Are We Doomed?

You’ve been feeling it, right? That existential dread about everything that’s wrong in the world. The feeling that the world is going to end — and soon. Every year, scientists in Chicago try to pinpoint just how close we are to “doomsday.” And they do it with the Doomsday Clock. The clock was created here in 1947 at the request of scientists who worked on the atomic bomb at the University of Chicago. Since then, the clock has moved closer to midnight when existential threats increased and further away when the world became safer. The clock currently stands at 100 seconds to midnight — the closest it’s ever been. The clock is maintained by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. Bulletin President Rachel Bronson explains how we use the clock and why we are where we are today.

Guest: Rachel Bronson — President/CEO, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

All this month, we're sharing your Chicago love stories in our newsletter. Email us at chicago@citycast.fm or call or text us at (773) 780-0246.

And you have until noon today to vote for City Cast Chicago as Best Podcast and Best Newsletter in Chicago Reader's Best of 2021 poll!

Follow us on Twitter: @CityCastChicago

Sign up for our newsletter: chicago.citycast.fm