Anyone hearing that another second has ticked down
towards doomsday should be concerned.
And that is what happened this week when the Bulletin
of the Atomic Scientists1 revealed how close to midnight the
Doomsday Clock now is. (Midnight is the metaphorical time at which doomsday
occurs.)
The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has been using
the Doomsday Clock as a graphical way to illustrate how close the world is to
doomsday since 1945. That is eighty years’ worth of
watching the state of the world and how perilous it is, or isn’t.
This year (2025) they moved the clock from 90 seconds
(one and a half minutes) before midnight to 89 seconds before midnight. A shift
of just one second.
But, that one second is significant.
89 seconds is the closest the Doomsday Clock has ever
been to midnight. The closest in eighty years!
In 2023 the hands of the clock were moved to 90
seconds before midnight; then, the closest ever to midnight. In 2024 the time
remained at 90 seconds to midnight. Then this year, in a move of just one
second, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists have shown just how concerned
they are.
Amongst the reasons for the shift of that one second
are:
· Continued
failure by national leaders and countries to address the issues raised by
scientists over the past year.
· The
war in Ukraine
· Conflict
in the Middle East
· Increasing
size of nuclear arsenals
· Rise
in global temperature leading to increased climate impacts
· Climate
change given low priority by world leaders
· Rapid
advances in AI increasing the risk of terrorism
Any one of these threats is reason for concern. Lumped
together we should be greatly concerned, for the threats do not function in
isolation from each other. They interact and mutually enhance the dangers of
each other.
One second may not sound like much. But when we are
running out of time each second counts.
Notes:
1. https://thebulletin.org/
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