There seems to be an almost universal consensus that this year was pretty awful when it came to the news, but we also had lots of weird stuff on the internet to cheer us up. From a frog riding a unicycle to a gorilla that will live on forever in our hearts and our Twitter feeds, 2016 was jam packed with memorable memes. Here is a look back at the best of the bunch.

Follow Tech Insider:On Facebook

Join the conversation about this story »

The INSIDER Summary:

• A girl seems to be missing her legs in this optical illusion.
• She definitely has legs, guys.
• All the women are leaning so they seem removed from their lower bodies.
• And one girl's legs are hidden behind another person's.

There's a viral optical illusion going around Reddit right now. In it, someone seems to be missing their legs.

Look at the photo of those Green Bay Packers fans closely: There are six women, but it looks like there are only five pairs of legs. The girl in the middle of the couch appears completely legless.

But a closer look reveals that's not the case. There are multiple solutions presented in the Reddit thread, and almost all of them are entirely wrong.

Here's how it really works: The woman in the middle is leaning to her left, meaning the legs to her right actually belong to her. The second woman from the left is wearing black jeans, which are hidden behind the woman on the very left end of the couch.

I know that sounds confusing, so here's an illustration that shows how it works. I brightened up the image to make things more clear. 

As you can see, the woman outlined in yellow is leaning her body to her left, making her legs appear to belong to the woman outlined in blue. 

Both women on the end of the couch — outlined here in red and blue — are wearing black jeans, but brightening the image makes it clear that they are two different shades of black. One leg of the blue woman is slightly visible (you can see her shoe), and the other is totally obscured behind the red woman's legs.

And here's a closer look, so you can see everything even more clearly.

Mystery solved.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Donald Trump's 'strange' morning habit tells you everything you need to know about him

The INSIDER Summary:

• A video of a girl's years-long obsession with Carmex has gone viral.
• It's hilarious.
• Carmex sent her a care package with even more Carmex.

Ani Hayes is such a fan of Carmex that she carries it everywhere with her.

That might sound like hyperbole, but she has proof in the form of a 97-second video featuring photos of her over the years with the iconic red-capped yellow tube — all set to a high-pitched version of James Blunt's song "You're Beautiful."

It has nearly 13,000 retweets on Twitter, and it's hilarious.

Hayes edited together the video on her own, collecting photos of herself with the lip balm and zooming into it on each frame. It's like a game of "Where's Waldo," but where she finds her own Carmex.

She previously posted the video on Instagram, but it got taken down because using the song allegedly infringed on the copyright owner of the song. So she changed the pitch of the audio and uploaded it to Twitter.

Hayes, a student at West Virginia University, doesn't use Carmex for medical reasons. She just likes using it.

"I just like it," Hayes told INSIDER in a direct message on Twitter. "I don't know, really. I've been using it for a few years now I just always have it on me, haha."

After the video got "a few hundred favorites" on Twitter, Carmex sent her a care package with more Carmex products.

It even included a message from Paul Woelbing, the president of Carmex and grandson of Alfred Woebing, who invented the product.

"After almost eighty years we felt that it was time to update [the logo] a bit," the younger Woelbing writes.

Now Carmex begins an even newer iteration in this Earth: life as an internet meme.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Here's what happens to your body when you stop eating sugar

Join the conversation about this story »

Ever since George Costanza snuck a pastrami sandwich into the sack on "Seinfeld," salted meats and sex have existed as strange yet alluring bedfellows. Now, a Turkish chef named Nusret Gökçe is once again redefining the term “food porn,” and earning himself the title #SaltBae along the way.

Though Gökçe has been sensually chopping steaks on Instagram for roughly a year — earning himself more than a million followers in the process — the Internet got a hold of his tantalizing videos last week and quickly turned the ponytail-rocking meat maestro into a meme. Gökçe, who owns a chain of steakhouses called Nusr-Et in Turkey, can be seen massaging cattle and smacking slabs of raw beef, but a clip in which he extravagantly showers some steak in salt has social media all hot and bothered.

