DENJIRO: Camping is quite a popular activity these days. A style of camping where people enjoy the great outdoors by using as little equipment as possible is called “bushcraft.” Today, we’re going to try one of the basic skills of bushcraft, which is to start a fire without using matches or a lighter.
First, let’s try out a very old method. We’re going to use this striker and a flint. We want to use a hard piece of flint. The striker is made of steel. This over here is cotton that has been burned. I’m going to strike the flint against the striker above this cotton.
BOY: You started a fire!
DENJIRO: As you can see, I’ve started a fire. When you strike a striker and a flint against each other, some of the steel gets shaved off. That flies off as sparks because of frictional heat. When it falls on the flammable cotton, it catches fire.
Actually, it is said that a similar method of starting a fire was used before humans started using steel. So what did they use? This thing right here.
BOY: What is that?
DENJIRO: This is the crystal of a mineral known as “pyrite.” This was not shaped to be a cube. Crystals like this form naturally. You can start a fire using this pyrite. We’re going to use this piece that has a lot of small crystals. I’m going to strike a hard piece of flint against it.
BOY: It caught on fire!
DENJIRO: We’ve successfully started a fire. Pyrite is a combination of iron and sulfur. It’s thought that this is how people of ancient times started a fire.
I hope energy will bring you all happiness. Our magic word is "Happy Energy!”
5 окт 2024
