9. Ari Gold

10. Sue Sylvester (GLEE)

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Athletes

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1. Leo Messi

2. Cristiano Ronaldo

3. John Cena

4. Ricardo Kaka

5. David Beckham

6. Michael Jordan

7. Sachin Tendulkar

8. Andres Iniesta

9. Kobe Bryant

10. Cesc Fàbregas

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Sports Teams

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1. FC Barcelona

2. Real Madrid C.F.

3. Manchester United

4. LA Lakers

5. Chelsea Football Club

6. Liverpool FC

7. A.C. Milan

8. Arsenal

9. Galatasaray

10. Fenerbahce

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News Outlets

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1. CNN

2. Fox News

3. NPR

4. The Onion

5. The New York Times

6. Al Jazeera Channel

7. Yahoo! News

8. The Times of India

9. BBC World News

10. PBS