The best way to give back to society is to share your lifelong passion with young people, said an 85-year-old who recently made an unusual donation to his alma mater — a collection of mosquito specimens.
Lien Jih-ching (連日清), a specialist known for his dedication to the study of mosquitoes and malaria around the world, donated about 2,000 mosquitoes to his high school to help students learn about the insect and to ensure that his treasured collection will be well looked after.
“When I leave this world, I want to know that these mosquitoes are in good hands,” Lien said.
Photo: CNA
Dubbed the “Mosquito Man” or “Doctor Mosquito,” Lien developed an interest in mosquitoes while working as a typing assistant to a Japanese professor of tropical medicine at Taipei Imperial University (now National Taiwan University) during the Japanese colonial period. Although he was only 16 and had dropped out of school to support his family, Lien was drawn to the scholarly conversations between the professor and visitors and would eavesdrop whenever possible.
“It was like learning without textbooks,” he said.
In the 1940s, malaria was a great concern for Japan because of its plan to conquer Southeast Asia. Health officials were desperate to learn about ways to block its transmission by mosquitoes in tropical countries, Lien said.
“There were more soldiers who died from malaria than war wounds,” he said, recalling how the disease became Japan’s worst nightmare during World War II.
Lien’s strong interest and photographic memory soon caught the attention of his boss, who later promoted him to catching mosquitoes for laboratory studies.
“This is where my lifelong fascination with mosquitoes began,” said Lien, who, despite old age, still categorizes mosquito specimen in a make-shift laboratory at his home in Taipei every day.
In his nearly 70 years of mosquito research, Lien worked for several health institutes and his achievements were recognized by former president Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石), as well as the international community, which has named about 20 mosquitoes after him.
“Like human beings, mosquitoes come in all kinds of shapes and sizes and are interesting to observe,” he said.
At his laboratory, Lien wore magnifying glasses and worked under dim light as he carefully pulled out 15 boxes of treasured mosquitoes, dragonflies and beetle specimens that would be sent to Cheng Yuan High School in Taipei for display this month.
“My sincere wish is that there would be someone to take after me,” he said.
However, he said with a sad smile that people are less interested in mosquito studies nowadays because “it takes great effort and the work does not generate much profit.”
With the specimen donation on the way, Lien said hopefully, the younger generation could learn to appreciate the beauty of mosquitoes and, like him, develop a lifelong passion for mosquitoes when they grow up.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
FINAL COUNTDOWN: About 50,000 attended a pro-recall rally yesterday, while the KMT and the TPP plan to rally against the recall votes today Democracy activists, together with arts and education representatives, yesterday organized a motorcade, while thousands gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei in the evening in support of tomorrow’s recall votes. Recall votes for 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and suspended Hsinchu City mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) are to be held tomorrow, while recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers are scheduled for Aug. 23. The afternoon motorcade was led by the Spring Breeze Culture and Arts Foundation, the Tyzen Hsiao Foundation and the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association, and was joined by delegates from the Taiwan Statebuilding Party and the Taiwan Solidarity
Instead of threatening tariffs on Taiwan-made chips, the US should try to reinforce cooperation with Taiwan on semiconductor development to take on challenges from the People’s Republic of China (PRC), a Taiwanese think tank said. The administration of US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose across-the-board import duties of 32 percent on Taiwan-made goods and levy a separate tariff on semiconductors, which Taiwan is hoping to avoid. The Research Institute for Democracy, Society, and Emerging Technology (DSET), a National Science and Technology Council think tank, said that US efforts should focus on containing China’s semiconductor rise rather than impairing Taiwan. “Without
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the