From how to translate 'I love you' to searching tips on how to kiss, mobile users are increasingly turning to Google for the answers to their romantic dilemmas. How do you kiss? How do you say 'I love you in French'? These innocuously simple queries are among the most commonly Googled questions in Britain, as web users seek romantic advice where once they might have scoured agony aunt columns or asked a sage friend. More than a quarter of 16 to 24-year olds search the internet for dating tips, while more than a third (34 per cent) have used it to research interesting topics before a date, according to new research commissioned by Google. While it's hardly news that more of us than ever are using our mobiles and tablets to look up information - a quarter of the 2,138 respondents admitted to Googling while on the toilet - our increasing reliance on the internet to provide the answers to our romantic quandaries is faintly depressing. Google's first results page for 'How to kiss' includes a YouTube video on how to kiss a stranger in 10 seconds, 'naughty tips and juicy secrets on how to kiss' from Cosmopolitan and an explanation on how to deal with a bad kisser from 'a guy who loves kissing'. The prevalence of such content aimed squarely at young girls is, some might argue, a demonstration of the failure to adequately teach pre-teens the ins and outs of early courtship - or, conversely, illustrates how the internet is a treasure trove of information for topics you might be too embarrassed to ask a fellow human. |