Gilbert Plass

Gilbert Norman Plass (1920–2004) was a Canadian physicist known for his early predictions on global warming due to increased CO₂ levels. He graduated from Harvard in 1941 and earned a PhD from Princeton in 1947, working at institutions like the University of Chicago and Johns Hopkins before joining Ford Motor Company's research team. In 1953, he warned Time magazine about the potential for global warming from industrial CO₂ emissions. His 1956 paper on infrared radiation absorption marked early use of electronic computers in climate science. Plass predicted a 1°C temperature rise by 2000 and a 3.6°C increase upon CO₂ doubling, aligning with later IPCC findings. He also contributed to philately and hosted a classical music radio show. His work laid foundational insights into the greenhouse effect of CO₂, recognized in films like *Invisible Blanket* and Nathaniel Rich's *Losing Earth*.