We Are Still Here! Reflections on the 1960 “Doomsday” Prediction

Good Morning, World-We Are Still Here! Reflections on the 1960 “Doomsday” Prediction

If you are reading this post today, Friday, November 13, 2026, congratulations! Against some rather dramatic predictions made sixty-six years ago, the Earth has not cracked open, we have not been squeezed off the planet, and I am still here sipping my morning coffee and sharing my thoughts with all of you around the globe.

Over the past few weeks, headlines and social media have been buzzing about a famous prediction from 1960 that marked today as the end of the world. Many people casually remember it as some eerie psychic prophecy tied to the superstition of Friday the 13th. Having lived through enough decades and having spent my own career immersed in the world of science, I always find it fascinating to look behind the curtain of sensational headlines to see what actually happened.

A Penniless Student in Chicago and a Paper Downstate

As it turns out, this particular doomsday forecast didn't come from a crystal ball or a mystic. It came from a peer-reviewed paper published in the prestigious journal Science on November 4, 1960. Written by Austrian-American physicist Heinz von Foerster and two colleagues downstate at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign, the article bore the ominous title: "Doomsday: Friday, 13 November, A.D. 2026".

That detail makes me smile every time I think about it, because in November 1960, I was a fellow University of Illinois student myself, though miles away in the heart of Chicago, studying at the Medical Center and Research campus. Fresh from the Philippines, I was navigating my first year of graduate school, essentially penniless, bundled up against the biting Lake Michigan winds, and surviving on a shoestring budget, sheer determination, and boundless hope for the future.

While I was buried in my own laboratory research and textbooks in Chicago, those professors at our sister campus downstate were analyzing two thousand years of human population data. They noticed something alarming: our numbers weren't just growing; the rate of growth was speeding up.

Plugging those numbers into a mathematical formula, they projected that if humanity continued multiplying at that exact pace, the world's population would reach mathematical infinity on November 13, 2026. As they famously wrote in their paper, "Our great-great-grandchildren will not starve. They will be squeezed to death".

Of course, even serious scientists have a sense of humor. Von Foerster deliberately nudged the math so the apocalypse would land on November 13, which just happened to be his own birthday and a Friday the 13th to boot, ensuring the public would pay attention to his warning about overpopulation.

Why the Math Missed the Mark

For about thirty years, the formula held up surprisingly well. Yet by the 1990s, reality took a sharp turn away from the chalkboard. Today, rather than approaching infinity, the global population sits at a little over 8 billion people, and birth rates around the world have dropped by more than half since 1960.

Why did the equation fail? Because human beings are not mere variables in a rigid mathematical formula. As societies modernized, access to healthcare improved, urbanization expanded, and families naturally began choosing to have fewer children. In fact, many economists today worry more about declining populations and aging societies than we do about running out of standing room.

A Lesson in Humility and Hope

Looking back at that young graduate student in Chicago in 1960, who had almost nothing in his pockets but everything to look forward to, I am reminded of two enduring truths.

First, even the smartest minds with the sharpest pencils cannot account for the unpredictable resilience and adaptability of the human spirit. Models and equations are useful warnings, not etched-in-stone destinies.

Second, every ordinary Friday we get to wake up, connect with family, read a good book, or share a story across the miles with readers like you is a gift. So today, don't worry about the calendar or sixty-year-old equations. Enjoy your Friday, appreciate the space you have to breathe, and let’s keep living life to the fullest!

Do you remember any famous end-of-the-world predictions from your own lifetime? Drop a comment below and let me know where you are reading from today!

AI Overview:

Today, Friday, November 13, 2026, marks the exact date a famous 1960 scientific paper predicted humanity would face "doomsday" through infinite population growth. Because real-world demographic trends shifted dramatically over the past six decades, the equation's catastrophic singularity never materialized. 

What the 1960 Study Actually Predicted

In November 1960, University of Illinois physicist Heinz von Foerster and his colleagues Patricia Mora and Lawrence Amiot published a provocative paper in the journal Science titled "Doomsday: Friday, 13 November, A.D. 2026".

• The Mathematical Singularity. The researchers analyzed historical population estimates spanning roughly 2,000 years and noticed that human population doubling times were shrinking. Extrapolating that accelerating curve forward produced a mathematical singularity on November 13, 2026, where the global population would theoretically hit infinity. 
• A Cautionary Thought Experiment. Von Foerster warned that future generations would not starve, but rather be "squeezed to death". The date also happened to be von Foerster's 115th birthday, serving as a satirical, eye-catching way to argue for global birth control rather than a literal prophecy of planetary destruction.

Why the Equation Failed

For roughly three decades, the formula tracked global population growth surprisingly well, earning widespread citations in political and scientific debates. However, the model relied on the flawed assumption that growth rates would accelerate forever. 

• The 1993 Turning Point. Around 1993, actual global population growth began falling behind the paper's projections. Today, the global birth rate is less than half of what it was in 1960. 
• Social and Medical Shifts. Advances in healthcare, urbanization, wider access to education, and contraception drastically changed family-size preferences. More than half of the world's countries now have fertility rates below the replacement level of 2.1 children per woman.
• Biological Limits. Demographers also noted that the equation ignored basic physical constraints. A population doubling time cannot realistically shrink below the nine-month human gestation period. 
• The Takeaway for Modern Forecasting

As summarized in analyses from outlets like ScienceDaily and The Conversation, the passing of November 13, 2026, serves as a classic case study in the limits of mathematical extrapolation. Complex human systems rarely follow rigid curves indefinitely because societies adapt, innovate, and change their behavior in response to emerging challenges. 

