A method is described for discovering pheromones of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), using affinity chromatography with the pheromone-binding proteins of the ant. Proteins in the pheromoneand odorant-binding protein family, which are abundant in moths and other insect species, are not apparent in fire ant antennae. Two other types of hydrophobic lig...

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of applying methods andamount of ammonium polyphosphate (0, 2 and 4 wt%) on fire retardancy andmechanical properties of wood flour/polypropylene composites. The resultsshowed that addition of fire retardant improved the mechanical properties such astensile and flexural strengths and fire retardancy of composites. But by increasingof fire retar...

The use and control of fire is one of the defining characteristics of being human. Yet, fire remains remarkably understudied from a social science perspective. As a book-length ethnographic monograph, Cynthia Fowler’s Ignition Stories is the first of its kind to focus almost entirely on the subject of fire and its use by a specific people. Ignition Stories sets out to enlighten us on how fire i...

Open kitchens have been designed for many small residential units in tall buildings in Southeast Asia. This open design, without enclosing the kitchen with fire resisting walls has failed to comply with building fire safety codes in places like Hong Kong. Performance-based design was adopted to determine fire safety provisions. Gas cookers with flames are not allowed. Additional fire protection...

Fire is a major modifier of communities, but the evolutionary origins of its prevalent role in shaping current biomes are uncertain. Australia is among the most fire-prone continents, with most of the landmass occupied by the fire-dependent sclerophyll and savanna biomes. In contrast to biomes with similar climates in other continents, Australia has a tree flora dominated by a single genus, Euc...

This paper provides a history of attempts to understand and manage fire in the grasslands savannas eastern southern Africa from c. 1900 2010. Given brevity author’s expertise, there is focus on science management South Africa, though wider networks research expertise across region are discussed. There few key figures like Charles Swynnerton, John Phillips Winston Trollope, with references provi...

The historical and presettlement relationships between drought and wildfire are well documented in North America, with forest fire occurrence and area clearly increasing in response to drought. There is also evidence that drought interacts with other controls (forest productivity, topography, fire weather, management activities) to affect fire intensity, severity, extent, and frequency. Fire re...

Introduction: The Puzzle Consider the following scenario: on a stormy night, a tree was struck by lightning, caught fire and burned down. What caused the tree to burn down? Even though both the lightning strike and the presence of oxygen were required and sufficient for combustion, we usually say the lightning strike is " the cause " of the fire and the presence of oxygen is merely a background...