TWO years ago, everyone from electric company bosses to President Vladimir V. Putin was predicting catastrophe for 2003.

Grim as all this sounds, Newhouse doesn't predict imminent catastrophe.

"Doomsayers have been predicting imminent catastrophe for a thousand years or more, since Malthus," Lon said.

He criticizes politicians and scientists who predict catastrophe unless urgent action is taken, and he calls for gradual adaptation instead.

However, there were people who were predicting catastrophe.

Mr. Milunovich is not predicting catastrophe for Big Blue.

By 1936 the economy was well on its way to recovery, while economic pundits were predicting catastrophe unless the deficit was eliminated.

There is no predicting what catastrophe this could bring about.

He criticises those "alarmist" politicians and scientists who predict catastrophe unless urgent action is taken.

Their ads predicted economic catastrophe for California companies and consumers.