Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. Slower oxidative processes like rusting or digestion are not included by this definition.
The flame is the visible portion of the fire. If hot enough, the gases may become ionized to produce plasma. Depending on the substances alight, and any impurities outside, the color of the flame and the fire's intensity will be different.
Fire in its most common form can result in conflagration, which has the potential to cause physical damage through burning. Fire is an important process that affects ecological systems across the globe. The positive effects of fire include stimulating growth and maintaining various ecological systems. Fire has been used by humans for cooking, generating heat, signaling, and propulsion purposes. The negative effects of fire include water contamination, soil erosion, atmospheric pollution and hazard to human and animal life.
Read more about Fire: Fire Ecology, Fossil Record, Human Control, Protection and Prevention, Restoration
Other articles related to "fires, fire":
... Cooking oil is flammable, and fires may be caused by it igniting at too high a temperature ... Further, attempts to extinguish an oil fire with water cause an extremely dangerous condition, a boilover, as it causes the water to flash into steam due to the high heat of the oil, in ... This is the leading cause of house fires in the United Kingdom ...
... methods and measures are used depending on the type of fire damage that occurred ... Fire damage can be performed by property management teams, building maintenance personnel, or by the homeowners themselves however, contacting a certified ... Most are usually listed under "Fire and Water Restoration" and they can help speed repairs, whether for individual homeowners or for the largest of institutions ...
... buildings can also be built to increase safety by reducing fire damage, such as the use of fire cuts during construction ...
... Local government functions apart from the Police and Fire/Rescue services are carried out by four smaller unitary authorities Cheshire East, Cheshire West and ... Policing and fire and rescue services are still provided across the County as a whole, but by unelected bodies ... The Cheshire Police Authority and Cheshire Fire Authority consist of members of the four councils ...
... X-Fire (pronounced 'Cross-fire'), was a paintball-based TV gameshow, aired on Channel 4 in the UK and presented by Ed Hall ...
Famous quotes containing the word fire:
“I thought I alone suffered,
but suffering is everywhere.
When I went on the housetop
I saw its fire in every home.”
—Farid (13th cent.)
“In England if something goes wrong—say, if one finds a skunk in the garden—he writes to the family solicitor, who proceeds to take the proper measures; whereas in America, you telephone the fire department. Each satisfies a characteristic need; in the English, love of order and legalistic procedure; and here in America, what you like is something vivid, and red, and swift.”
—Alfred North Whitehead (1861–1947)
“The Apache have a legend that the coyote brought them fire and that the bear in his hibernations communes with the spirits of the “overworld” and later imparts the wisdom gained thereby to the medicine men.”
—Administration in the State of Arizona, U.S. public relief program (1935-1943)