Doomsday Clock will be updated on Tuesday 23 January 2024.
Last year the clock was set 90 seconds short of midnight, the closest it has ever been.
This watch was created in 1947 by some of the world’s leading scientists. It is a sign of how close humanity is to destruction from man-made threats, including nuclear war, climate crisis and artificial intelligence.
Midnight means destruction. And the clock’s keepers turn its time back and forth once a year to warn humanity of dangers.
At 90 seconds away in 2023, it was closer to midnight than the nuclear proliferation days of the 1950s. In the early 90s the clock moved away from danger and was set 17 minutes away from midnight in 1991, where it remained for four years.
Where did the doomsday come from?
The clock was first built in 1947 by members of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
Although it publishes a journal, the Bulletin is actually a group of related experts, formed at the dawn of the atomic age and including many of the world’s most famous scientists, such as Albert Einstein and J. Robert Oppenheimer.
The clock was envisioned as part of the magazine’s cover design and drawn by artist Martel Langsdorff, who worked on the Manhattan Project to build the atomic bomb.
This section contains related reference points (Related Nodes field).
The first announcement was seven minutes from midnight, but Langsdorf said the time was chosen for beauty reasons rather than to reflect danger because it “looked good to look at.”
Since then, the time has changed every year. These changes were initially decided by editor Eugene Rabinovitch, but from 1973 onwards a board of experts made the decision collaboratively, publishing a lengthy justification and caveat at the same time.
The metaphor of the Doomsday Clock has permeated popular culture from the comic book and TV series ‘Watchmen’ to Lincoln Park’s album ‘Minutes to Midnight’.
What is the symbol of the doomsday clock?
This is a sign of how much danger humanity is facing. The purpose of doing so is to detect, analyze and eliminate threats to humanity.
Although it was created in response to the threat of nuclear war, the watch has changed over time to accommodate any number of threats.
In recent decades, it has included nuclear threats as well as threats from environmental crises, artificial intelligence, and pandemics.
Where will it go from here?
nobody knows. When a new clock time is announced each year, scientists emphasize that it means a need for action and a warning to politicians that a threat is imminent but they can’t do anything about it. in.
The bulletin also emphasizes that the clock is not meant to predict the future, but to indicate where we are now. On its website, it likens itself to a ‘diagnostic doctor’.
As the bulletin explains: ‘We look at data, as doctors look at laboratory tests and X-rays, and take into account hard-to-quantify factors, as doctors talk to patients and family members. do
‘We consider as many symptoms, measurements and conditions as we can. Then we make a decision, which summarizes what might happen if leaders and citizens don’t take action to improve conditions.’
Join Independent Urdu’s WhatsApp channel for authentic news and current affairs analysis Here Click
