Protecting the Earth and opening up Mars ``I'm going to live on Mars'' Interview with Fumi Muraki

"Pick" and collect CO2

――Mr. Muraki is a current University of Tokyo student, chemist, inventor, and social entrepreneur. A pronoun for this is the CO2 recovery device "Hiyashii", which I researched and developed when I was in the second year of high school.

　"Hiyassyi" is now used in various places, from individual customers to the offices of large companies, but what everyone has in common is that "the awareness of carbon dioxide has changed. is the impression. "Hiyassy" is the only way to participate in actions that can stop global warming by simply pressing a button. You can see the amount of CO2 collected, and you can also see the concentration of CO2 in the room. The invisible things were "visualized", and I was able to have hope that "we are properly participating in the prevention of global warming" and "there is still more that we can do for the earth." Please call me like that.

――The epoch-making point of "Hiyassyi" is not only collecting CO2, but also making fuel (Sorarin) from it to run cars and ships, and depending on things, even airplanes. It's a place where you can fly.

　The "Sorarin Project" will finally begin in November this year. We are thinking of running a ship or a car and doing "all land, sea and air freight transportation". Under the name of "Sorarin Express," we are thinking of operating a cargo flight that connects Katsuura in Chiba and the Izu Islands, for example, with same-day delivery.

As a chemist and an adventurer

--As a first step toward that end, at the end of September, I obtained a ship called "Kinkai Maru No. 5" and completed a voyage halfway around Japan. rice field. What was he thinking during the voyage?

At the end of July, when I went out to sea in Niigata for the first time, I felt that my world was expanding. The field of view in the wheelhouse is very narrow, but it feels like opening up more than the field of view. In the opposite direction from the land, you will go to a world where there is nothing, just a deep blue, wrapped in blue. At that time, I felt the beginning of my career not only as a chemist and inventor, but also as an adventurer.

――How was the voyage to the finish line in Katsuura, Chiba?

　From the first day, we encountered an emergency. In Yamagata, the clutch system broke and the ship crashed into the land. In the Tsugaru Strait, the engine broke down and emitted black smoke. Each time, I told myself, "I will definitely return alive." I also felt the resolution of the "captain" who entrusts the life of the crew. After completing the voyage, I wonder if I've become a "man of the sea" for a while.

--What kind of words did you talk with the crew?

　When the ship was crushed by the waves, we all dared to joke around. When you encounter an emergency situation, if you think too seriously about what to do, you won't be able to come up with any good ideas. Then there is the "boat karaoke". I can sing the 25 country version of "Frozen", so I sang it.

- wow! Did your senses and thoughts change between the "before" and "after" tours of Japan?

It has changed 180 degrees. I felt that no matter what kind of emergency happened, no matter where I was taken, I wouldn't be shaken. I wondered if I had the ability to calmly deal with scary things.

　Also, the solidarity with the researchers who boarded together increased tremendously. Since we are friends who have lived and died together, we are no longer just colleagues or employees. I think that a sense of comrades who overcame difficulties together was born.

- That was a big harvest. After the success of this voyage, please tell us about the future direction of Mr. Muraki's activities and the prospects for future challenges.

　The goal of the shipping sector is not only to reduce CO2 to zero, but also to solve problems related to the sea, such as the declining population of remote islands and rising sea levels threatening the lives of people on remote islands. We plan to do everything. I would like to commercialize such things and promote commercialization based on research, rather than just "succeeding in adventures."

In addition, we will focus on the "Stratospheric probe Mokumoku plan" to aim for Mars. I've already started making the aircraft, and I'm going to launch the drone and myself after November, so I'm thinking of rushing.

Best research with best friends

--What made you want to live on Mars when you were in fourth grade was a physicist you received from your grandfather. The adventure novel "The Secret Key to the Universe" by Dr. Stephen Hawking. He decided to one day go to Mars, which was introduced as having the highest possibility of human migration, and established CRRA (Carbon Recovery Technology Research Institute) for research. Currently, you hold many titles in industry and academia, but what is the most meaningful position?

