This is where the melting face emoji becomes relevant. It is one of 37 new emojis approved by the Unicode Consortium this year, alongside emojis like saluting face, dotted line face, and a disco ball. These emojis will be released gradually over the next year. The melting face emoji, with its content half-smile even as it dissolves into a puddle, has already gained popularity on social media as a symbol of the immense psychological impact of the coronavirus pandemic. One Twitter user described the melting smiley face emoji as representative of the current pandemic mood, while others saw it as a symbol of climate anxiety. Another user predicted that the new emoji would be frequently used in the era of climate change apocalypse. The melting face emoji was created in 2019 by Jennifer Daniel and Neil Cohn, who bonded over their shared love for visual language. Daniel, who goes by they/them pronouns, is a creative director at Google and a member of the emoji subcommittee for Unicode, while Cohn is an associate professor at Tilburg University in the Netherlands specializing in cognition and communication. Cohn's research on representations of emotion in Japanese Visual Language, particularly the concept of "paperification" where characters in manga turn into paper when embarrassed, intrigued Daniel. This led them to create a new emoji, the melting face, to capture this visual convention as they found it more impactful than turning into paper. Cohn pointed out that many face emojis are influenced by conventions in comics and manga, with expressions borrowed from these visual cultures. The first emojis were created in 1999 by a Japanese artist named Shigetaka Kurita, who drew inspiration from manga. These emojis were intended to make text-based communication easier, as NTT Docomo, a Japanese mobile phone company, had a 250-character limit on messages sent through its mobile internet service. The original set of 176 emojis designed by Kurita is now featured in the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Despite the absence of character restrictions today, emojis continue to provide a quick and flexible way to convey emotions that surpasses the capabilities of words. The melting face emoji is a prime example of this. In a literal sense, emojis can represent feelings like the discomfort of a broken air conditioner. In a figurative sense, they can convey emotions such as embarrassment, exhaustion, or sarcasm. According to Cohn, emojis tap into a shared understanding of metaphors, like the idea of melting, that can be applied to various emotions. Emojis are designed to be used in versatile and nuanced ways, similar to how words can be used in different contexts. Visual language is more flexible than words, as illustrations have the ability to convey ideas that reality cannot. For example, the concept of a "melting face" can be interpreted in various ways, some of which can be very moving. While emojis may not have deep meanings on their own, their significance comes from how they are used. Graphic designer Erik Carter, who created a sample image of a melting face, emphasized the importance of interpretation in creating profound messages. Carter expressed that a lot of people may be experiencing feelings of hopelessness due to issues such as climate change and the lack of action from the government. He mentioned that at times, it may seem like the only thing we can do is smile as we face these challenges.