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Philip Julian Klass (November 8, 1919–August 9, 2005) was born in Des Moines, Iowa and died in Merritt Island, Florida. He was an electrical engineer by training, and also a journalist, but he is probably best known as a leading debunker of UFOs, arguing especially against the extraterrestrial hypothesis. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... William Tenn is the pseudonym for the science fiction work of Philip Klass (born May 9, 1920). ... November 8 is the 312th day of the year (313th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 53 days remaining. ... 1919 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... August 9 is the 221st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (222nd in leap years), with 144 days remaining. ... 2005(MMV) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Des Moines skyline Des Moines (pronounced in English, in French) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Iowa. ... Merritt Island is: An island in Brevard County, Florida, on Floridas Atlantic coast a primarily residential and light commericial area located on the island Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, NASA Kennedy Space Center are also located on part of the Island // The Island Merritt Island was originally an island... A UFO -- fact or fiction? A UFO or unidentified flying object in the original, literal sense is any airborne object or optical phenomenon, detected visually or by radar, whose nature is not readily known. ... The Extraterrestrial Hypothesis (sometimes shortened to ETH) is the hypothesis that UFO reports are best explained as creatures from other planets, occupying physical extraterrestrial spacecraft visiting Earth. ...

In the ufological and skeptical communities, Klass tends to inspire strongly polarized appraisals. Klass has been called the "Sherlock Holmes of UFOlogy" by supporters. And in a 1999 interview, fellow debunker Gary Posner wrote that despite some recent health problems, the 80 year-old "Klass's mind -- and pen -- remain razor sharp, to the delight of his grateful followers and to the constant vexation (or worse) of his legions of detractors." [1] Ufology is the study of Unidentified flying object (UFO) reports, sightings, and other related phenomena. ... Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes (1854-1957, according to William S. Baring-Gould) is a fictional detective of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, created by British author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. ...

However, Klass' critics have accused him of using pseudoscience explanations and propaganda techniques to advance his anti-UFO arguments. He has also been accused of being vindictive and resorting to character assassination and other "dirty tricks" against UFO witnesses and opposing UFO researchers. A notable example were his attacks on atmospheric physicist Dr. James E. McDonald after McDonald had demolished his ball lightning theory for UFOs as scientifically invalid. A pseudoscience is any body of knowledge purported to be scientific or supported by science but which fails to comply with the scientific method. ... North Korean propaganda showing a soldier destroying the United States Capitol building. ... Character assassination is the process of harming a persons reputation enough to cause rejection of that person from their community. ... In politics, dirty tricks refers to duplicitous, slanderous, and downright illegal tactics employed by politicians (or their underlings) to win elections and/or destroy opponents. ... Dr. James E. McDonald (1920 - 1971) was an American physicist. ... Ball Lightning Ball lightning is a natural phenomenon associated with thunderstorms and takes the form of a long-lived, glowing, floating object, as opposed to the short-lived arcing between two points seen in common lightning. ...

Biography

Klass graduated from Iowa State University in 1941, with a BS in electrical engineering. He worked for General Electric for ten years as an engineer in aviation electronics. In 1952 he joined Aviation Week, which became Aviation Week & Space Technology. He was a senior editor of Aviation Week & Space Technology for thirty-four years. Iowa State University (ISU) is a public land-grant university and space-grant university located in Ames, Iowa. ... A MOHIT PANDEY(B.S., B.Sc. ... Electrical engineering - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The General Electric Company, or GE, NYSE: GE is a multinational technology and services company. ... Aviation Week & Space Technology (often abbreviated as Aviation Week or AW&ST) is a weekly magazine which reports upon the state of the aerospace industry. ...

In 1973 Klass was named a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, recognized for his technical writing. He was also a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Aviation/Space Writers Association, the National Press Club, and the National Aviation Club. Asteroid 7277 (1983 RM2) was named "Klass" after him. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers or IEEE (pronounced as eye-triple-ee) is an international non-profit, professional organization for the advancement of technology related to electricity. ... The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is an organization that promotes cooperation between scientists, defends scientific freedom, encourages scientific responsibility and supports scientific education for the betterment of all humanity. ... The National Press Club is an association of journalists based in Washington, DC. It is well-known for its gatherings with invited speakers, including many presidential candidates and other influential politicians. ... Name Provisional Designation Discovery Date Discoverer 7001 Noether 1955 EH March 14, 1955 Indiana University 7002 Bronshten 1971 OV July 26, 1971 N. S. Chernykh 7003 Zoyamironova 1976 SZ9 September 25, 1976 N. S. Chernykh 7004 - 1979 OB9 July 24, 1979 S. J. Bus 7005 - 1981 ET25 March 2, 1981...

