Philip Hauge Abelson was an American physicist, scientific editor and science writer. Trained as a nuclear physicist, he co-discovered the element neptunium, worked on isotope separation in the Manhattan Project, and wrote the first study of nuclear marine propulsion for submarines. He later worked on a broad range of scientific topics and related public policy, including organic geochemistry, paleobiology and energy policy.
Abelson served as editor-in-chief of the journal Science from 1962–84, president of the Carnegie Institution of Washington from 1971–78, and president of the American Geophysical Union from 1972-74. His frequent editorials in Science, both during and after his term as editor, became known for their strident and thought-provoking views. A collection of 100 of his editorials was published as a book, entitled Enough of Pessimism. He may have been the original source of the phrase 'extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence'.
Wikipedia
The roots of scientific integrity, Editorial in Science (29 March 1963) 139: 1257 [DOI: 10.1126/science.139.3561.1257]
