A lot can happen in 365 days. There is a great potential for limitless human creation in such a long span of time. Now that it’s 2015, we can look back on the previous year and collectively laugh, shudder, and reflect on events that will eventually be left in the past. Here are fourteen events of 2014 that we just don’t see coming with us into the future.

1. Flappy Bird – The app graced Apple’s app stores top charts for about a week until game developer Dong Nguyen quickly pulled it. He claimed the game ‘ruined his life’ and he ‘regretted ever making it.’ He was rumored to be making $50,000 a day off ad revenue; the deletion of the massively popular game didn’t make sense to many.
2. Sochi Olympics / Russia / Vladimir Putin – The 2014 Winter Olympics were held on Sochi, Russia. Many disagreed with letting Russia host the event, especially with the tensions going on between the Ukraine and Russia. This effectively put Russia in the world’s spotlight for a little over a month. The hashtag #SochiProblems went viral, giving the world firsthand accounts of quality of life in Russia (communal toilets, cardboard doors, dogs roaming the streets).
3. The Oscars of 2014 – Included many memorable moments, but most importantly, a record breaking selfie. A selfie including Ellen DeGeneres, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Julia Roberts, Brad Pitt, Meryl Streep, Kevin Spacey and others was retweeted over 3.5 million times on social media platform Twitter. The photo itself has been valued at 1 billion dollars.
4. Slang – Words and phrases like bae, eyebrows on fleek, basic, slay, etc. seem to become more popular every day. New words will surely be on the way to flush out the old 2014 slang.
5. Disney’s Frozen – The insanely popular movie made Disney over a billion dollars. This was the first time in forever that an animated movie has made Disney that much money since The Lion King. The soundtrack was popular among all ages and certainly left its impact with “Let it Go.”
6. Rise of the Selfie – Though it’s not like selfies were invented in 2014, I’d like to say 2014 perfected the art of selfies. More and more people are coming forward and posting their own self-shots. Everyone out there probably heard the term ‘selfie game’ at some point this year. Call it digital narcissism or self-love—this is one of the trends I wouldn’t mind slipping into 2015 and years to come.
7. 2048 – A popular app at one point that quickly faded from public view. The goal of the game is to add the tiles to—you guessed it—2048. The games repetition allowed it to become boring. People beat it once and were done with it.
8. 90’s chokers – These chokers, commonly referred to as tattoo chokers came back in a big way this year. A style started in alternative culture made it to mainstream, and these necklaces began popping up on girls’ necks everywhere.
9. Free U2 Album? – Most said no thanks. In mid-September many iPhone users awoke to find out that the U2 album Songs of Innocence has automatically been downloaded as a ‘gift’ to their music libraries. Many quickly tried to figure out how to delete this album, there isn’t much of a chance of it making it into 2015.
10. ALS Ice Bucket Challenge – So many celebrities took this challenge, involving dumping freezing cold ice water on your head in order to raise awareness and money for Lou Gehrig ’s disease. When it was created it had meaning, but with its popularity, it lost its message. This viral challenge swept across the world for months, raising over 100 million dollars for treatment and research of ALS.
11. Trivia Crack – Another popular app that became popular around the end of 2014. This game quizzes you on categories ranging from arts to sports. You can challenge your friends, or play a random opponent. This game is a bit short-lived and repetitive, so it really didn’t make it into 2015.
12. The Interview – The controversial movie about the assassination of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un led the producing studio, Sony, to be hacked. This exposed thousands of emails, and for fear of greater attacks, most theaters refused to show it. This led to a mainly online release. Even with all the fuss, the movie didn’t receive good reviews and many claimed it was racist and in bad taste.
13. Protests – Whether here in the US against police brutality, in Mexico to demand answers from police in kidnapping cases, in Hong Kong to demand democratic elections, or in the Ukraine to get rid of an unpopular government, 2014 seemed to be a big year for protesters everywhere.
14. Memes – So many new memes (“a humorous image, video, piece of text, etc. that is copied often with slight variations and spread rapidly by Internet users”) came into existence this year. No matter if it’s a classic meme like the frog meme or a new meme like the bath bomb meme; they seem to be coming faster and faster. I would continue this, but someone just bought my silence for $8000 dollars a month.