SupDet 2016 Kicked off with a Keynote on the History of Fire

The suppression portion of SupDet 2016 kicked off yesterday with a keynote on the "History of Fire" by Dick Gann from NIST. He began with the idea that “fire safety is a benefit provided by a society using tactics, including fire suppression, whose nature reflects the cultural priorities of the era rather than being a force by itself.” For the first hominids, the preservation of fire would have been a priority. They recognized both its destructive power and its benefits, but without the ability to start fires, they had to preserve those they found in order to maintain their power....