Meanwhile, here's the top news Today:  

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Resigns

Jensen Huang has resigned as CEO of Nvidia following revelations of an affair with a businesswoman alleged to be a Chinese spy. The shocking exit has triggered a drop in company stock, a congressional scramble for testimonies from both Huang and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and an ongoing board investigation.

Widespread Microsoft Outage

A rolling tech outage across Microsoft platforms-including Outlook and Teams stretches past 12 hours, severely disrupting offices, schools, and health services in dozens of countries.

Political Shifts in Washington and State Races

Senate Leadership Challenge: Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen announced he will challenge Senator Chuck Schumer for the role of Senate Democratic leader. 
Governors' Races: Democrat Cindy Holscher defeated Republican Ty Masterson in the Kansas governor's race, while Democrat Scott Colom flipped a key Mississippi Senate seat. 

Tragic Brooklyn Building Collapse

Search and rescue operations continue in Brooklyn following a devastating residential building collapse that left at least 8 people dead, including 2 children. [1]

Here is a look at the breaking news coverage and search operations surrounding the apartment building collapse in Brooklyn:

54s

This Morning's Top Headlines – Nov. 12 | Morning News NOW

Finally My Photo of The Day:

Ditas and Friend Kiko, enjoying their 3-weeks Philippines Adventure at the Ifugao Rice Terraces, Banaue, Philippines 

Tarot Readings from Psychics on Trump's Health

That image above is a viral repost -the same graphic has been circulating on Facebook this week from pages like Lost In History and VT, but the claim itself traces back to one specific psychic.

Who it is Trevor, from the YouTube channel Scrying Out Loud

The mug in the inset photo in your image even says “NO SCRYING BEFORE COFFEE,” which is his branding. He was interviewed by IGV on Oct. 13, 2026, and earlier covered by UNILAD on Sept. 27, 2026 for a nearly hour-long tarot video where he lays out the prediction. 

What he actually claims

• Cause: Death from natural causes, specifically a neurological issue in the brain - not cardiac. He lists possibilities like a severe headache, a fall, or a sudden event like a stroke, and says he thinks Trump will die in a hotel or resort. 
• 
  
• Timing: He does not give an exact date. In the UNILAD piece he says, “When exactly, I don't know.” In the IGV interview he narrows it to before the end of 2027, and says he does not see Trump leaving office voluntarily before that.
• 
  
• Successor: Vice President JD Vance would become president. Trevor says Vance would then try to stay president by winning in 2028, would “work with Democrats if he thinks it suits him,” and calls that period “calm chaos.” 
• 
  
• Backstory he claims: He says the vision started years ago, and retroactively links it to a claimed dementia diagnosis in 2017-2018, the November 2019 Walter Reed visit (which he claims was a stroke caught in time), lasting cardiac damage from his October 2020 COVID hospitalization, a second stroke in September 2025, and a seizure disorder afterward. 
• 
  
• None of those medical claims are verified they’re his tarot interpretation. He also predicts the 2026 midterms will be a “massive rebuke” of Trump and MAGA, leading to a competitive Republican primary in 2028 and the rise of a Democratic candidate compared to Obama for oratory.

The important caveats

1. Trevor himself disclaims it: “These are tarot readings for entertainment purposes only. I could be right, I could be wrong.”

2. Don’t confuse him with the other viral psychic: A separate British psychic named Selina (soul_voyance), dubbed the “new Baba Vanga” in other UNILAD stories, is also predicting a Trump health scare and Vance gradually taking over duties, but she frames it as a health crisis within about 12 months, not necessarily death. The two stories are getting mixed together online.

3. What’s on the record about Trump’s health: The IGV article notes a White House medical summary from May 29, 2026, after an exam on May 26 at Walter Reed, attributed hand bruising to aspirin use and frequent handshaking, and ankle swelling to chronic venous insufficiency. The White House described him as in excellent health. Trump himself posted “Everything checked out PERFECTLY.” The article also stresses there is no verified evidence of a secret medical emergency. 

4. Trump turned 80 in June 2026, born June 14, 1946 which is part of why health speculation keeps circulating. 
5. So the headline in your screenshot is accurate about what Trevor says, but it’s not a news report of an actual event. It’s a psychic prediction, repackaged as clickbait, and even Trevor won’t pin down a specific date.

1. My Reel of the Day: Will Trump Abandon the US?

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1544806454360528

Meanwhile, Have You Heard of the Word- MetaCognition?

Knowing what you know, and knowing when you might be wrong, is a rare and powerful skill. Scientists call it metacognition: the ability to step back and judge your own thinking. In a study published in Science, researchers at University College London found that people who were better at judging whether their own decisions were right had more gray matter in the anterior prefrontal cortex, the area right behind your eyes. That region is one of the few parts of the brain that is fundamentally different in humans compared to our closest relatives, the great apes. The good news: like most skills, metacognition can likely be trained. Try journaling about your decisions, asking "How sure am I, and why?" before answering, and reviewing your mistakes without judgment.

Finally, 

They teach Pilgrims 1620 in every school. They never teach Morro Bay 1587.

Filipinos stepped on California soil 33 years before the Mayflower then built the first Asian town in America in Saint Malo, Louisiana. They even fought with Andrew Jackson at the Battle of New Orleans.

Why were we erased from American history? Share this so they can’t erase us again.