Ode to explosives

Recently, I started wondering why exactly we celebrate the Fourth of July with fireworks. Are fireworks meant to remind us of the explosions of war? In particular, are fireworks meant to commemorate "the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air" that Francis Scott Key saw in the sky above Fort McHenry during the War of 1812 and immortalized in the national anthem?\nThen I realized that I simply was being over-analytical, as I am prone to be. Obviously, we celebrate the Fourth of July with fireworks because explosions are so cool!\nAnd people around the world have recognized the coolness of fireworks for centuries. It is said that a Chinese cook accidentally invented fireworks by mixing three kitchen ingredients and observing the burst of flame that resulted. So the next time you have a kitchen disaster, reassure any nervous bystanders that it wasn't a mistake, it was simply your first experimental foray into pyrotechnics. \nThe Chinese applied explosives first to religious rituals and then to warfare. Around 1200, a variation of the firecracker -- called the ground rat -- was invented, which, as the name might suggest, propelled a rat along the ground with the intent of scaring enemy soldiers and causing their horses to go wild.\nWhy is it always the rats that are picked on? They really aren't that much different from mice or squirrels, and no one ever thinks about turning those animals into rockets -- though one imagines Bloomington squirrels might make effective heavy artillery.\nFrom China, gunpowder gradually spread into the Middle East and Europe. The Italians are often credited with developing the more aesthetic side of fireworks, and by the 16th century, elaborate fireworks shows were popular for private entertainment of the upper class and for public displays throughout much of Europe. \nSettlers brought fireworks to the Americas as early as the 1600s, and fireworks were part of the very first Independence Day celebration in 1777, even though the outcome of the Revolutionary War would not be certain for six more years. Fireworks displays remain a staple of Fourth of July celebrations in cities across America.\nThe U.S. is not the only country that celebrates a national holiday with fireworks, however. Fireworks mark Bastille Day in France and Australia Day in, well … Australia. Fireworks are included in celebrations of Guy Fawkes' Day in Britain, a holiday commemorating the successful foiling of the Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in which Fawkes and his co-conspirators allegedly planned to blow up Parliament. Another traditional element of the celebration involves tossing dolls of Guy Fawkes into bonfires. I can't help but find this tradition rather endearing, in a voodoo-ish sort of way. Perhaps we might modernize it? Hillary Clinton Day anyone?\nIronically, China does not celebrate its Founding of the Republic Day with fireworks. Perhaps out of compensation, fireworks are used for many other celebrations year-round, such as weddings, births, religious festivals, Tuesdays and cloudy June afternoons.\nIndeed, a quick Internet search reveals fireworks are used for all sorts of celebrations in countries from Egypt to Singapore, from Mexico to Japan. Our delight in hearing fireworks go bang and watching them sparkle in the sky seems nearly universal. After all, fireworks unite the joys of sensory stimulation, instant gratification and spontaneous combustion in one tidy package. To the list of human needs and desires, let us add another: food, water, shelter … fireworks.