By Kaitlyn Anderson, Cornell University

The industrial byproduct is making its way into our environment, bodies and, surprisingly, meme culture.

By Mai Senser, Virginia Commonwealth University

Let’s take a walk down memory lane and remember what made all of us laugh throughout this eventful year.

By Virginia Laurie, Washington and Lee University

The viral New York meme that has taken TikTok and the sports industry by storm only continues to rise in popularity.

By Megan Heenan, Nevada State College

Who are the people behind these first few viral sensations, why were they chosen and who created them?

By Natalie Gabor, Indiana University-Bloomington

Their absurdist comedy might seem like a bunch of randomnesses, but it’s really a coping mechanism for a world in crisis — and it’s funny to boot.

By Beth Nipper, University of Iowa

To grab the attention of would-be customers, companies often try to give off the air of casual relatability — a pose that, in reality, has been carefully constructed.

By Mai Senser, Virginia Commonwealth University

Millions have been using this movie-centered platform as a virtual diary to log what they watch, connect with others and — most importantly — share their opinions.

By Zach Terrillion, Oberlin College

The YouTube phenomenon starts out with innocuous jokes and memes but can quickly turn into fascist ideologies and bigoted tendencies.

By Ariana Quijano, Georgia State University

Viral TikTok user Ben Tarrolly is one of the many social media accounts that recycle content from other creators without giving them their due credit.

By Alex Luna, University of California, Berkeley

The Nicktoon has become one of the most popular sources for internet laughs, but how did it happen?

By Emma Watts, University of Arizona

By Luke Gair, Sewanee: The University of the South

The documentary follows an artist as he works to reclaim his character, Pepe the Frog, who has been purloined by 4chan, the Republican Party and everything in between.

By Mitchell Tanaka, Chapman University

The character from author Jeff Kinney’s work has attracted many eyes onto Black Lives Matter, but is it merely trivializing the movement?

By Nina Dutta, Occidental College

They’re all over Instagram, making the practice fun and accessible to a  whole new generation.

By Vaishnavi Kalyana, College of DuPage

The viral meme had everyone reaching for their cleaning supplies, even though science didn’t back up the internet’s wild claims.

By Veronica Kuffel, University of Wisconsin-Madison

I got the chance to separate the reality from the memes. Here’s what I saw.

By Katelyn Melder, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania

It’s about time we all “see them aliens.”

By Ashley Peterson, Geneva College

Though its beginnings were rocky, the creative minds on TikTok might be ready to bear the torch of internet meme royalty.

By Sarah Diggins, Ithaca College

Relatability, reengineered.

By Yoni Yardeni, Pierce College

Society is straying further and further from the moth’s lamp on the daily.

By Maya Ramani, University of Virginia

Run fast for your mother and fast for your father …

By Elise Bortz, New York University

Because people cannot live without memes.

By Jovana Vajagic, DePaul University

In a time of Trump tweets and political opinions, sharing messages of self-love are necessary to have a positive year.

By Cheryl Sutton, Purdue University

It started as a joke, but then the internet, as usual, took it a step too far.

By Otis Roffman, Beloit College

If meme culture reflects the emotional zeitgeist of the internet, then the rise in self-lacerating, nihilistic content could be a funny symptom of a serious problem.

By Eric McInnis, Arcadia University

Companies are trying more than ever to connect with consumers through the language of internet culture. But it’s not easy.

By D'Ariel Myrick, University of Georgia

In the midst of turmoil, memes are here to save the day.

By Zephanie Battle, Texas State University

Me: There are enough meme lists out there. Me to me: This one will be better than those.