Retiring in 1986 as senior avionics editor of Aviation Week & Space Technology, he continued to contribute to the magazine for several more years. His book, "Secret Sentries in Space" (1971), was one of the first books about spy satellite technology. Aviation Week & Space Technology (often abbreviated as Aviation Week or AW&ST) is a weekly magazine which reports upon the state of the aerospace industry. ...

He is credited with coining the term "avionics," a blending of aviation and electronics. The onboard electronics used for piloting an aircraft are called avionics(AVI-ation electr-ONICS). ...

UFO Researcher and Skeptic

Klass was a founding fellow of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP). He is best known for his skeptical investigations of reports of UFOs. He published the bimonthly Skeptics UFO Newsletter for several years and wrote several books on the subject (see below). The Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, or CSICOP, is an organization formed to encourage open minded, critical investigation of paranormal and pseudoscientific claims from a responsible, scientific point of view. ... Skepticism (Commonwealth spelling: Scepticism) can mean: Philosophical skepticism - a philosophical position in which people choose to critically examine whether the knowledge and perceptions that they have are actually true, and whether or not one can ever be said to have absolutely true knowledge; or Scientific skepticism - a scientific, or practical...

In his first book, UFO's: Identified, Klass argued that UFO reports were best explained as a previously unknown type of ball lightning. Though initially speculative and provisional, Klass thought that plasma was consistent with many UFO reports: bright lights moving erratically. A highly charged plasma might further explain the reported effects of UFOs on the electrical systems of airplanes and automobiles. Ball Lightning Ball lightning is a natural phenomenon associated with thunderstorms and takes the form of a long-lived, glowing, floating object, as opposed to the short-lived arcing between two points seen in common lightning. ... The word plasma has a Greek root which means to be formed or molded (the word plastic shares this root). ...

Criticism of Klass

Klass's plasma conclusion met with considerable incredulity, even from some pronounced UFO skeptics; Klass was essentially invoking one mystery to explain another. Atmospheric physicist James E. McDonald offered a detailed rebuttal of Klass' plasma hypothesis. In part, McDonald wrote "My most basic objection to his plasma-UFO theory is that he does not confront the fact that the interesting UFO reports do not involve hazy, glowing, amorphous masses, but reportedly sharp-edged objects often exhibiting discernible structural details, carry discrete lights or port-like apertures, and maneuver for time-periods and in kinematical patterns that are extremely difficult to square with his plasma-UFO hypothesis. It also fails to deal quantitatively with parts of the argument that are, in terms of existing scientific knowledge, amenable to quantitative analysis." [2] Dr. James E. McDonald (1920 - 1971) was an American physicist. ... The word plasma has a Greek root which means to be formed or molded (the word plastic shares this root). ...

Klass and McDonald engaged in an often savagely adversarial relationship. Tom McIver writes that "Klass accused McDonald of misusing public funds, resulting in a traumatic government investigation and audit (in which he was cleared, though he committed suicide not long afterwards)."

Klass has been accused of using unfair, baseless "dirty tricks" in efforts to discredit UFO researchers with whom he disagrees. Jerome Clark (a UFO researcher and vice president of the Center for UFO Studies) writes, "To destroy the UFO 'problem' Klass concluded that ufologists should be the target as much as the UFOs themselves. If the ufologists could be publicly shamed or embarrassed on any grounds (not just professional but personal as well), who would take their pronouncements about UFOs seriously?" In politics, dirty tricks refers to duplicitous, slanderous, and downright illegal tactics employed by politicians (or their underlings) to win elections and/or destroy opponents. ... The Center for UFO Studies is an unidentified flying object research group. ... Ufology is the study of Unidentified flying object (UFO) reports, sightings, and other related phenomena. ...

