
The majority of the human species breathed a sigh of relief as they woke up Saturday morning December 22, 2012 to find themselves still among the living and that the world had not ended. The ancient Mesoamerican Long Count calendar, used by the Mayans, among others, and which ended on 21 December, was thought by some to be a prediction of an almighty apocalypse that would leave the world in ruins with only pockets of survivors left. Despite no solid evidence that the Mayans thought the world would end on this date, or that no obvious sign of our destruction was imminent, a niggling doubt floated around in most people’s minds.