Buzz
Can anyone truly ignite flames using only their mind? ViewApart/iStock/ThinkstockImportant Points to Remember
- Pyrokinesis is the alleged ability to ignite or manipulate fire through sheer mental focus, but it is largely regarded as a fictional concept.
- While some people claim to have this power, scientific research and expert studies reveal that the human brain cannot generate the necessary energy to start fires without external help.
- Various theories suggesting a special subatomic particle called 'pyrotron' could explain this phenomenon have no solid proof or scientific backing.
People often choose powers like flight or invisibility over more extreme abilities. While the idea of being Wolverine might seem thrilling, constantly facing danger only to heal would quickly lose its appeal. The Flash’s speed sounds fun at first, but who wants to constantly run at superhuman speeds? And Batman? He doesn't need powers—his wealth alone makes his bat-themed vigilante persona entirely plausible.
Having the power to control fire—known as pyrokinesis—may seem appealing at first glance. But beyond campfires, is it really that amazing to ignite flames anywhere you want? And how exhausting would it be to rush from one house to another, or to a wildfire, just to manage the flames? With all that in mind, it's probably best that pyrokinesis remains purely fictional.
Sounds too good to be true, right? Well, not according to some urban legends and sketchy news reports. For example, a young girl in the Philippines was said to predict fires and perhaps even start them by simply mentioning them [source: GMA]. Another case involved an 11-year-old girl in Vietnam, who allegedly set countless fires without physical intervention, causing her parents to seek outside help (as if dealing with a preteen wasn't challenging enough) [source: Thanh Nien News].
Now, a quick reality check: Pyrokinesis isn't real. Whatever happened with those girls? It wasn’t telekinetic fire-starting. Here’s the thing: Our brains just can’t generate enough energy to set anything on fire. The whole concept of mind-controlled flames is largely fueled by fiction. For instance, Stephen King introduced the term 'pyrokinesis' in his 1980 novel 'Firestarter', but even Charles Dickens teased readers into believing a character died from spontaneous combustion after a night of heavy drinking [source: Wolff].
Some people have proposed the idea of a subatomic particle called the 'pyrotron' being responsible for pyrokinesis and even spontaneous combustion. According to this theory, the pyrotron zips through atoms, and if it collides with a quark, a mini big bang happens inside your body, triggering internal combustion [sources: Wolff, Arnold].
But this theory just doesn’t hold up. For one, quarks have never actually been observed—we only know they exist because they explain a lot of what happens in particle physics. The idea of them colliding to cause combustion is a big stretch. Another issue? The pyrotron doesn’t exist. At all. There's never been any scientific evidence of a subatomic particle that could explain mind-controlled fire. And why not? Because pyrokinesis simply doesn't exist. Case closed.
