The End Is Nigh! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Yes

Indeed, several Romans predicted the end of the world during the BC era. One of the first recorded 'apocalypse' dates was 634 BC, with some Roman leaders believing that Rome (and therefore the world) would be destroyed 120 years after its founding, due to a revelation that one of its founders, Romulus, had.

Many other predictions have been made since, with round numbers such as 1000 and 2000 AD being particularly popular.

Answer: The 'small bang'

Fortunately for those of us currently inhabiting the earth, all of these predictions are well outside of our life expectancy. The heat death of the universe is predicted to happen in ten to the power of 100 years; the sun becoming a red giant should occur in about five billion years (although it is uncertain whether earth will be destroyed or merely become uninhabitable); and the 'big rip' in 22 billion years or so, caused apparently by the stretching of the universe's dark energy.

Answer: Fine

Like many other songs, the specific meaning of the lyrics of this REM classic are heavily argued. Some point to the references to debating and/or politics. Others simply take it on face value as a song about the world going crazy. Either way, the tone is obvious: things are becoming a bit amiss but for whatever reason, they feel fine!

Answer: H.G. Wells

Wells' "The Time Machine" presents the world in a far-distant future, where humans have devolved, while "War of the Worlds" (one of his most famous novels) has aliens invading the earth. Wells was a prolific author, and not just in the science fiction genre: he also wrote contemporary novels, political and historical works, and even textbooks.

Answer: Australia

Directed by George Miller, "Mad Max" stars a young Mel Gibson as the eponymous character who is struggling to deal with a world that is suffering a raft of crime due to energy shortages (the world's oil supplies are nearly gone).

Answer: Homer

Homer uses numerology (and some bizarre calculations) to predict the end of the world twice. He eventually realises he made an error the first time round, so he attends the second event alone, and surprisingly he is right! He eventually persuades God to turn back time and save the rest of his family.

Answer: a thief in the night

To quote II Peter 3:10, "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise and the elements shall melt with fervent heat. The earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up". Sounds a bit scary! But it also lends weight to the fact that no man can predict the rapture date according to Biblical sources.

Answer: Predator

"Predator" (1987) is an action/horror film that stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as Dutch, a military special forces operative who discovers a horrible creature is stalking him and his colleagues in the jungle. "12 Monkeys (1995) is set in 2035, where the remaining inhabitants of Earth are forced to live underground to escape a highly contagious and deadly virus.

The film "28 Days Later" (2002) also deals with the aftermath of a virus, following four survivors. Finally, "Melancholia" (2011) is about Earth's potential demise when another planet looks like its about to collide with it.

Answer: Wasteland

"Wasteland" was first released in 1988. It was a role-playing game, and was critically acclaimed for its plot as well as its ability to save changes to the virtual world as players progressed.

Answer: False

Due to the nature of his predictions (all written as four line poems, or 'quatrains'), his work is very much open to interpretation, and some have theorized that he predicted the end of the world in December 2012. However, Nostradamus made predictions well beyond 2012, with specific dates extending to the 38th century. So on balance, the vast majority of experts agree that he did not think the world would finish with the end of the Mayan calendar.