Over the weekend, #SaltBae quickly began trending on Twitter in the U.S., with users re-purposing the clip to fit all kinds of scenarios. But more than anything, people just seem impressed with Gökçe's ability to make the most basic cooking skills feel like meat-centric porn. 

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: A Harvard psychologist reveals the best way to fake it till you make it

The INSIDER Summary:

• A kid went viral for starting a fire during a Trump protest to say "screw our president."
• That 11-year-old is Drew Carey's son.
• Sources say he got a stern talking to for his language.

At a protest the night before Donald Trump's inauguration, on January 19, a viral moment made one protester stand out from the crowd. An 11-year-old kid — who identified himself as just "Connor"— told a Fox News reporter that he "kind of started this fire."

Why did he start a bonfire in the middle of the street in Washington, DC? "Because I felt like it, and because I'm just saying, 'screw our president!'" Connor said.

"Okay, well there you have it," said the reporter as he walked away to interview more protesters.

It was a viral moment, turning Connor, briefly, into the "screw our president" kid.

It turns out, Connor is none other than Connor Carey, son of comedian Drew Carey, according to TMZ.

A "source close to Drew" told TMZ that Connor Carey "got caught up in the emotions of the crowd."

Connor did end up getting in trouble with his parents.

"We're told Drew and Connor's mom were upset about how he expressed himself to the reporter, and talked to him about his language," TMZ reported.

During the protest, TMZ also interviewed Carey, who was in town because he was hosting an event honoring veterans the next day.

He told TMZ that he voted for neither Trump nor Hillary Clinton. He came out to the rally — held outside of the pro-Trump Deploraball event — after having dinner with Connor. His son wanted to see what all the ruckus was about.

It's unclear if TMZ's interview happened before or after Connor started the fire, but he wasn't by Carrey's side during the interview. Carrey didn't seem to know his son got involved with the protestors.

"There isn't anything dangerous going on," Carey laughed. "I told him to come find me if anything happens."

SEE ALSO: Seth Meyers: Why Trump's lazy behavior is causing 'concern' inside the White House

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: An exercise scientist reveals exactly how long you need to work out to get in great shape

The INSIDER Summary:

• "La La Land" was incorrectly declared the winner for best picture.
• The award really belonged to "Moonlight."
• A "La La Land" producer held up the card to prove the mistake.
• It instantly became a meme.

The 89th annual Academy Awards will go down in history for flubbing the best picture winner at the show's end. 

"La La Land" was incorrectly declared the winner before producer Jordan Horowitz welcomed the cast and crew of "Moonlight" on stage to claim the best picture Oscar. Horowitz's display of the best picture winner card proving "Moonlight" won sent the internet into a frenzy.

It quickly inspired a list of other people, films, and things that should receive praise. 

Keep scrolling to see some of the best items people have come up with.

If only season two of "Stranger Things" was coming sooner.

And my personal favorite:

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Animated map shows the best and worst states to raise your family

The INSIDER Summary: 

• The BBC interviewed professor Robert Kelly about the North and South Korea relationship.
• His two children burst into the interview and stole the show.
• The moment became a viral meme.

It was meant to be a serious interview about the impeachment of South Korea's president, Park Geun-hye, and the future of the country's relationship with North Korea.

But it soon descended into chaos when Robert E. Kelly, a professor of political science who Skyped in from the South Korean city of Busan, was interrupted by children in uproarious fashion.

Kelly's daughter waltzed into the room, arms akimbo, while Kelly carried on with the interview. As he apologized to the BBC anchor and tried to signal to his daughter to leave, another one of his children, on a mobile high chair, hopped his or her way into the room.

A few seconds later, a woman rushed into the room and collected them while Kelly carried on with the interview.

The incident happened live on BBC World News on Friday morning — and the memorable moment was originally tweeted by the channel's producer Julia Macfarlane.

