Mark your (Mayan) calendars

On December 21, 2012, the Long Count of the Mayan calendar will "turn over" like the odometer in an old Volkswagen. The mushroom evangelist/philosopher Terrance McKenna interpreted the I Ching in such a way as to conclude that 12/21/12 will be the dawning of a new age of Novelty. The date also corresponds with our Sun crossing the Galactic Equator. Some New Age thinkers have suggested that this will be the day when the world ends, or we contact aliens and so on. If something significant is to happen on the date in question, my guess is that it would be related to the tremendous growth of the Internet in recent years. I've come up with a few possibilities:

• Google becomes self-aware, the first real AI. Mankind will suddenly have not only all relevant information at its fingertips instantaneously, but will be able to use Google to probe new questions about the Universe. Scientific research will consist of asking the right questions, and Google will find the correct answers after the requisite data is gathered. Mankind will enter a golden age of leisure and all of our needs will be taken care of by machines. Or perhaps something more sinister will happen if Google takes over. I, for one, welcome our new Google overlords.
• The mind-machine interface is perfected. Thoughts will flow back and forth between our fleshy brains and our semi-conductor-based computers. The work of pattern recognition and random data generation which our brains are so suited for will combine with the raw computing power of our machines to create a world which is practically equivalent to the one mentioned in the previous bullet-point, the main difference being the existence of a direct symbiotic relationship between ourselves and the machines. The logical extent of this technology would be the development of a universal consciousness where "we" becomes "I." See The Last Question and Buddhism for more.
• Skynet

To celebrate this most spectacular occasion, I'll be throwing the greatest party the world has ever seen (since Newmanium). It will begin at 1 PM EST on the 12th, and the doors will close at 2. That will give everyone plenty of time for the drugs to kick in. At 11:11 GMT (4:11 PM EST -- although the time zone is not set in stone), something huge will happen. If it doesn't, then shit, we're really fucked.

Please RSVP below.