Today Cortland’s Big Read concluded with a fascinating demonstration “Chemistry of Fire.” Paula Jones and Peter Jeffers conducted several demonstrations, and Scott Ochs engaged students in a discussion/workshop on arson. After a powerpoint and a lecture, the students’ had a task to determine where a house fire started that caused serious damage to the structure. Photos with some telling clues in each of three rooms were examined: a first floor living room and kitchen and a second floor bathroom.
Although the damage was significant in all three rooms, the toilet paper had not burned. Had the
heat of the fire been significantly higher in the bathroom the paper would have burned.
What would that temperature have had to be to burn the paper?
A rather fitting last event for the Big Read.
Dr. Sheila Cohen
3 responses so far ↓
Jennifer Garcias // May 6, 2008 at 4:01 am
The temperature for which books burn= Fahrenheit 451
Here is a brief summary of the Book Fahrenheit 451:
Fahrenheit 451 is set in the future, the twenty fourth century. The protagonist of the story is Guy Montag, a fireman that does not put out fires, but rather burn books and homes of their owners. In his world books are illegal to read and/or own. He lives in a society that relies on technology and entertainment, the radio, and others that look outside these interests are looked at as odd and even threats to others. As the story begins Montag is a person that lives without thinking or feeling. He actually enjoys his job of burning books and homes. As the story develops Montag begins to question why he is doing his job and what value it has in society. As he struggles with these questions, others begin to arise, such whether he fines pleasure with his life and also his wife.
Montag befriends his teenage neighbor, Clarisse McClellan. Montag finds Clarisse intriguing and she opens his eyes to the censorship for which society and the book burning is posing on people. She makes Montag begin to question if he is truly happy with himself and his life. Montag begins to realize through Clarisse that without the ability to seek the truth he can no longer be fulfilled as a person.
For the first time, Montag begins to questions his happiness with his own wife, Millie. She is content with listening to the seashell radios and has become almost robotic in her daily routines. Montag realizes and reflects on the impersonal nature of society when he fines his wife, Mildred, overdosed on sleeping pills. The paramedics are called and they pump Mildred’s stomach and give her a transfusion, even though none of them are actually doctors. After the paramedics explain that this is something that they see often, Montag realizes the impersonal nature of the society for which he lives in. The next day Mildred returns to her normal routine and does not even want to speech of the events. Montag sees his wife as another person in society that does not question anything, yet is seemingly unhappy.
Montag’s discontent comes to a head when he is sent to burn his own house down. He can no longer live in this society. He kills the Chief and leaves to seek out his mentor, Faber. During his journey Montag encounters a group of people that understand the importance of knowledge and books in a society. Some of the men have even memorized works of literature so that they can recreate the books one day in a society that is safe for books. Concluding the story an atomic bomb destroys the city and then men plan to rebuild a new society that will welcome free thinking and books.
References:
Bradbury, R. (1953).Fahrenheit 451. New York: Random House Publishing.
Leah Wong // May 9, 2008 at 2:27 am
Fahrenheit 451 is not only the title of Ray Bradbury’s soft science fiction novel but also the temperature at which books burn. Fahrenheit 451, the book being featured by the Big Read is entirely in sync with the “what book would you save?” slogan. A novel in which the protagonist, Guy Montag is employed as a fireman in the 24th century whose job entails setting fire, rather than putting them out. I a society where it is illegal to read and/or own books, the fireman’s job is to go into the homes of book owners and burn all the books and their homes. This was socially acceptable and even praised by the government. Montag never questioned his happiness until he befriended his teenage neighbor Clarisse McClellan. Clarisse opened him up to the other half of society, those who valued the knowledge books had to offers. Montag becomes almost enlightened and starts to question his happiness and his life. He starts to realize the governments hold on media and the knowledge not being shared with the public and decides he will not be fulfilled until he finds the truth. He then almost goes mad and burns down his own home because he cannot live in that society any longer. In the end the city gets hit with a atomic bomb that destroys everything, leaving a clean slate for men to rebuild a new society that supports free thinking and encourages the reading of books.
superbomb // May 28, 2008 at 3:18 pm
superbomb says : I absolutely agree with this !