Resetting the Doomsday Clock

This morning, the Board of Directors and the Board of Sponsors of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists announced that the minute hand of the Doomsday Clock would be moved one minute back from five to six minutes to midnight. The group, which contains 18 Nobel laureates, cited “a more hopeful state of world affairs” in their decision to indicate the world is metaphorically one step further away from annihilation. “We are poised to bend the arc of history toward a world free of nuclear weapons.”

To mark this event, which was followed by an worldwide audience online and through global media outlets, Pentagram created a simple tabloid information piece virtually overnight. Printed on inexpensive newsprint, it explains the purpose of the Bulletin and the Doomsday Clock in clear language and blunt, unadorned graphics. The Clock, which was created in 1947, had since become a universally recognized indicator of the world’s vulnerability to catastrophe from nuclear weapons, climate change, and emerging technologies in the life sciences. It is the focus of the Bulletin’s graphic communications effort.

This is the 19th time the Clock has been reset. The last time, in 2007, Pentagram recommended the group adopt the Clock as its symbol, and created standards for its use. In the three years since, the Bulletin community has grown considerably. This publication’s clear statement of purpose is a indication of the group’s maturity and confidence as it moves into its second 50 years, and an invitation to join the global effort to turn back the Clock.

A look inside the piece after the jump.