　First of all, my most important identity is that I am the director of CRRA. I decided on October 5th, 2017, thought of a logo, and it all started when I hung it on the wall of my parents' room at the time. It's only been about a year and a half since we became a corporation, but I've decided to make it the best independent research institute in the world, surpassing even NASA and JAXA. "CRRA equals me". When I first started calling myself a high school student, there were times when I was ridiculed for saying "what an exaggeration", but I persevered and persevered for four years. Currently, there are 16 researchers. From the ages of 19 to 68, I have been able to protect the Earth and open up Mars with the best research and the best friends. It's my greatest pride.

――As the scope of your research expanded, you must have met many different people.

　There are many people who have changed my life since my elementary school teacher, but actor Masaki Suda changed me once again. We have met several times and have become good friends. It all started with co-starring on a show, but he never doubted my potential and said, "If you're Fukai, you'll definitely be able to create the world you're envisioning."

　I'm trying to do various things such as "synthesizing clothes from carbon dioxide", but he said "Let's do it together", and got the people around him involved in the actual project. is starting to move. They look me straight in the eye and innocently accept and believe in the world I'm trying to create. It's very reassuring and I'm happy. I too, if there was a next generation who seemed to be saying things I couldn't understand at first glance, I would face them face to face, look them in the eye, face them straight, and never doubt their potential. I want to become a person who can trust and support you 100%.

I want to open up a "Yurufuwa book"

--In a book, what is the problem in the earth now, and how to solve it, in simple and humorous words that even elementary school students can read. , is spelled out with a picture. What made you want to do this configuration?

　I was originally a "humanities" person, and even though I was interested in science, the hurdle to pursue a career in science was very high. People who think, "I don't like science, don't understand it," have a bit of a prejudice when they think of a scientist, like, "Wow, someone who uses a lot of technical terms and talks fast and fast." If you let your mind shut down like that, no matter how much you say, "This is a new discovery!", they won't listen. In order to open the wall that rises between "humanities" and "science" as much as possible, I try not to use technical jargon, and enjoy the magic and fun of science with a cup of hot coffee with sugar. I thought I needed a book that would melt into my heart and permeate my heart.

- That's a nice expression.

　Thank you. I've always loved writing, and I've been writing my own novels since I was in the first grade of elementary school, so it was my earnest wish to publish a book. When I started my research, I wanted to make a book that a fourth-grade elementary school student would be able to read without hesitation, even if he picked it up as a gift from his grandfather. After receiving the writing request, I couldn't stop. My grandfather's birthday is September 13th, and I wanted to make it in time somehow. It was my 80th anniversary as I was fighting an illness. I wanted to give back to my grandfather who gave me the book as a present on that day.

- Do you have any plans for new writing?

I would like to write a second book soon. This time, I experienced a situation where I couldn't fit in a single book even if I just went on an adventure halfway around Japan. It's not like, "A college student tried to fly around Japan by himself." This time, I'd like to write in a slightly novel-like format so that the reader's heart beats fast.

　After that, I will go to the entrance of the universe with the "Stratospheric probe Mokumoku", so I definitely want to write about that experience in a book. "Let's talk loosely and softly" about science. I would like to develop a new genre of books, “Yurufuwa book”. It's a study, but it's so funny that I can read it in an instant. Melt in my heart I want to publish more and more books like that.

　As long as you open the first page of this book, I am confident that it will enter your hearts and minds, so I would be very happy if you could pick it up.

Aiming to be the first Martian

--like sugar in coffee. I think it will have a bigger impact on the younger generation.

　For our generation, we don't have lines like "Let's protect the earth for the future". I don't think "for the future", but "for the present". There is no more talk of "Let's leave a wonderful earth for our children and grandchildren". I can only think for myself. my life is at stake. It's become a problem like 'If you don't do it, you'll die' and 'Live or die'.

　Perhaps everyone in our generation has the perception that "we really have to do something". In that sense, in this day and age, especially for people of the same generation to pick up my book, I thought, ``I have to do something,'' but I didn't know what to do. I think it will be an opportunity to move the silent majority who did not exist.

--You think, ``I have to do something,'' and that's what motivates you to do your own research, doesn't it?

Yes. However, in my case, I can't help but love science, because "I'm saving the earth as a hobby." Of course I have a sense of mission, but I can't help but love it. I don't think too much about "for the sake of the earth," but I think that I've been sticking to it. "Stop global warming, save all 7.7 billion people on Earth, realize Mars migration, and become the first Martian in humankind." That's my dream. I will continue my research at CRRA to make my dream come true.