Bay Bridge, Retirement Age: Hot Trends
(Information on the San Francisco Bay Bridge and France's new retirement age updated in today's Hot Trends article.)
NEW YORK (
) -- "Bay Bridge" is trending on the Internet Thursday following news that the San Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge was shut down as police arrested a man who claimed to be armed with a gun and explosives.
Thursday morning, a driver stopped his car on the upper deck of the bridge and threatened to jump off or detonate explosives.
The incident forced authorities to stop all westbound traffic at the toll plaza. The lanes were reopened a little after 8 a.m. local time. The suspect was taken into custody after an hour-long standoff with the police.
"Retirement age" is also a popular search topic today after French President Nicolas Sarkozy signed a new law on Tuesday that will raise the country's minimum retirement age to 62 from 60.
Sarkozy's pension-system reform faced strong criticism and protest from millions of workers across the country.
Also under the new law, retirees are not eligible for full pension payments until age 67 instead of 65, for workers who have not completed 41 years of contributions.
"Electric cars" is a popular search topic after
General Electric
(GE) - Get Report
announced on Thursday that it plans to buy 25,000 electric vehicles by 2015.
GE will begin building its fleet with its initial purchase of 12,000
General Motor
Chevrolet Volt vehicles in 2011.
"Electric vehicle technology is real and ready for deployment and we are embracing the transformation with partners like GM and our fleet customers," CEO Jeffrey Immelt said.
GE is hoping that the purchase will spark demand for the market because it manufactures charging stations and other equipment.
"ADHD" is a trending topic after a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is becoming more common.
The rate of children diagnosed with ADHD was up 22% in 2007 from 2003. The CDC study said that close to one out of 10 children in the U.S. between the ages of 4 and 17 have been diagnosed with the condition.
ADHD is a condition that makes it difficult to remain focused and control impulsive behaviors.
"
Applebee's
"
(DIN) - Get Report
is a hot search topic Thursday. The dining chain is offering free meals to active duty military personnel and veterans in honor of Veteran's Day.
"It is a real privilege for us to serve our veterans and active duty military on this national day of respect and remembrance," Applebee's services president Mike Archer said. "Veterans Day at Applebee's is a time for our military to connect with fellow service men and women, swap stories and enjoy a great meal."
The restuaurant chain isn't alone. Arby's of
Wendy's Arby's Group
(WEN) - Get Report
is also offering veterans a free regular roast-beef sandwich, while Outback Steakhouse is offering a free "bloomin' onion" appetizer and a beverage. Military and veterans need to be in uniform or have proof of military service to receive the deals.
"
Activision Blizzard
"
(ATVI) - Get Report
is a hot search topic today after the company announced that
Call of Duty: Black Ops
brought in $360 million in retail sales within its first 24 hours on the market.
On Nov. 9, approximately 5.6 million copies of the game were sold in North America and the U.K., compared with 4.7 million copies of last year's
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
.
"We are on track to outperform last year's five-day global sales record of $550 million," CEO Bobby Kotick said. More than 25 million players around the world "are engaged in billions of hours" of online play, Kotick added.
The chatter on Main Street (a.k.a. Google) is always of interest to investors on Wall Street. Thus, each day, TheStreet compiles the stories that are trending on Google, and highlights the news that could make stocks move.
-- Written by Theresa McCabe in Boston.
>To contact the writer of this article, click here:
Theresa McCabe
.
>To follow the writer on Twitter, go to
.
>To submit a news tip, send an email to:
.
Disclosure: TheStreet's editorial policy prohibits staff editors and reporters from holding positions in any individual stocks.
