THE world will end in 2012 – that's what a growing number of people believe. Here Nick Pope, an expert on mysteries and conspiracy theories, takes on the doom-mongers. ON December 21, 2012, the Mayan calendar comes to an end and so, fear some, do we. To be more precise, the date marks the end of a 5,125-year cycle of this ancient calendar. Little is known of the Mayans — a Central American civilisation skilled in mathematics and astronomy — but many believe this ancient culture had secret knowledge that enabled them to predict when the world would end. Google the phrase "2012 end of the world" and you will find millions of references to this belief. There are many different and odd theories about what exactly might happen. Some believe a mysterious celestial object known as Planet X, or Nibiru, is returning to our solar system and will bring cosmic catastrophe. Others think a rapid "polar shift" — a sudden reversal of the Earth's rotation — will bring global destruction. Some theories talk of planetary or galactic alignments, others say there will be a reversal of the Earth's magnetic polarity. There are other weird theories doing the rounds about what might happen in 2012 too.
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