Element-tree, My Dear Watson, Element-tree

As is common occurrence, I find my mind wondering while I'm working. in
these moments of meandering thought I often resolve to solve perplexing
logic puzzles. (you may remember the "what weighs more, a pound of gold or a
pound of feathers?" post a while back.

Recently this has been my newest pondering:
What is more deadly/destructive, fire or water?

as I set out on this little intellectual quest I decided the first thing I
had to do is figure out which one was more destructive. I did so by thinking
of a house and what these two elements could do to it. Example:

fire could...
* destroy the paint from smoke damage
* ruin the furniture and contents of the house
* burn the support beans weakening the house
* burn it down to the foundation
* spread to other house if left unchecked
* render a house unlivable
* start if one is careless or has let the house become unsafe
(electrical stuff)
* brushfires consume acres of land and will consume houses just as
easily

on the other hand, water could...
* ruin any material of a porous nature
* saturate and ruin drywall and wood
* ruin the furniture and contents of the house
* carry hazardous waist into the home
* provide an environment for bacteria
* wash a house off it's foundation (if it's a flood)
* ruin walls and ceilings all from a small leak left unchecked over
time
* water falling from the sky (aka: rain) is a natural occurrence, and
can increase drastically without much warning

so, as far as physical damage goes, they both result in nearly the same
outcome. at this point the two elements are essentially tied.

so then I thought, well, which one is deadlier...

fire can kill you by...
* burning you to death (dying later at the hospital from massive 3rd
degree burns counts in this one)
* consuming all the oxygen in a room
* overwhelming you with smoke inhalation (asthmatics beware)
* raising the temperature to a point that your body can no longer
function.

but water can kill you by...
* means of drowning
* crushing you with debris (floods/tsunami)
* disease (our little microbial buddies)
* pressure (remember the movie Abyss?)
* removing all the heat from your body (hypothermia)

it was here that water pulled ahead, but for me, ultimate cincher to this
one was this:

* You can survive without fire, but the absence of water can kill you.
(dehydration).

yes, no matter where you look on planet earth, absolutely every living
creature (and plant) needs water to survive (even if it's in small
increments).

So kids, as I crawl back out of the deepest recesses of my dark little mind
I have come to this solid conclusion:

In comparison between fire and water, water is the most destructive/deadly
element.

(now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to drink some water before it tries to
kill me.)

Exile