Friday, December 28, 2012

The Ultimate List of Failed End of the World Predictions

 
As everyone now realizes, the end of the Long Count did not mean the end of the world. So, with some free time on my hand, I decided that it would be fun to compile an ultimate list of failed doomsday predictions just for the purpose of showing the fallibility of such prophets of doom which, to this point, have all been wrong.

Fortunately, someone else has already taken the trouble to do this. Go here for a link to what is, without doubt, the ultimate online list of failed Doomsdays, hundreds of predictions long. The best part: a lot of these predictions have references for them, going to show that they are for real.

Needless to say, by looking at past predictions, it is easy to see that no one knows when the end of the world will be coming as, so far, the prophets of doom are 0 for several hundred. So, with this glittering track record behind them, don't worry next time some loon appears on TV or late-night radio claiming, without a shred of physical evidence, that the end is near.

Enjoy and laugh!



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Saturday, December 22, 2012

The Day After 'Doomsday'



Today is December 22, 2012, the day after (for some) the world was going to end. Well, guess what, we're still here. If that weren't enough, everything seems normal, too. So, how could this have happened?

Short answer: the Maya didn't know jack squat.

First of all, the Maya believed that time was not linear but cyclical (wrong) and thus that the universe had been created and destroyed multiple times (wrong again). Two dead wrong ideas going for them, the Maya weren't done because, when it came to their belief in the world ending, the Maya believed that this did not happen at random, but at specific points in time, namely when their calendar cycle (which they created) ended and a new began.

Okay, let's think about it: the Maya got the whole notion of time wrong and then worried themselves sick into believing that the universe could end when the calendar, which they created, could end. Wonderful logic, indeed!

Now, already believing that the universe bent to the will of man (and his calendar), some ancient genius got the idea that, if the destructions of the world coincided with the running out of the 52-year calendar round, why not create a longer cycle to put off Doomsday? The number-loving Maya then got to work and developed the 5,125.25 year Long Count (which ran out yesterday) so that they wouldn't have to worry about the world ending in their lifetimes ever again.

Brilliant!

So, here's to hoping (in vain) than no one blew their life savings, killed that unspecial someone, or generally acted stupid in the belief that there would be no world and no consequences to answer to



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Friday, December 21, 2012

The End of the World is Today



For anyone living in a cave, today is December 21, 2012 and the end of the world for those who believe that the Maya Long Count running out signals the end of time itself and thus Doomsday. The problem here: the world isn't going to end, plain and simple.

In fact, it's truly hard to believe that anyone can actually believe this nonsense at all, especially if one knows a little about the Maya and their belief systems.

First of all, the Maya believed that time was not linear but cyclical (wrong) and that the universe had been created and destroyed multiple times (wrong again). So, two false beliefs under our belt, let's see where else the Maya had it all wrong. When it came to their belief in the world ending, the Maya believed that this was not random, but at specific points in time, namely when the calendar (and thus time) ran out.

Before the Maya, people in Mesoamerica had been using a system of two calendars: a 260 day ritual year for religious purposes and a 360 day solar year for everyday things (note how these great timekeepers just conveniently left out 5 days of the year that were inconvenient for their timekeeping system). How did they work? Simple: start the calendars at the same time on month 1, day 1 and run them side-by-side and, after 52 solar years (the 360-day variety) they would once again match dates at month 1, day 1. This was called the calendar round and when this ran out, it meant that the world was more likely to end as time literally ran out. Solution: worry, pray, and sacrifice human beings in the hope that the gods would be nice and decide not to destroy the world.

Well, the priests must have done a good job as we're all still here but having to go through this stressful time every 52 years must have sucked for the Maya. Solution: come up with longer spans of time and thus put off the end of the world, as if the universe could be influenced by a man-made calendar (pretty stupid, huh?).

Well, the number and pattern-loving Maya got to work and eventually came up with a 5,125.25 year cycle (along with other, shorter, perfectly interlocking cycles) called the Long Count, which runs out today. In the end, this is what they came up with:

1 day = 1 K'in
20 days = 20 K'ins = 1 Winal
360 days = 18 Winals = 1 Tun
7200 days = 20 Tuns = 1 K'atun
144,000 days = 20 K'atun = 1 B'ak'tun
1,872,000 days = 13 B'ak'tuns = 1 Great Cycle (completion of Long Count)

Obviously, with the 5,125.25 year Long Count complete, the Maya must have felt more than secure in the knowledge that they would never have to worry about the world coming to an end in their lifetimes ever again, as if the gods somehow had to obey the will of man now that a longer time cycle had been created. Pretty funny, isn't it?

Bottom line: the universe isn't going anywhere anytime soon.


Final thought: just for fun, if you know any true believers in the December 21 end of the world scenario, bet them a good chunk of change that the world won't end today. If you win, you just may actually get some money, if something happens, at least you won't have to worry about paying!





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Thursday, December 13, 2012

Geminid Meteor Shower Peaks Tonight, Watch Live Online!

Tonight, December 13/14, marks the peak of the Geminid meteor shower for 2012. While we would all have a Moonless night and clear skies in a perfect world, the world isn't perfect, which means that some of us will be clouded out for the night (though the Moon will be out of the way, though). Fortunately, thanks to modern technology, anyone with an Internet connection will be able to watch the Shower thanks to live video feeds being hosted by NASA and the NASA Marshall Center.
For anyone who's looking to have clear skies tonight, here are some viewing tips:

1. Plan to stay out a while, as it takes the human eye about 15 minutes to get optimal night vision capability. The bad news is that, even one bright flash of white light will wipe out night vision, requiring you to start the process all over again.

2. Grab a lawn chair or, even better, a lounge-type chair. Trying to lean back with a straight-back lawn chair can be a pain in the neck, literally! Eyes ready for dark and with something to sit/lay on, settle in for a night of hopeful meteor watching (or at the very least, stargazing), just try not to fall asleep and don't forget to dress warmly and bring the bug spray!

3. Don't forget to bring a coat as this is winter and, chances are, things will be pretty cool in most locations tonight.

Besides meteors, tonight can be a great time for binocular viewing, owing to your use of a chair. Under suburban (maybe) or rural skies (definitely), a pair of medium power (10x50) binoculars can yield some stunning wide-angle sights. For someone truly dedicated, why not try and keep a tally of how many meteors you see for every complete hour? For the record, the Leonids typically spawn around 20-30 meteors per hour on peak night.


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