As a selling point on school tours, a staple in every pre-frosh publication, and a popular spot during Ithaca’s few warm months, the gorges are a major part of Cornell culture. While “Ithaca is gorges” t-shirts are seen by the dozens daily, many students are unaware of how these beautiful waterfalls came to be.

Apocalyptic prophecies have spawned many science fiction movies. In the 2003 film The Core, the Earth loses its protective magnetic field when charged magma in the planet’s interior stops churning about. A mission to the center of the Earth is launched to get the magma spinning and save the planet. While these films are science fiction, some think these stories are set to come off of the screen and into reality in 2012.