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The big budget disaster film 2012, starring John Cusack as a father trying to save his kids in a world devastated by solar flares and supervolcanos, hits theaters this weekend. The movie is
based on an ancient Mayan prophecy suggesting that 2012 could be the end of the line for humanity. It's stoking real-life apocalyptic fears in at least a few people. Should the rest of us be
concerned? (Watch John Cusack and others discuss "2012" and the end of days)
It's a load of nonsense: In spite of what you may have heard, "nothing bad will happen to the Earth in 2012," says Jason Townsend at NASA's website. "Our planet has been getting along just
fine for more than 4 billion years, and credible scientists worldwide know of no threat associated with 2012." The purveyors of doom have offered up many scary scenarios, but there is no
scientific basis for any of them.
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