"When the kids interrupt you in the middle of live TV... A lovely moment and masterfully handled by our guest this morning on South Korea," she said in a message which has since been deleted.

It was a moment that immedialy became viral. The self-confidence of his daughter entering the room, the impressive skill of his infant child somehow getting into the room despite not being able to walk, and Kelly's mastery of the situation as a whole make for gripping television.

Kelly, though, didn't seem to notice that he had a viral moment on his hands. He seemed confused when a BBC employee asked if he could re-broadcast the clip.

The moment immediately became a meme.

Hopefully, Kelly will feature his kids in interviews more often. They definitely have a future in television.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Here’s why flights take longer than they did 50 years ago

The INSIDER Summary: 

• A Twitter post with an enormous chicken went viral.
• People are freaked out.
• It appears to be a Brahma chicken, one of the largest breeds.
• The video originated from a Facebook group celebrating glorious chickens.

If you spent some time on Twitter this weekend, you may have seen a post by Antoine Cunningham about a video of an enormous chicken.

In case you haven't, here it is. Steel yourself:

It features a giant white-and-black-feathered chicken, with feet so large they could be paws, a feathery behind that's taller than its head, and rich plumage that makes it look like royalty. It struts around the coop like it owns the place, which it probably does. At around the 20-second mark, it seems to consult with another chicken, which itself emerges later in the video. Our giant chicken is not alone.

People on Twitter understandably freaked out or were in disbelief.

The chicken is not a person in a costume. Nor it is a feathery dog. It appears to be a Brahma chicken, a type of breed that was developed in the 1800s in the United States from chickens imported from China. Males have weighed as much as 18.25 pounds, though this one could be even larger.

The Brahma is actually the second-largest type of chicken, according to Poultry Keeper. The largest is the Jersey Giant, but those come in just black plumage.

Mashable pointed out that the video appears to have originated from a post by a guy named Fitim Sejfijaj in the Facebook group Shpeztaria Dekorative.

The group, which in Albanian means "decorative poultry," appears to be composed of chicken farmers from Albania, Kosovo, and Serbia showing off their impressive chickens. (Sejfijaj did not return a request for comment.)

It also opens a world to videos of other magnificent chickens, like this other Brahma.

Another user in the group posted videos of a half-dozen glorious hens.

The eggs, in case you're wondering, are about the size of a fist.

So there you have it. The big chicken is probably a Brahma chicken, and it is not alone.

Now watch: This is a massive swarm of Tuna Crabs 

 Subscribe to INSIDER on YouTube for more great videos!

Join the conversation about this story »

Unless you've been locked in a nuclear bunker for the past few days, you can't have failed to miss the incident that occurred on a United Airlines flight set to travel from Chicago to Louisville, Kentucky, in the US on Sunday.

After refusing to give up his seat for cabin crew, David Dao, a doctor practising in Kentucky, was forcibly removed from the aircraft. Unfortunately for United, passengers filmed the whole thing.

The violent nature with which Dao was removed from his seat has sparked backlash and relentless mocking of the airline on Twitter.

These are some of the highlights to come out of the public-relations debacle:

"United Airlines, you guys won."

Tweet Embed:
https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/851669706389979136
The Worst PR goes to.. @pepsi !! Ohh wait... Guys, we've made a mistake, it's @United (hand over the award) #NewUnitedAirlinesMottospic.twitter.com/0Yn0ieuXxo

The first rule of United Airlines is: You do not talk about United Airlines.

Tweet Embed:
https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/851452978104082434
United Airlines is pleased to announce new seating on all domestic flights- in addition to United First and Economy Plus we introduce.... pic.twitter.com/KQjPClU2d2

Indie rock artist Mikel Jollet was quick to link the United Airlines blunder with Pepsi's advert that went viral for all the wrong reasons.

Tweet Embed:
https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/851485532458582016
PEPSI: We made the biggest PR blunder of any major company this year.

UNITED: Hold my beer.

 You can see the infamous Pepsi advert here.

