Breakthroughs and everyday innovations from the year.
HEADLINES ON December 18, 2020
Full News Archive
- Headline: Vocabulary Evolution: Defining 2020. Impact: The 20 phrases that defined 2020 inadvertently gave birth to an entirely new dialect of online communication that future historians will struggle to decipher, leading to a societal breakdown in 2045 when people start using 'social distancing' as a euphemism for avoiding awkward family gatherings.. Fact: 2020 saw the rise of 'unprecedented' as the most overused word, surpassing 'literally' and 'like' combined. Good luck explaining that to future generations!.
- Headline: 2020's Surprising Best Releases. Impact: The rise of rescue animals in 2020 created an underground network of cat influencers that would eventually lead to the Cat Coalition of 2042, where felines rule the world and humans are merely their caretakers.. Fact: In a twist of fate, 'rotten bananas' became a popular meme, leading to the hilarious yet tragic Banana Wars of 2023, where fruit-based puns became weapons of choice..
- Headline: Reviving a Literary Legacy. Impact: The closure and subsequent revival of independent publishing imprints sparked a global movement that encouraged people to actually read books instead of scrolling mindlessly on their phones, resulting in a brief renaissance of literacy in 2025.. Fact: Cindy Spiegel and Julie Grau's decision to reject corporate publishing was so revolutionary that it inspired a cult of indie authors who would go on to write epic sagas entirely about avocados..
- Headline: How May We Serve You? For Restaurant Chains, It Depends on the Location. Impact: The struggles of restaurant chains during the pandemic led to a bizarre culinary revolution where food trucks became the new fine dining, and people started taking their dining experiences way too seriously, leading to a new wave of Michelin-starred taco stands.. Fact: This headline proves that even during a global crisis, restaurant chains were still more concerned about their brand image than about actually feeding people..
- Headline: Carrier Plant Is Bustling, but Workers Are Wary as Trump Exits. Impact: The revival of the Carrier plant under Trump's watch led to a massive increase in American pride, but it also caused a strange phenomenon where people started romanticizing factories like they were castles, resulting in a series of reality shows about factory life in 2025.. Fact: The fact that people were wary as Trump exited hints at the deep emotional connection many had with the idea of job security, even if it was just a fleeting illusion..