At the Threshold : Ufos, Science, and the New Age (The New Millennium Library, V. 2)
Emmons has arguably written one of the best treatments of UFOs from the perspective of the sociology of science. Ufology, he writes, has been labeled a "deviant science" and thus not taken seriously. This treatment originated with the air force's UFO project and continues in sensational media coverage. Emmons takes a look at the scientists who defy the taboo and study UFOs anyway, as well as the professional debunkers, whom he finds much less objective than their press releases let on. He then examines two reasons not to take debunking claims too seriously: mainstream science is now under attack from many quarters for being too ideological, and some conceptual developments in the new physics may make UFOs much easier to accept and explain, even within a scientific framework. The rest of the book is concerned with the nature of physical and eyewitness evidence and the debate between nuts-and-bolts ufologists and those with a New Age approach. A masterful job of clarifying the dynamics of a complex field of study.George Eberhart