The Internet is in an uproar after a United Airlines passenger, 69-year-old doctor David Dao, was physically dragged out of his seat by authorities on Sunday evening. One popular meme making the rounds on social media depicts United's coach class as the "fight club," and it hints at a larger strained relationship between airlines and their coach-class passengers.

The strong reactions United is facing from the public — which has resulted in its share price tanking and many calling for a boycott of the brand on Twitter— illustrates growing resentment between airlines and customers as they pare down the experience for economy passengers. 

Flying coach often is an unenjoyable experience, between cramped legroom and increased carry-on restrictions. But there's also a simple economic reason why flying coach may feel worse than ever.

Coach flyers are often infrequent, and they are much less meaningful to an airline's bottom line than higher-paying customers. 

At United, for example, 85% of customers fly less than once a year and they account for close to 50% of revenue, United president Scott Kirby told analysts in October. These numbers are similar at other airlines, like American.

This means that just 15% of United's customers — essentially everyone not flying coach — account for half of its income. 

A large chunk of the remaining revenue comes from a small group of frequent business flyers who pay full price premium or economy cabin fares. 

As a result, airlines have added perks to premium cabins while they've pared down in coach. 

For example, Delta now offers bargain hunters a low-cost offering called Basic Economy which does not allow customers to pre-select seats or make changes to their itineraries. 

Both United and American Airlines have introduced a low-cost basic economy fare class, which does not allow passengers to bring carry-on items for the overhead bin. 

The strategy seems to be paying off monetarily — United Airlines reported a profit of $965 million with pre-tax earnings of $1.5 billion for the third quarter of 2016. 

But it may also be leaving the majority of customers feeling more jaded than ever. 

SEE ALSO: Airline pilot reveals the meanings of 11 code words passengers don't understand

Follow Us: On Facebook

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: People on Twitter are roasting United Airlines after a passenger was forcibly dragged off a plane

Multitalented performer Donald Glover put on a barnburner of a performance Saturday night at the Governors Ball festival in New York City.

Glover, who performs under the moniker Childish Gambino, announced at the beginning of the show that it would be his only concert in North America in 2017, perhaps unsurprising given that the writer/actor/musician/-showrunner is currently filming multiple movies and TV shows, including a new season of his hit semi-autobiographical TV show "Atlanta," and the untitled Han Solo-focused "Star Wars" movie.

Glover left the fans begging for more as he played an "Epic AF" set that seamlessly blended the brilliant funk-rock of his December release "Awaken, My Love" with the anxious, smartass rap from his previous albums, "Because the Internet" and "Camp."

As Noisey's Alex Robert Ross put it, Glover showed he "can blur the lines between hip-hop and pop and funk not just by throwing them together on a track, but by mastering all three."

Glover looked in his element for the entirety of the performance, shifting between different facets of his talent at will — from impeccable falsetto and his distinctive speed-rap to humorous banter with the crowd, doing his best James Brown dance impression, and leading a full band ensemble and choir in improvisational versions of his new album.

At one point during the show, in a rare vulnerable moment, he told the crowd they were "exactly what I needed."

But nowhere was the breadth of his talent more apparent than in the final moments of his set. Audience members had been calling for him to play his hit single "Redbone" for the entire show, and he delivered in typically hilarious fashion: by launching into a six minute sketch about his love for attending house parties.

Glover walked the audience through his fake house party setup and all the things that go with it — taking drugs, macking on a girl, dancing with said girl, and having to flee when the police arrive to break up the party — all while dancing to songs that he thought fit the moment, like V.I.C.'s "Get Silly" and Rihanna's "Sex with Me."

He then pulled out the kicker: The girl pulls him into the bathroom to hide from the police and the "perfect" song to make-out to comes on. And then he launched into "Redbone."

Here's video of the last part of the sketch, plus some extra stuff:

It's all a perfect setup, but it's made even more perfect knowing that the sketch is based on a popular internet meme about the song that cropped up last month when Twitter user Chloestixx posted this "remix" of the song:

Users have since posted tons of their own riffs on the meme, which you can see more of here.

