New Millenium Essay, Research Paper
Nobody actually knows what is going to happen when the clock strikes midnight for the year 2000. All around the world, people are concerned with what is being referred to as the Y2K computer bug. Some people are worried that the world as we know it is going to end. Others believe that everything is going to be just fine. Though the world probably is not going to end, there will inevitably be some problems caused by the bug.
Many of the world s computers contain a programming oversight, which makes them incapable of reading the date 2000. Computers use the two last digits in the year. When it s 1999, that is 99 in the computer language. When it turns the year 2000 the computer is going to read 00 . Because of the programming oversight, computers will believe that the year is 1900. This can lead to a range of malfunctions and shutdowns. A simple double digit programming oversight has caused all of this worry.
The Y2K bug could create many problems, for anything involving computers. Nuclear missiles could take off or detonate, which could cause total annihilation in some parts of the world. Nuclear power plants could shut down for months. There is no idea how much mass confusion could happen when the year 2000 comes. Other countries such as Russia do not have money to convert their computers from two digits to four digits. Many wonder how these countries are going to be affected by the Y2K bug if nothing is done about this computer glitch.
Though nobody really knows exactly how the Y2K bug is going to have an impact on everyone in some way or another. The biggest way is financially. Because the Y2K bug may mess up bank records, the Y2K bug may affect the money that you have in the bank. It would be a wise decision to take a little extra cash out of the bank before New Year s eve just in case.
Another potential problem is that the Y2K bug could affect computers at a power station. This could cause problems with gas, heat, water, and utilities. Because of this it would be smart for families to prepare, as if for a snowstorm or a hurricane. People should stock up on a little extra food and bottled water.
People should take precautions when flying in an airplane around the year 2000. There could still be glitches in trafficking control computers, or the airplanes themselves This could turn into a catastrophe, with planes shutting down in mid air. Most airlines believe that they are ready for the new Millenium. However, there is no way to truly know until after the year 2000 comes, and by then it might be too late.
Many people believe that their lives could be in jeopardy because of the Y2K bug. They feel that the potential problems with utilities, banks, flying, and in particular nuclear weapons, could cause disaster or even the words destruction. Though there will probably
be a variety of problems caused by the bug, the whole world is not going to end. Recently U.S. Senators on the Senate panel said, The world in not going to end. The Senators say that people should simply have a couple days worth of food and water on hand in case anything happens.
The extremists believe that the world is going to totally meltdown. They warn that everything is going to go such as massive power blackouts, hospital shut downs, failure in factory and fire equipment, total riots, the collapse of banking, and food shortages. Extremist s main belief is that the Y2K bug is going to trigger a financial meltdown. This financial meltdown is going to cause a global international depression, which will establish a one-world currency and an economic system. This will dominate the world until it is destroyed.
With the potential effects of the Y2K bug getting closer each day, many people wonder what is going to happen because of this computer virus. As the count down to the millenium nears, speculation and controversy over this issue continues to grow. This issue is getting more popular each day with more opinions and controversy coming from every where around the world. Though many large corporations have their problem solved right now, there are still agencies in the government that have not fixed the computer glitches. Ultimately the world is not going to end, but a lot of people are going to be affected by the Y2K bug. Ironically, a simple double digit programming oversight has caused all of this worry. When programmers choose to use to digits instead of four, they created one of the most costly and potentially disastrous computer bugs ever.