Qatar stole their artificial cloud idea from The Simpsons

The head of mechanical and industrial engineering at Qatar University announced plans this week to develop an "artificial cloud" that will be positioned in the sky to provide shade and help reduce the heat in stadiums for the 2022 World Cup. The incredible plan has made news around the world with many wondering how Qatar University could come up with such a fantastical concept. Well, they didn't. The Simpson did.

In the legendary two-part 1995 episode entitled "Who Shot Mr. Burns?" nefarious power plant owner C. Montgomery Burns devises a plan to create a giant shield that will block the sun and keep Springfield in perpetual darkness. Springfield's wacky residents soon turn on Mr. Burns and the mystery of his shooting ensues. So, as Globoesporte points out, while Qatar may have added their own twist by making the artificial cloud remote controlled, the core idea is clearly ripped from a 16-year-old cartoon.

Even the idea of ripping off this idea isn't original, though. In 2002, South Park did an entire episode called "The Simpsons Already Did It" where Butters a.k.a. Professor Chaos plots to build a large structure to block out the sun (video clip here). But even Butters realizes the it isn't worth building once he's told that The Simpsons already did it. Apparently Qatar hasn't gotten that far yet.