The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists (BAS) announced this week that the minute hand of the symbolic "Doomsday Clock" will move closer to midnight on January 17, 2007. This shift is the first such change to the Clock since February 2002:

The major new step reflects growing concerns about a "Second Nuclear Age" marked by grave threats, including: nuclear ambitions in Iran and North Korea, unsecured nuclear materials in Russia and elsewhere, the continuing "launch-ready" status of 2,000 of the 25,000 nuclear weapons held by the U.S. and Russia, escalating terrorism, and new pressure from climate change for expanded civilian nuclear power that could increase proliferation risks. The January 17 announcement will take place simultaneously in two locations: at 9:30 a.m. ET at the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C., and at 2:30 p.m. GMT in London at The Royal Society.

Speakers will include Stephen Hawking, BAS director Kennette Benedict, Royan Society president Sir Martin Rees, Case Western physics and astronomy professor Lawrence M. Krauss, and International Crisis Group co-chair Ambassador Thomas Pickering.

Here's Wikipedia's article on the Doomsday Clock. Looks like the BAS plans to launch a new website on the 17th along with this event.

Source: Xeni Jardin - BoingBoing.net  

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