In a stunning—and very unsettling—turn of events, modern scientists have found evidence supporting the ancient Mayan prediction of an apocalypse in the year 2012. Mayan astronomers supposedly predicted that 2012 would mark the calamitous “birth of a new era”—an era marked by the rise of giant, sentient cockroaches, I'm guessing. Because according to the report, Severe Space Weather Events — Understanding Societal and Economic Impacts, "the next period of intense solar activity is expected in 2012, and coincides with the presence of an unusually large hole in Earth’s geomagnetic shield, meaning we’ll have less protection than usual from the solar flares." Furthermore, "consequences from solar flares unleashing waves of energy [...] could disrupt Earth’s magnetic field, overwhelming high-voltage transformers with vast electrical currents and short-circuiting energy grids [...] That would, of course, be just a fraction of global damages." Having recently visited the Mayan pyramids in Chichen Itza, Coba and Tulum, I can attest to their advanced culture and sophistication. So this news doesn't really surprise me as much as it makes me want to crap my pants.