When we call these dangers existential, that is exactly what we mean: They threaten the very existence of civilization and therefore should be the first order of business for leaders who care about their constituents and their countries." We, the members of the Science and Security Board of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, want to be clear about our decision not to move the hands of the Doomsday Clock in 2016: That decision is not good news, but an expression of dismay that world leaders continue to fail to focus their efforts and the world's attention on reducing the extreme danger posed by nuclear weapons and climate change. The statement accompanying the Doomsday Clock decision opens with the following words: "Three minutes (to midnight) is too close. This week, it was announced that the Doomsday Clock will remain at three minutes to midnight, since recent progress in the Iran nuclear agreement and the Paris climate accord "constitute only small bright spots in a darker world situation full of potential for catastrophe." These failures of political leadership endanger every person on Earth." Last year, the Clock hands were moved from five to three minutes to midnight, with the Bulletin stating: "Unchecked climate change, global nuclear weapons modernisations, and outsized nuclear weapons arsenals pose extraordinary and undeniable threats to the continued existence of humanity, and world leaders have failed to act with the speed or on the scale required to protect citizens from potential catastrophe. began testing hydrogen bombs, which was followed by Soviet tests shortly after), to 17 minutes to midnight in 1991 (when the Cold War ended and deep cuts were made to nuclear arsenals). The position of the Clock hands in the past has ranged from two minutes to midnight in 1953 (after the U.S. The closer they set the Clock to midnight, the closer the scientists believe the world is to global disaster. It has been maintained since 1947 by the Science and Security Board of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, which includes 18 Nobel Laureates. The Doomsday Clock is a symbolic clock face, representing a countdown to possible global catastrophe (e.g. The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists Science and Security Board has announced that their closely monitored "Doomsday Clock" will remain at three minutes to midnight. Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.Doomsday Clock stays at three minutes to midnight More than a dozen Nobel laureates sit on the board that decides where the doomsday clock should sit. The Doomsday Clock's most recent move this close to the end was three minutes to midnight in 1983, "when U.S.-Soviet relations were at their iciest," BAS explained. "Since its creation in 1947, the Doomsday Clock has been adjusted only 18 times, ranging from two minutes before midnight in 1953 to 17 minutes before midnight in 1991," said BAS. The last time BAS moved the Doomsday Clock was in January 2012, according to the statement, when it was moved ahead one minute to five minutes to midnight. and Cold War enemies Russia and China were also cited. Increasing tensions between Islamic extremists and the West, as well as chilling relations between the U.S. to vote overwhelmingly across party lines this week (98-1) in agreement that climate change is real –- a marked shift from Republicans claiming the theory is a hoax. These failures of political leadership endanger every person on Earth."Įarth's warmest recorded year was 2014, according to NOAA, and 14 of the 15 warmest years have occurred since 2000. "World leaders have failed to act with the speed or on the scale required to protect citizens from potential catastrophe. "In 2015, unchecked climate change, global nuclear weapons modernizations, and outsized nuclear weapons arsenals pose extraordinary and undeniable threats to the continued existence of humanity," the group said in a statement. The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists (BAS) moved the infamous Doomsday Clock ahead two minutes, leaving it three minutes from midnight.Ĭiting global warming and increasingly dangerous weapons caches around the world, BAS leaders claimed in a Thursday press conference that the "probability of global catastrophe is very high." Humans are inching closer to a doomsday scenario, experts believe. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |