American physical chemist Melvin A. Cook invented water gel slurry explosives while conducting research in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. This new class of explosives suspended thick mixtures of oxidizers and fuels in a water-resistant gel matrix, allowing charges to be poured directly into wet boreholes without losing potency. This invention offered a significantly safer, non-nitroglycerin alternative for heavy iron ore mining.

Cook's manipulation of water to carry explosive energy altered the imagery of industrial science writing, merging historically incompatible elements—water and fire. This inspired mid-century technological poetry that meditated on the blurring boundaries of natural physics.