It is 6 minutes to midnight (or should I say Doomsday?!)

First off all let me tell you I'm not a big believer in any 2012/ doomsday theories, but having the current developments and political issues (Iran...) back in my mind I think the following story may have a true meaning, but first check out this link:

Doomsday clock

There is a clock at the University of Chicago called the Doomsday Clock whose time perpetually lingers just shy of midnight. On this clock, midnight metaphorically represents full nuclear war bringing an end to all civilization, and the clock is meant as a gauge to constantly indicate humankind’s proximity to this horrific event.

When it was introduced in 1947, it was set for seven minutes to midnight. Since that day, its minute hand has wandered around on the upper-left quarter of the clock face, inching closer to 12:00 when the threat of nuclear war grows, and crawling away as the risk fades. It has been as close as two minutes to midnight in 1953, and as far as seventeen minutes in 1991. If its caretakers ever set it for midnight, it will probably be the last thing they ever do.

The custodians of this clock have been the men and women of the Board of Directors of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. The Bulletin is a publication which was founded in 1945 by many former Manhattan Project physicists, and over the years contributors have included Albert Einstein, Edward Teller, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Carl Sagan, Wernher von Braun, Al Gore, Isaac Asimov, and Arthur C. Clarke to name but a few.

Today it stands 6 minutes to midnight. Whatever it means I guess we have to see for ourselves.

Like I said I'm not a believer in the Nibiru and Maya stories but it's quite remarkable how near the clock is to our proposed end...

What do you think about the clock?

reply to post by Dalbeck


still breathing atm, ill let you know when that stops

reply to post by Burnerz


Nooo You didn't read the entire thread, did you It's not actually about "minutes"... The clock was set up in 1947 and the minutes just represent our time in years/ months....

At 6 we don't have anything to worry about.
It was only set at 7 after the Japs were blatted with a few bombs and the closest to midnight during the fun times shortly after.
We are only in the last ten minutes to represent where they feel we are in terms of our evolution and technology to destroy ourselves, it's bugger all to do with the Mayans or otherwise.

reply to post by Dalbeck

This clock is more to illustrate a point, more than mark a prediction. They change it occasionally, to let you know s*** is getting serious, but still it's only ment to encourage people to pay attention to current events. They hope the more people aware, the more you might put yourself into a cause aimed current threats.
The time represents, threat level not time span. In 1991 it was set to 17 min till midnight, because we signed a treaty with the soviet union. (The ''safest'' we have been since the conception), currently it is a 6 min to midnight (better than 2007, but out of 19 revisions we are currently only better off than 1949, 1953, 1984 and 2007)
I personally don't think we could really stick a time line on the end (whatever may cause it)

reply to post by PutAQuarterIn


Perhaps 50 years ago this doomsday clock might have been useful in symbolizing how close mankind was to a nuclear war, today however its pointless and really should be discontinued. Think about it, we know mankind can just as easily be wiped out or severely hit from any number of causes, from large asteroids, Solar flares, outbreaks of deadly viruses to out-of-control nuclear power stations which this doomsday clock does not take into account.

Oh lord!! OP You just reminded me of the FUNNIEST thing I seen on Sky News some time ago. They were talking about Russia and nuclear weapons, I can't remember the situation but it was within the last five years. Anyway, they were talking to some guy and he goes "the doomsday clock is now at 6 minutes to midnight" the reporter pipes in with "A very prophetic thing to say Mr...whatever" so he goes "No... the actual clock is 6 minutes to midnight". The reporter LOOKS at her watch and goes "Yup even my watch says quarter past nine". Pants were wet.

On topic, I've never understood this, whats the point? If a nuclear war is imminent is someone going to actually change the time on it? Imagine another race learning about this when we're long gone.. "They had a clock that they used to calculate the doomsday" "Oh like the Mayan Calander?" "What? no they could move the hand forward and backward" "CHEATERS!!!"

reply to post by R3N3G4D3


Hehe what a coincidence about Sky News

I don't believe in any doomsday theory tho but I thought it was an interesting read nontheless

Tell me when it's 1 minute away

reply to post by Devestator


I will do so

reply to post by Dalbeck


I am familiar with the clock and I think it is more a social indicator than a prediction type of clock. It's been hovering in the 5-10 min range for a long time. And yeah things are not exactly great at the moment. Still I have faith in mankind and that is what is represented in those five minutes between where we are and total annihilation.

reply to post by karen61057


Thanks for your comment! Yes I also do have faith in mankind and hope everything's is going to be okay

Doomsday Clock Moves 1 minute closer to midnight!

www.thebulletin.org...

It has been mentioned on this thread already but I wanted to reiterate a point.

The Doomsday Clock is a symbolic clock face, maintained since 1947 by the board of directors of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists at the University of Chicago. The closer the clock is to midnight, the closer the world is estimated to be to global disaster. The most recent officially-announced setting — five minutes to midnight (11:55pm) — was made on 10 January 2012.[1] Reflecting international events dangerous to humankind, the clock's hands have been adjusted twenty times since its inception in 1947[2], when the clock was initially set to seven minutes to midnight (11:53pm).

Source

After reading the above excerpt there are a few things we can take from it. First, the Doomsday Clock is a symbolic representation. Second, the symbolism is determined by how close mankind is to causing a global disaster by way of the release of Nuclear weapons (note that disasters at Nuclear reactor's do not consitute a change in the clock's setting). Third, the clock is maintained by the board of Atomic Scientists. And finally, the clock is not a countdown as events surrounding the disarmament of Nuclear weapons, signing of treaties in relation to Nuclear weapons, etc; can and do cause the clock to be set farther from midnight.

For example:

In 1947, during the Cold War, the clock was started at seven minutes to midnight and was subsequently advanced or rewound per the state of the world and nuclear war prospects. The clock's setting is decided by the directors of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists and is an adjunct to the essays in the bulletin on global affairs. The clock has not always been set and reset as quickly as events occur; the closest nuclear war threat, the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, reached crisis, climax, and resolution before it could be set to reflect that possible doomsday.

Please note this usage above "advanced or rewound per the state of the world and nuclear war prospecs". It is also significant to note that in 1962 during the Cuban-missle crisis, which is arguably the closest mankind has gotten to all out Nuclear War, the clock was set at 7 minutes to midnight, the same setting it had been at since 1960. According to the excerpt above the events of the Cuban-missle crisis occurred so rapidly that the board of directors of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists did not have time to acurrately reflect the impending doomsday. Some theorize that if the Doomsday Clock could have been set to accurately reflect those events that the clock would have been set at the closest position to midnight, mere seconds even. The actual closest the clock has been set to midnight is two minutes to midnight which was set in 1953 after both the US and Soviet Union tested nuclear devices within 9 months of each other.

-saige-

Originally posted by Devestator
Tell me when it's 1 minute away

right now.