the.com/trending
The internet's mood ring, recording what we collectively can't stop talking about for nine minutes.
means Rapidly gaining attention online, as measured by a spike in mentions, shares, or searches over a short window.
from From Old English trendan, to roll or turn; the social-media sense rolled in with Twitter circa 2008, when sidebar lists made popularity a live scoreboard.
Speed over sizeAlgorithms reward acceleration, not raw totals.
Half-lifeMost trends fade within hours, not days.
GameableCoordinated posting can manufacture fake momentum.