Herman Kahn

American mathematician, military strategist and author who tried to justify nuclear war; a true Dr. Strangelove. Part of the American military "brain trust," Kahn was a first-class analyst of modern warfare. Well-educated, highly personable and jocular in public lectures, he had an active interest in an astonishing variety of fields that included economics, mathematics, public affairs, politics, history, sociology, psychology and anthropology.

After graduating from UC in 1945, Kahn joined Douglas Aircraft as a mathematician, then Northrop, while teaching part time at UCLA. In October 1947 he returned to Douglas as a lab analyst for Rand. He later founded the Hudson Institute, his own think-tank with powerful connections to U.S. Intelligence, the CIA and the Pentagon.

He was the author of "On Thermonuclear War," 1960 and "Thinking About the Unthinkable," 1962.

Kahn died at his home in Chappaqua, NY on 7 July 1983, officially from a heart attack though rumors persisted that it was a suicide.