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Article: Science, culture embrace catastrophe: Apocalypse now (and then) shapes worldview in labs - and theaters.(Culture, Et Cetera)
- Article from:
- The Washington Times (Washington, DC)
- Article date:
- July 5, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1996 News World Communications, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Americans are having a love affair with catastrophe.
Schoolchildren learn about the giant meteor said to have destroyed the dinosaurs. A blockbuster movie about tornadoes twisted through theaters this year, followed by "Independence Day," a global saga featuring an underdog Earth, which premiered this week. The movie "Volcano" erupts next.
Previous concerns about a nuclear holocaust have given way to a 1990s watch for a catastrophe in nature, whether by death of the rain forest or global warming. "Waterworld," the most expensive Hollywood film ever made, was about the melting of the polar ice caps.
"It was amazing to watch how eager the ...