India's Catastrophic COVID-19 Surge: India was engulfed by a devastating second wave, reporting over 400,000 new cases in a single day by the end of the month. The crisis led to a collapse of the hospital system and an unprecedented international aid response.
Derek Chauvin Convicted in George Floyd's Death: In a historic verdict, former officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty on all charges, sparking celebrations and renewed calls for police reform across the US.
Myanmar's Violent Crackdown Escalates: The military junta's suppression of pro-democracy protests intensified, with the civilian death toll surpassing 700 since the February coup.
Prince Philip Dies at Age 99: The Duke of Edinburgh's death marked the end of an era for the British monarchy, prompting mourning across the Commonwealth.
Chad's President Killed, Military Seizes Power: Longtime President Idriss Déby was killed fighting rebels, leading to a military takeover by his son and a brutal crackdown on subsequent protests.
Baghdad Hospital Fire Kills 82: A fire at a COVID-19 hospital in Baghdad, caused by an exploding oxygen tank, killed at least 82 people and highlighted Iraq's strained healthcare system.
April 2021 was a month defined by a singular crisis of such overwhelming scale—India's second COVID wave—that it threatened to submerge all other global narratives. Even a signal as powerful and clear as the Chauvin verdict had to fight for air.
The glitch for this era is this "drowning signal." It is the experience of trying to process a world of complex, parallel events while being inundated by a single, catastrophic data-flood that washes over everything.
This artifact simulates a global data feed being literally flooded. A rising tide of chaotic numbers, representing the surge, slowly submerges the headlines of the month. The ghost in this machine is the fight for perspective. Your cursor is a temporary bubble of clarity, a small tool to push back the flood and read the stories gasping for air underneath. It is a reflection of the struggle to maintain focus when one signal is screaming for all of your attention.