[NukeNet] "DOOMSDAY CLOCK" HAND TO BE MOVED, REFLECTING WORSENING NUCLEAR, CLIMATE THREATS TO WORLD

[Bill Smirnow]

Heads up! The following News Advisory was issued
by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, and is
intended for reporters.



"DOOMSDAY CLOCK" HAND TO BE MOVED, REFLECTING
WORSENING NUCLEAR, CLIMATE THREATS TO WORLD


Fri. 12 Jan 2007


The Bulletin <press at thebulletin.org>


-- Washington, D.C. and London News Advisory for
January 17, 2007 --


Simultaneous Announcement to be Made from
Washington, D.C. and London; Bulletin of Atomic
Scientists to Underscore "Most Perilous Period
Since Hiroshima and Nagasaki."


NEWS ADVISORY//January 17, 2006///The Bulletin of
Atomic Scientists (BAS) will move the minute hand
of the "Doomsday Clock" on January 17, 2007, 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 BAS news event will take place simultaneously
on January 17th 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.


News event speakers will include:


- Stephen Hawking, professor of mathematics at the
University of Cambridge, and a fellow of The Royal
Society;


- Kennette Benedict, executive director, Bulletin
of Atomic Scientists;


- Sir Martin Rees, president of The Royal Society,
and professor of cosmology and astrophysics and
master of Trinity College at the University of
Cambridge;


- Lawrence M. Krauss, professor of physics and
astronomy at Case Western Reserve University;  and


- Ambassador Thomas Pickering, a BAS director and
co-chair of the International Crisis Group.


A live, two-way satellite feed (with full Q&A)
will connect the Washington, D.C., and London news
events.


TO PARTICIPATE IN PERSON: You can join us for the
simultaneous, two-site news event taking place on
January 17, 2007 -- 9:30 a.m. ET, American
Association for the Advancement of Science,
Auditorium, 1200 New York Avenue NW, Washington,
D.C.; and 2:30 p.m. GMT, The Royal Society,
Wellcome Trust Lecture Hall, 6-9 Carlton House
Terrace, London.   Please RSVP in advance by
contacting Patrick Mitchell, (703) 276-3266, or
pmitchell at hastingsgroup.com.


CAN'T PARTICIPATE IN PERSON?: In the U.S.,
reporters can join this live, phone-based global
news conference at 9:30 a.m. ET on January 17,
2007 by dialing 1 (800) 860-2442.  (Media in and
around London should dial 0800-028-0531. All other
reporters outside of the U.S. and the London area
should dial 001-412-858-4600, which is not a
toll-free line.)  Ask for the "Bulletin of Atomic
Scientists Doomsday Clock" news event.  A
streaming audio replay of the news event will be
available on the Web at

http://www.thebulletin.org as of 6 p.m. ET/11 p.m.
GMT on January 17, 2007.


CONTACT: Patrick Mitchell, (703) 276-3266 or
pmitchell at hastingsgroup.com.



BACKGROUND

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists was founded
in 1945 by University of Chicago scientists who
had worked on the Manhattan Project and were
deeply concerned about the use of nuclear weapons
and nuclear war.   In 1947 the Bulletin introduced
its clock to convey the perils posed by nuclear
weapons through a simple design. The "Doomsday
Clock" evoked both the imagery of apocalypse
(midnight) and the contemporary idiom of nuclear
explosion (countdown to zero). In 1949 Bulletin
leaders realized that movement of the minute hand
would signal the organization's assessment of
world events. The decision to move the minute hand
is made by the Bulletin's Board of Directors in
consultation with its Board of Sponsors, which
includes 18 Nobel Laureates.  The Bulletin's
"Doomsday Clock" has become a universally
recognized indicator of the world's vulnerability
to nuclear weapons and other threats.  Additional
information is available on the Web at
http://www.thebulletin.org.