Photos of the End

If you're like me (and I hope you are, that would be awesome), then either you have a healthy interest in apocalypse scenarios and dystopias or you've contemplated your own apocalyptic scenario(s). If you're not like me, then all the power to you. You're sane, among other things.

There are a number of apocalyptic scenarios* ripe for picking, ranging from asteroids to terrorists to global warming to Chthulu. Most of them have been written about or made into movies or both. But as far as I know, nobody's covered the world in red dust**, polluted China***, gone steampunk****, used garbage*****, or flooded NYC******. Y'know, if you're feeling creative.

And if you're not, some pics to inspire: people exploring a lifeless Earth*******; shipwrecks; crashed planes; shopping malls†, some in China††; and Detroit†††.

I shouldn't joke. The human impact of apocalypses is incredibly sobering, as the Chinese pollution photos show (see Gizmodo's shared links to photos of the effects of nuclear testing in the U.S.S.R.). Fortunately, it seems we stopped writing nuclear apocalypse stories around the time the Iron Curtain came down—or is that 'unfortunately'? It's not like the effects or the threats have gone away.

* Boing Boing
** except Mother Nature
*** io9
**** Boing Boing
***** io9
****** io9
******* io9
† Boing Boing
†† Gizmodo
††† io9 again