On the evening of January 27, scientists from the non-profit organization Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (BAS) announced that the 2021 Doomsday Clock stopped at the same time it was set last year. is “100 seconds until midnight”.
The Doomsday Clock is a symbolic watch founded by BAS in 1947. It is used as a symbol to represent the end of time of the world through the metaphor “min to come.” midnight” . In other words, this watch is designed to warn the world from threats such as weapons of mass destruction, climate change, high-tech weapons with the message that humans are at the threshold. It’s only a few minutes until midnight.”
In 1947, the time the doomsday clock was born was also the time of the cold war between the US and the Soviet Union. The clock then showed 23:53 minutes, which is 7 minutes to midnight. Along with political and social developments in the world, its time has been adjusted repeatedly and symbolically to reflect international events dangerous to humans.
By 1991, when the cold war ended, the Soviet Union collapsed and the strategic arms reduction treaty was signed, the time to midnight was extended by scientists to 17 minutes, the longest time frame. now.
However, in the past decade, the world has experienced many ups and downs, and the doomsday clock has repeatedly approached the “midnight” mark. In 2018, the clock hands stood at 2 minutes to midnight. In 2019, the clock position is kept the same, but in 2020, it will be set to 100 seconds until midnight. This is the shortest time in the history of the doomsday watch.
This year, in the latest announcement, scientists have kept the position of the clock hands compared to last year’s 100 seconds to midnight . Rachel Bronson, President and CEO of BAS said: ” Covid-19 is the latest name on the list of challenges facing humanity. Despite efforts to bring the pandemic under control, But it still spreads quickly and causes many deaths. This shows that many countries are not equipped to deal with global health emergencies.”
Susan Solomon, a professor of environmental studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), added on a human peril: ” Global carbon emissions – the main driver of anthropogenic climate change temporarily It is expected to decrease by about 17% due to the pandemic. However, it will increase after the pandemic. In any case, reducing emissions due to the pandemic is not a sustainable plan for the future.”
Another reason the doomsday clock is still at 100 seconds before midnight is the biggest concern with humans – nuclear weapons remains unresolved. “The modernization and expansion of nuclear arsenals in many countries, combined with the lack of diplomatic efforts to reduce nuclear risks, have increased the likelihood of nuclear risk,” said Steve Fetter, a professor at the University of Maryland. possibility of disaster”.