There's been a lot of speculation and fear that the end of the world could coincide with the end of the Mayan calendar on Dec. 21, 2012. Sony's doomsday film "2012," set for release next month and based on the prediction that the world will end in three years, has put a spotlight on the theory.
A NASA scientist is trying to quell those fears and has condemned the film and the company's viral marketing campaign, The Washington Post reports.
Sony has set up a fake Web site for an organization called the Institute for Human Continuity which uses scientific language and predicts the demise of the Earth.
The site suggests "that in 2012 a series of cataclysmic forces will wreak havoc on our planet." It details what the world will be like after 2012, offers survival kits and asks people to sign up for a lottery to be saved. All of this is a little too realistic for Dr. David Morrison, a senior scientist at NASA's Astrobiology Institute.
Morrison says he's gotten nearly 1,000 e-mails from people who believe something catastrophic is about to befall the planet. He added that some of the letters have been from teenagers who said they would rather commit suicide than watch the world come to an end.
Sony claims it's obvious the Web site is a promotion for the movie. "It is very clear that this site is connected to a fictional movie," Vikki Luya, Sony's publicity director said. "This can readily be seen in the logos on the site."
Another planet colliding with Earth, the sun becoming a supernova and incinerating the Earth, and global flooding are among the theories that some people think will cause the end of world on Dec. 21, 2012.
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