It looks like the notoriously self-aware, internet-conscious artist has added his own. Glover did name his second album "Because the Internet," after all.

And for a bonus, here's the end of the "Redbone" performance:

SEE ALSO: How Donald Glover went from unknown comedy writer to triple-threat Hollywood star

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Mayim Bialik from 'The Big Bang Theory' and 'Blossom' explains the science of nostalgia

The Senate Intelligence Committee posted ousted FBI Director James Comey's prepared opening remarks Wednesday afternoon ahead of his scheduled hearing on Thursday, and some Twitter users immediately started having some fun.

The seven-page document details Comey's interactions with Donald Trump from January until the president fired him in May.

Throughout the remarks, Comey uses colorful language to describe his in-person meetings and phone calls with Trump.

Enjoy:

SEE ALSO: Here's what James Comey will tell Congress in his first testimony since being fired

DON'T MISS: Former FBI Director Comey: Trump told me he 'had not been involved' with Russian 'hookers'

First of all, here are Comey's actual prepared remarks:

Now you can see what Twitter users turned them into:

Tweet Embed:
https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/872526117256798208
DC'S HOTTEST READ IS THE COMEY STATEMENT pic.twitter.com/DCesWU1tg1

Tweet Embed:
https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/872524904243113984
"he wanted loyalty but all I could promise was honesty" -james comey pic.twitter.com/dHW6rsuESQ

Barack Obama and Justin Trudeau set the Internet abuzz with an impromptu dinner at Montreal's Liverpool House restaurant on June 6.

Obama, who was in Montreal to give a speech on fighting climate change, met the prime minister just a day after Trudeau was spotted kayaking across the Niagra River for World Environment Day.

The two leaders took the opportunity to meet at the Montreal haunt to discuss ways to get young leaders involved in their communities — over steak, lobster spaghetti, halibut, oysters, crab, and asparagus.

The two tweeted photos of the meeting, reigniting rumors of a "bromance." We asked our audience to caption the conversation, and the results were hilarious.

Here are some of our favorite captions from Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter:

Obama: Why won't you take Justin Bieber back? We'll even throw in the alien we had for years at Area 51.

Obama: My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard
Trudeau: and they like, it's better than yours

Obama: I'm finally allowed to have a cellphone. Can I have your number, please?

Obama: I'll have some bacon with a side of covfefe.
Trudeau: I'll have what my boo is having

Obama: Are you picking up the tab for security or am I?

Obama: What do you mean they don't serve pizza here?!

Obama: Any covfefe for you?
Trudeau: NO just macaron, please!!!

Obama: So I'm thinking of reforming the band.

Obama: I'm telling you they'll melt the Iron Throne to kill the Whitewalkers...

Trudeau:"Do you think Joe will be jealous of us?"

SEE ALSO: Photos from Obama and Trudeau's unexpected Montreal dinner fire up the internet

DON'T MISS: Justin Trudeau celebrated World Environment Day by kayaking down the Niagara River — and the photos are fantastic

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: What it’s like living in North Korea — according to a North Korean defector

Ukraine has just been hit by a huge cyber-attack, which is also plaguing other major companies across the globe.

But the nation's attempt to style out the disaster by posting a meme on Twitter has raised eyebrows.

As the attack was still unfolding on Tuesday, the English-language government-controlled @Ukraine account posted this message:

As Twitter users soon pointed out, its use of the popular "This Is Fine" meme means pretty much the opposite of what they were going for.

Ukraine hoped to assure people that it has the situation under control, despite the widespread damage being caused. But the gif is almost universally used to mock people who are clearly dealing with a disaster beyond their control.

According to Know Your Meme, the go-to explainer on these issues, "the cartoon is typically used as a reaction image to convey a sense of self-denial or acceptance in the face of a hopeless situation."

The post was an unusual misstep for the account, which typically engages in edgy internet banter unusual for a major government organisation.