McIver (a self-described "fellow skeptic") writes that many of Klass's opponents "have been subjected to ... smear treatment. Richard Kammann was a CSICOP Fellow who quit in disgust, appalled in particular at Klass's response to a once-loyal CSICOPer who dared to criticize the botched statistical methods of a CSICOP investigation. Klass's published response to this critic, said Kammann, contained 'so many smokescreens, red herrings, non sequiturs, quotes out of context, and misstatements' that it constituted 'intellectual fraud' if not outright cover-up. Not only did it ignore all the substantive points of the criticism, it was 'one huge ad hominem attack.' Klass 'ignored practically every specific point that [the critic] Rawlins had made. Instead [he] offered blatant ad hominem attack on Rawlins' motives and personality, bolstered with rhetorical ploys--including crude mis-quotation.' Describing his own attempts to reason with Klass, Kammann says: 'The Klass letter started a long and exasperating exchange in which he talked about everything but the statistical errors [the focus of the criticism] and the real cover-up. He kept me busy for a while answering irrelevant questions, while periodically attacking my objectivity, intelligence or integrity. From time to time, he threatened to expose my cover-up of scientific evidence he imagined he had uncovered [and] regularly ignored all my serious answers and questions...'" The Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, or CSICOP, is an organization formed to encourage open minded, critical investigation of paranormal and pseudoscientific claims from a responsible, scientific point of view. ... Look up red herring in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Non sequitur is German for it does not follow. ... When a scandal breaks, the discovery of an attempt to cover up the evidence of wrongdoing is often regarded as even more scandalous than the original deeds. ... An ad hominem argument, also known as argumentum ad hominem (Latin, literally argument to the man), is a logical fallacy that involves replying to an argument or assertion by addressing the person presenting the argument or assertion rather than the argument itself. ...

In 1983, Klass suggested that, as Clark writes, "that UFO cover-up proponents were serving the ends of Soviet foreign policy." Clark notes that this was a "new wrinkle" "in an unending stream of vitriol from the mouths and keyboards of CSICOP's bombast artists. After all, Klass and his CSICOP colleagues had already characterized us ufologists as antiscience cultists, cryptofascists, mental cases, money-grubbing exploiters, and raving irrationalists, and CSICOP chairman Paul Kurtz had repeatedly assured the press that societal acceptance of anomalies and the paranormal threatens the fabric of civilization." [3] The UFO conspiracy theory is any one of many conspiracy theories in which it is suggested that major world governments (particularly the United States government) have proof that UFOs are the result of alien visitation, but are suppressing this information either for nefarious purposes and/or out of the belief... State motto: Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь! (transliteration: Proletarii vsekh stran, soedinyaytes!) (Russian, Workers of the world, unite!) Official language None; Russian (de facto) Capital Moscow Area  - Total  - % water 1st before collapse 22,402,200 km²  ?% Population  - Total  - Density 3rd before collapse 293,047,571 (July 1991) 13. ... In religion and sociology, a cult is a relatively small and cohesive group of people (often a new religious movement) devoted to beliefs or practices that the surrounding culture or society considers to be far outside the mainstream. ... Crypto-fascism is when a party or group secretly adheres to the doctrines of fascism while attempting to disguise it as another political movement. ... The Scream, the famous painting commonly thought of as depicting the experience of mental illness. ... Paul Kurtz (born February 12, 1926 in Newark, New Jersey) is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the University at Buffalo (SUNY), but is best known for prominent role in the American skeptical community. ... Anomalous phenomena are phenomena which are observed and for which there are no suitable explanations in the context of a specific body of scientific knowledge, e. ...

However, Klass's defenders have questioned Clark's objectivity in assessing Klass, beyond their normal differences of opinion regarding UFOs. The men have butted heads on several occasions; in 1984, a series of friendly letters turned sour when Clark thought that one of Klass's jokes was a "death threat". Clark has also been accused of ignoring Klass's explanation on at least one occasion despite the fact that it was endorsed by the participants in the UFO case. Peter Brooksmith writes: "I've long found it interesting too that in his treatment of the RB-47 case in his UFO 'Encyclopedia', which is so admirable in so many other ways, Jerome dismisses Klass's interpretation of the data as a series of unlikely coincidences. But he doesn't mention that Klass presented that interpretation to the RB-47 crew, who agreed that the 'UFOs' were the product of human error & excitement combined with ghost echoes on the radar. This is a key item in Klass's analysis. Surely it was not just dislike for the man that led Jerome to omit it?" [4])

Critics, however, point out that Klass's explanation for the RB-47 case was thoroughly demolished by researcher Brad Sparks, who found, among other things, that Klass had the RB-47 plane sometimes moving at impossible supersonic speeds in order to get portions of his explanation to work. Sparks also disproved the keystone of Klass's thesis, that the RB-47 microwave sensors were miscalibrated because of equipment malfunction. Thus, it is argued, it doesn't really matter if the participants endorsed Klass's explanation or not, since it was bogus. This page is about high speed motion of bodies such as airplanes through air or other fluids. ... This page is about the radiation; for the appliance, see microwave oven. ...

Questioning the accuracy of the above claims by critics about Klass's character, defenders like to point to instances where Klass behaved in a civil, reasonable manner when debating UFO research. An example given was a 1976 letter to Gordon Thayer (a Condon Report investigator), Klass wrote of his and Thayer's disagreements "there are several more basic issues. For these, I want to give you the maximum possible time to do your 'homework' to dig out the strongest possible supportive evidence for your viewpoint. Thus I shall raise them now to provide you at least three months time to find/locate supportive evidence (if same can be found)." [5] see Condon Committee ...

