January 2017 News Recap

By Allison Barry

2017 has certainly had an exciting start! From thousands of Google employees protesting to consumers #DeletingUber and orangutans finding love, the year of the rooster has been interesting so far, to say the least. But none of this may matter because we may just be living in a hologram. Let’s take a look at this month’s most interesting news stories.

• The beginning of the month started off with the annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. Attendees traveled from around the globe to demo and test out gadgets and devices that will soon be part of everyday life.
• A recent executive order has had a big impact on the technology industry, including the thousands of Google employees worldwide who protested immigration restrictions.
• The tech industry has also made moves to help citizens contact Congress. New tools like Countable and io make it so easy to connect that politicians are struggling to manage the volume of messages.
• #DeleteUber trended heavily on Twitter due to an ill-timed tweet on surge prices at JFK Airport from Uber, leading consumers to believe the company was trying to profit off of protests occurring at the airport. The result? The shift from the popular ride share app to Lyft, its primary competitor, trending on Apple’s app store.
• But it hasn’t been all politics; this delightful female orangutan will be finding her soulmate….via Tinder. You read that right! Scientists at a Dutch zoo will be testing the mate-finding app, Tinder for Orangutans, on 11-year-old Samboja to test the role of emotions in animal relationships.
• If your reality seems to be a bit off kilter right now, a study reported by USA Today may have the answer…the entire universe may be a “vast and complex hologram;” making our “reality” just an illusion.

 

Amid the sometimes chaotic kick off to the new year, technology stood its ground as an essential part of everyday life for people (and apes) across the globe. As current events continue to transpire, we are excited to see how technology will change alongside these events to encourage and elevate us. How has technology changed your life so far this year?