Recent hits include celebrating a Crimean account throwing "major shade" at Russia's US embassy, celebrating Ukraine's longstanding "bromance" with Sweden, and tweeting a kiss to NASA after it shared an image of Ukraine from space.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Here's why Boeing 747s have a giant hump in the front

Astronaut Buzz Aldrin had some great reactions to President Trump's speech during the signing of an executive order to revive the National Space Council. At times Colonel Aldrin appeared very perplexed by what Trump was saying. Twitter users noticed, and made their own reactions to some of the awkward moments.

Follow Tech Insider: On Facebook

Join the conversation about this story »

Augmented reality is a technology full of promise. There are so many exciting possibilities for the future of AR that Apple CEO Tim Cook has said it makes him want "to yell out and scream."

It has also birthed a juggernaut of a meme. 

If you've spent any time on the internet over the past few days, you've likely come across a 3-D rendering of a smiling hot dog wearing headphones and jamming out to some tunes. This hot dog, one of many available Snapchat AR filters, has taken the internet by storm and captured the imaginations of comedians and meme creators. 

Here's what you need to know:

SEE ALSO: 14 tips you need to master Slack

To access the dancing wiener, open Snapchat and select the front-facing camera. Then tap on the screen and scroll through the filter options until you find the hot dog. From there, simply drag it to whichever part of the screen you'd like, and pinch/expand to resize it.

Snapchat's hot dog had humble beginnings, appearing in a short YouTube video of a woman getting her nose pierced.

Youtube Embed:
http://www.youtube.com/embed/L9ZdJ0dmsD8
Width: 560px
Height: 315px

From there, the smiling sausage began to show up elsewhere on the internet.

Instagram Embed:
http://instagram.com/p/BVw2gshgKVW/embed/
Width: 658px

On Fox News, Kellyanne Conway used show-and-tell flashcards to defend Donald Trump, Jr.'s meeting with a Russian lawyer. Following is a transcript of the video. 

Do you realize that he basically would come out of this 20-minute brief meaningless meeting, same amount of information that comes out of some of these panels where six people are nodding their head at each other and discussing the same thing, which is to say zero usable information. So, I just want to review in case you run out of time. This is how I see it so far. This is to help all the people at home. What’s the conclusion? Collusion? No. We don’t have that yet. I see illusion and delusion. So just so we’re clear everyone: four words, conclusion, collusion, no. Illusion, delusion, yes. I just thought we’d have some fun with words. So, Sesame’s Grover word of the day, perhaps, Sean.

Join the conversation about this story »

As any entrepreneur will tell you, change is the only way to stay ahead.

Nobody knows that better than Amazon's Jeff Bezos who has turned an online company selling books into an empire selling everything under the sun.

Bezos wowed Silicon Valley's Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference last week with a surprising physique that was quickly immortalized with memes. His "guns" were the most obvious change from when Amazon first started way back in the 90s, but his shaved head also marked a departure from his previous bookish look.

Bezos also frequently used to wear sweaters over collared shirts — a look that he has now swapped for vests over t-shirts and sunglasses. His slouchy posture is also gone.

Take a look at the original tweet by account @dissruption and all the varitions it spawned below.

SEE ALSO: This is the only solution for balding men to get full heads of hair again

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Here's how Google Maps knows when there is traffic

An UberEats courier's response to a customer is lighting up the Internet after it was posted on Twitter.

When couriers bring food to a customer's house, they usually text or call the intended recipient to let them know they've arrived. They then respond "coming!" or "be right there!"

This recipient wanted to make sure the courier was at the front door, so he asked them. 

"No I'm on top of the building, I just landed my helicopter" came the snarky reply.

This likely isn't standard practice for UberEats couriers.

The Uber Support Twitter handle replied to the tweet, saying "That's definitely not ok," and asking the Twitter user to Direct Message the email address for a follow-up.

SEE ALSO: This meme showing how much Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos has changed over the years is going viral

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: How to supercharge your iPhone in 5 minutes