# The world will end in 2012, yes indeedy **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [December 1, 2008, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194 "2008-12-01T16:26:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/21 "2008-12-02T00:04:18Z")
One thing it’s just occurred to me to wonder about - why do doomsayers most often prognosticate that the world will end _suddenly_ in 2012 (or whenever)? if they’re going for shock value (and let’s face it, they are), surely it would be more terrifying to declare that the world will end _gradually_ in 2012. ---
**Author:** ![Clu-Me-In](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@Clu-Me-In](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clu-Me-In)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/22 "2008-12-02T00:06:55Z")
OK, makes sense to me… I’m conscious of a round Earth though. For all I know, I may not be come June 30, 2025. All matter may look square to me then.:D:D:confused: ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/23 "2008-12-02T00:15:38Z")
The world will end with a bang, followed by a whimper. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/24 "2008-12-02T00:24:15Z")
The end of the Universe occured approximately 13.7 billion years ago. Of course, that was the front end: It remains to be seen whether it’ll have a back end. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/25 "2008-12-02T00:24:46Z")
Any fool knows the world will end in exactly ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/26 "2008-12-02T00:33:05Z")
Some say the world will end in fire Some say in ice From what I’ve tasted of desire I hold with those who favor fire But if it had to perish twice I think I know enough of hate To say that, for destruction, ice Is also great And would suffice All right, Frost has the process laid out nicely; but he left out the friggin’ date! And how exactly does anthropogenic climate change play into this? ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/27 "2008-12-02T00:39:21Z")
> [@EddyTeddyFreddy](#): > > Some say the world will end in fire > Some say in ice > From what I’ve tasted of desire > I hold with those who favor fire > But if it had to perish twice > I think I know enough of hate > To say that, for destruction, ice > Is also great > And would suffice > All right, Frost has the process laid out nicely; but he left out the friggin’ date! And how exactly does anthropogenic climate change play into this? [Someone mention ice?](http://www.jerrypournelle.com/view/2008/Q4/view544.html#Repub)😉 ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/28 "2008-12-02T03:24:40Z")
> [@](#): > > Someone mention ice? Pournelle does know, does he not, that England freezing over is one of the anticipated consequences of global warming? ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/29 "2008-12-02T03:32:17Z")
I thought that theory had pretty much been discounted (about England freezing over and the whole Atlantic Conveyor thingy causing a northern ice age…or whatever). No? -XT ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/30 "2008-12-02T03:52:47Z")
> [@xtisme](#): > > I thought that theory had pretty much been discounted (about England freezing over and the whole Atlantic Conveyor thingy causing a northern ice age…or whatever). No? > > -XT I don’t think so. If the [Gulf Stream](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_stream) is disrupted, Western Europe gets colder. Maybe not Ice Age cold, but colder. ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/31 "2008-12-02T03:57:13Z")
Now, now. Mayan prophecy doesn’t say the world will end in 2012, it’s merely the end of the [Long Count](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_count) cycle. Which basically means, the entire Universe will undergo a cold shutdown & reboot, system scan & defrag, and re-installation from an offsite backup copy. The upshot of this is, hardly anyone will notice the brand new cycle at all, except perhaps for a slight tingling in your ears and a strong sensation of deja-vu. ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/32 "2008-12-02T04:01:31Z")
> [@KGS](#): > > Now, now. Mayan prophecy doesn’t say the world will end in 2012, it’s merely the end of the [Long Count](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_count) cycle. Which basically means, the entire Universe will undergo a cold shutdown & reboot, system scan & defrag, and re-installation from an offsite backup copy. > > The upshot of this is, hardly anyone will notice the brand new cycle at all, except perhaps for a slight tingling in your ears and a strong sensation of deja-vu. Hahaha, that is the most concise description of that I’ve ever heard. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/33 "2008-12-02T04:07:18Z")
Didn’t Michael J. Fox already make a movie about this, _Baktun the Future_? ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/34 "2008-12-02T04:11:26Z")
Surely we can hold out until 2112, just so we can watch the final apocalyptic battle between the ravening hoards of Rush fans who will waging war on the insane cadre of die-hard Ayn Rand fanatics. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/35 "2008-12-02T04:30:17Z")
When the world ends, it will all be caused by a few stray luftballoons. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/36 "2008-12-02T04:43:31Z")
99 of them? -XT ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/37 "2008-12-02T04:57:26Z")
Scenario: The Large Hadron Collider is finally fixed (after the infusion of another several billion $$$ backed by US mortgage securities) and with great hoopla on 1 July 2012 produces the answer to Unified Field Theory. And, a small black hole that eats the planet followed by the solar system. Also, my entry for the 2012 Dead Pool: Everyone.:):)🙂 ---
**Author:** ![DiggitCamara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df788c/32.png) [@DiggitCamara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiggitCamara)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/38 "2008-12-02T06:10:32Z")
> [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](#): > > Surely we can hold out until 2112, just so we can watch the final apocalyptic battle between the ravening hoards of Rush fans who will waging war on the insane cadre of die-hard Ayn Rand fanatics. And the winner will be eaten by Cthulu! (C’mon, people, you’re slacking off. No love for Cthulu? Here?) ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/39 "2008-12-02T06:37:06Z")
> [@DiggitCamara](#): > > And the winner will be eaten by Cthulu! > > (C’mon, people, you’re slacking off. No love for Cthulu? Here?) [First.](http://www.geocities.com/neverclan/c/cthulhu.html) ---
**Author:** ![audit1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@audit1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audit1)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194/40 "2008-12-02T11:54:29Z")
It will be on a Thursday, when Earth is unxpectedly demolished to make a new hyperspace bypass. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-will-end-in-2012-yes-indeedy/475194.md?page=3)