The Doomsday Clock

The Doomsday Clock, a symbolic indicator made famous by the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists since its inception in 1947, was moved Tuesday January 8, 2013 from six minutes to five minutes before midnight as a warning about nuclear dangers and climate change.

"Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds." ~ J. Robert Oppenheimer Quoting from the Bhagavad Gita

 

Today on Far Future Horizons we present another episode of the acclaimed documentary series Modern Marvels which tells the story behind the "Doomsday Clock" of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.

The Doomsday Clock symbolizes all the existential threats currently facing the human species. According to the Doomsday Clock the World will end at the stroke of midnight!

 

Cover of the 1947 Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists issue that first featured the Doomsday Clock at seven minutes to midnight.

The Doomsday Clock conveys how close humanity is to catastrophic destruction--the figurative midnight--and monitors the means humankind could use to obliterate itself. First and foremost, these include nuclear weapons, but they also encompass climate-changing technologies and new developments in the life sciences that could inflict irrevocable harm.

 

The Best of Modern Marvels DVD Mega Set is currently available from the History Channel's online store and Amazon.com.  

Modern Marvels: The Doomsday Clock
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