# What is Fire? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [August 29, 2007, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-fire/417353 "2007-08-29T13:01:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2007, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-fire/417353/21 "2007-08-31T00:30:10Z")
[QUOTE=picunurse] Fire is rapid oxidation of a given fuel. [/QUOTE] … which answers the thread title, but the OP makes clear the real question is “what is flame?”. ---
**Author:** ![RiverRunner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/977dab/32.png) [@RiverRunner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RiverRunner)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2007, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-fire/417353/22 "2007-08-31T13:59:37Z")
[QUOTE=Q.E.D.] Put a lit birthday candle in the microwave, and you’ll see. Use an oven you don’t care about–it will scorch the inside of the oven. [/QUOTE] (Warning! Hijack follows!) Something else that is fascinating is that if you put two carrots close to each other in a microwave oven and turn it on, you will see sparks between the carrots. Just think of the 1920’s-style possibilities of combining carrots with **Mangetout** ’s candle-powered beam weapon. RR ---
**Author:** ![SiXSwordS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/49beb7/32.png) [@SiXSwordS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SiXSwordS)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2007, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-fire/417353/23 "2007-09-01T20:53:59Z")
[QUOTE=Q.E.D.] [A flame] can _become_ a plasma under the right conditions, though. Put a lit birthday candle in the microwave, and you’ll see. Use an oven you don’t care about–it will scorch the inside of the oven. [/QUOTE] Just what are we talking about here? Using a good friend’s MW? A co-worker’s? A romantic interest you’re about to dump? A romantic interest who is about to dump you? Will the MW be usable afterword? Cleanable? Trash? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2007, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-fire/417353/24 "2007-09-01T21:29:36Z")
[QUOTE=SiXSwordS] Just what are we talking about here? Using a good friend’s MW? A co-worker’s? A romantic interest you’re about to dump? A romantic interest who is about to dump you? [/quote] All of the above! [QUOTE=SiXSwordS] Will the MW be usable afterword? Cleanable? Trash? [/QUOTE] Oh yes, absolutely. If you don’t contain the plasma in some sort of Pyrex container (which I highly recommend you do if you have a suitable container; NOT ordinary glass–it will shatter), you’ll likely have more or less permanent scorch marks on the ceiling of the cavity, and if there’s any plastic up there, it will likely melt and/or burn. ---
**Author:** ![SiXSwordS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/49beb7/32.png) [@SiXSwordS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SiXSwordS)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2007, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-fire/417353/25 "2007-09-01T21:52:16Z")
[QUOTE=Q.E.D.] If you don’t contain the plasma in some sort of Pyrex container (which I highly recommend you do if you have a suitable container; NOT ordinary glass–it will shatter), you’ll likely have more or less permanent scorch marks on the ceiling of the cavity, and if there’s any plastic up there, it will likely melt and/or burn. [/QUOTE] Sorry for the serial hijack… So, an oven safe, see through container placed over a lit candle with some room at the bottom to get O[sub]2[/sub] to the flame and use a microwave oven that you still have the receipt for… put it on high for a minute? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2007, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-fire/417353/26 "2007-09-01T21:55:57Z")
Yep. And [here](http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6732382807079775486) is a video. This one uses a match instead of a candle, but you get the idea. Don’t let it run too long, even with Pyrex, and don’t touch the glass right away afterwards–it will be very hot. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2007, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-fire/417353/27 "2007-09-02T06:46:43Z")
Awesome. Now THAT is plasma. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-fire/417353.md?page=1)