Science & Technology

By T.K. Randall
October 2, 2026

Image: AI-generated (Midjourney)

Back in the 1960s, an article published in the journal Science predicted that the world will end due to overpopulation.

Another day, another doomsday prediction - except this time, the prediction comes - not from conspiracy theorists - but from scientists who published their work in a respected scientific journal.

Penned by Austrian-American professor Heinz von Foerster and two of his students in the 1960s, the paper put forward the idea that the rate of human population expansion was so great, that on November 13, 2026, it will have reached infinity, effectively bringing about the utter collapse of civilization.

This ultimate fate was described by the authors as being 'squeezed to death'.

The paper went on to generate a great deal of debate and discussion, especially at the time and in particular concerning the inherent problems of an ever-increasing human population.

For a time, it even seemed as though this prediction was on course to actually happen until around 1993 when the world's population began to lag behind the expected number.

Today, the birth rate is less than half what it was in the 1960s and there's obviously no chance that the expansion of the human race will reach 'infinity' before the end of next month.

Even so, the date itself has been spread around a lot online in recent years, though with those perpetuating the idea of our imminent demise having no actual understanding of the original prediction.

Suffice to say, we won't be going extinct on November 13th (not from overpopulation, anyway).

Source: Phys.org

Tags: Doomsday