An elementary school student from Okaya City who devised a way to extract silk from wild silkworms called "Yasan" without dying has won the top prize at a nationwide science competition.
Shinnosuke Yanami, a fourth-year student at Nagachi Elementary School in Okaya City, won the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award, the highest award, in the science and upper grade division of the National Children's Talent Development Contest.
In the silk reeling industry, which was flourishing in Okaya City, it was common practice to boil the cocoons and then take the thread.However, while raising wild silkworms since he was five years old, Mr. Yinami learned how to take the thread without letting them die. I started thinking about it.
Last year, he raised eight types of wild silkworms, and among them, he discovered that the cocoon of the Ustabiga had a hole in the top.
After removing the larva from the hole, Yanami boiled the cocoon in water spiked with chemicals, and was able to obtain a thread about 2 meters long.
This means that the larvae that were raised elsewhere have also successfully grown into adults.
In addition, Mr. Yanami confirmed that the cocoon of Ustabiga has a two-layered structure: a yellow-green outer layer and a purple inner layer. It is not well known even among people, so it can be highly evaluated."
Ms. Yinami said, ``The moths that grow from silkworms are cute and beautiful, so I was happy to learn that I could get the silk without killing them.In the future, I want to become a researcher of insects.''