See also

• Scientific skepticism

Scientific skepticism or rational skepticism (UK spelling, scepticism) sometimes referred to as skeptical inquiry, is a scientific, or practical, epistemological position (or paradigm) in which one questions the veracity of claims unless they can be scientifically verified. ...

Books and articles

Books:

• UFOs — Identified, 1968, Random House, ISBN 0-394-45003-5
• Secret Sentries in Space, 1971, Random House, ISBN 0-394-46972-0 LCCN 77143994 (about spy satelites)
• UFOs Explained, 1974, Vintige Books (Random House, ISBN 0-394-49215-3
• UFOs: The Public Deceived, 1983, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-322-6
• UFO Abductions: A Dangerous Game, 1989, Prometheus Books, ISBN 0-87975-509-1
• The Real Roswell Crashed-saucer Coverup, 1997, Prometheus Books, ISBN 1-57392-164-5
• Bringing UFOs Down to Earth, 1997, Prometheus Books, ISBN 1-57392-148-3 (for ages 9-12)

Articles: Random House is a publishing division of the German media conglomerate Bertelsmann AG, which acquired it in 1998. ... Prometheus Books is a publishing company, which publishes Scientific, educational, and popular books. ...

• Plasma Theory May Explain Many UFOs, Aviation Week & Space Technology, August 22, 1966.
• A Field Guide to UFOs, Astronomy, September 1997, pg. 30-35.
• N-Rays and UFOs: Are They Related;, Skeptical Inquirer, 2(1)57-61
• NASA, the White House, and UFOs, Skeptical Inquirer, 2(2)72-81
• UFOs, the CIA, and the New York Times, Skeptical Inquirer, 4(3)2-5
• UFO Federation Falls on Hard Times, Skeptical Inquirer, 9(4)314-316
• The "Top-Secret UFO Papers" NSA Won't Release, Skeptical Inquirer, vol 10, reprinted in The UFO Invasion
• Crash of the Crashed Saucer Claim, Skeptical Inquirer, vol 10, reprinted in The UFO Invasion
• A Hoax UFO Document, Skeptical Inquirer, l0(3) 238-239.
• The Condon UFO Study, Skeptical Inquirer, l0(4) 328-341, reprinted in The UFO Invasion
• FAA Data Sheds New Light on JAL Pilot's Report, Skeptical Inquirer, vol 11, reprinted in The UFO Invasion
• The MJ-12 Crashed Saucer Documents, Skeptical Inquirer, vol 12, reprinted in The UFO Invasion
• The MJ-12 Papers "Authenticated"?, Skeptical Inquirer, vol 13, reprinted in The UFO Invasion
• New Evidence of MJ-12 Hoax, Skeptical Inquirer, 14(2)135-140, reprinted in The UFO Invasion
• Additoinal Comments about the "Unusual Personal Experiences Survey", Skeptical Inquirer, vol 17, reprinted in The UFO Invasion
• Time Challenges John Mack's UFO Abduction Efforts, Skeptical Inquirer, vol 12, reprinted in The UFO Invasion
• The GAO Roswell Report and Congressman Schiff, Skeptical Inquirer, vol 18, reprinted in The UFO Invasion
• That's Entertainment! TV's UFO Coverup, Skeptical Inquirer, vol 20, reprinted in The UFO Invasion

Note - reprinted in The UFO Invasion, edited by Kendrick Frazier, Barry Karr, and Joe Nickell, Prometheus Books, ISBN 1-57392-131-9. Aviation Week & Space Technology (often abbreviated as Aviation Week or AW&ST) is a weekly magazine which reports upon the state of the aerospace industry. ... Astronomy is a monthly American magazine dealing with issues about astronomy. ... The Skeptical Inquirer is a magazine of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP) dedicated to debunking pseudoscience. ...

(There are several other articles.)

External links

• article about Klass
• Skeptics UFO Newsletter
• Index of Skeptical Inquirer articles, by topic
• Criticism of Philip Klass - from "fellow skeptics" by Tom McIver
• Phil Klass vs. The "UFO Promoters," By Jerome Clark, 1981
• The Debunkers vs the UFO Menace, or, Is Ufology Tantamount to Communism? by Jerome Clark, 1992
• Post on sci.skeptic announcing Klass' death
• Washington Post article on Klass' death
• American Philosophical Society, collection of papers
• APS What's New
• CSICOP