KIERRA LEGGETT | STAFF WRITER

72—besides being the number of degrees Fahrenheit it takes to reach room temperature, the number of victories the NBA Team Chicago Bulls had in their 1995-1996 basketball season, as well as the average number of times a human’s heart will beat in a minute, 72 is also the number of days that NBA player Kris Humphries and reality television star Kim Kardashian remained married. Married on August 20, 2011, just 72 days after walking down the aisle, America’s favorite buxom brunette, Kim Kardashian , 31 filed for a divorce from husband Kris Humphries, 26.

Kardashian released this statement to E! News on Monday, “After careful consideration, I have decided to end my marriage. I hope everyone understands this was not an easy decision. I had hoped this marriage was forever, but sometimes things don’t work out as planned. We remain friends and wish each other the best.” Immediately following the release of Kim’s statement fans and critics alike swarmed to the internet to voice their opinion on the impending divorce. #ThingsLongerThanKimsMarriage, #KimK, and #Kimkmarriagewasshorter are just three of the most popular trending topics on popular on social networking site Twitter.

While the stars’ siblings immediately took to twitter to defend their sister, with Kardashian’s younger sister Khloe tweeting “Reading some these comments r so hurtful. Im grateful 4our fans who understand & r being respectful. Hate is disgusting. Love is everything,” given the exuberant cost of the wedding, you cannot fault the public for responding negatively to the news. The Kardashian-Humphries nuptials reportedly cost $10 million, not including Kim’s $2 million engagement ring. It is my guess that the public is unable to be sympathize with Kardashian over the dissolution of her marriage because they are instead (like me), disgusted by the amount of money that was wasted on a 72 day long publicity stunt marriage.

The wedding of Kris and Kim aired on the E! Network during a two night, four hour special, Kim and Kris Fairytale Wedding. Though Kardashian cited irreconcilable differences as the cause for the divorce, it is alleged that the couple, who dated for less than a year, could not agree on a place to settle down and call home. Now with two marriages under her belt, it appears that the reality star is following in the footsteps of her idol, Elizabeth Taylor, who was married eight times to seven different men. Stay tuned, I’m sure in normal Kardashian fashion more drama (and reality show specials) are sure to ensue.