Is this much or just the normal amount?
A little above average.
ZeroHedge probably didn't hurt.
Here's a way to see history:
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http://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=statsBe wary of using those metrics as criteria for investment. It almost seems that when there is a rally there is an influx of the "one liners" who register and post. Even if it was manual (e.g., paid via mechanical turk) it isn't reflective of true interest in Bitcoin and instead just a way to manipulate the market as some do consider things like forum posts and new users in their investment algorithms.