I am thrilled to see this groundbreaking paper in Science. It even made the cover, featuring a dramatic image of a house burning in a wildfire. Published in such a prominent journal, the paper might signal the beginning of a paradigm shift in wildlire science. This research advances our global understanding of fire dynamics with a strong focus on protecting people. For decades, global wildfire studies concentrated on burn scars and ecological damage. Now, things are changing 👍🏼

I visited the London Fire Brigade today and gave a seminar about battery fires. It is so nice to talk to them, always. I shared an overview of the scientific facts and my insights on battery safety. I felt validated in my worries about the ever morphing threat that Li-ion batteries still bring to our lives, homes and cities. Although statistically rare, battery fires pose hazards that are significantly different to the other known fire hazards in terms of their initiation route, rate of spread, duration, toxicity, and suppression. Because industry has failed badly to fix the problem themselves, safety now must be forced into the market via meaningful standards and robust regulations. For example, their new nomenclature of "thermal event" and "thermal propagation" etc that the battery industry has invented to talk about fires is a mask, and hinders their acceptance of the hazards the products bring.

I am immensely proud of seeing my PhD supervisor and friend, Prof Carlos Fernandez-Pello, being celebrated for his outstanding contributions to fire science. He is one of the pioneers of fundamental research that brings safety and sustainability to the world. ¡Enhorabuena Carlos! 🎉❤️