Seers and doomsayers have prophesied that the disasters that may engulf us in the year 2012 will include drastic climate change.
Most of the prognostications are for extreme global warming.
But a minority go in the opposite direction: they say we will face a big chill instead.
Habibullo Abdussamatov of Pulkovo Astronomical Observatory in St.
Petersburg, Russia recently spoke to a conference in Chicago, where he predicted that a "Little Ice Age," similar to the one that lasted from about 1650 to 1850, could begin very soon.
Abdussamatov based his prediction on a study of historical variations in the amount of solar energy reaching earth.
He said average annual solar activity has seen a dramatic decrease during the past decade, which portends a colder time ahead.
If Abdussamatov and other "ice age" proponents are right, then efforts to reduce warming are at best misguided and at worst dangerous.
Throughout history, cold is a greater killer of human beings than is heat.
A colder climate has historically resulted in increased the incidence of famine and disease.
Added to the other woes being forecast for the year 2012, a drop in global temperatures could be more than many of us will be able to bear.
World predictions for 2012 include scenarios involving political upheaval and natural disasters such as increasingly destructive earthquakes and storms.
While preparing for these eventualities, perhaps it would also be a good idea to install some wood burning stoves in our houses and lay in plenty of warm clothes.
I for one might start looking for property in south Florida!