     was an edo period japanese pharmacologist, student of rangaku, physician, author, painter and inventor who is well known for his erekiteru (electrostatic generator), kandankei (thermometer) and kakanpu (asbestos cloth). he also wrote the satirical essay "on farting." born into a low-ranking samurai family, his father was shiraishi mozaemon (yoshifusa), his mother was from the yamashita clan, and he had many siblings. his real name was , but he also went by the pen names ,  (his principal literary pen name),  and . he is most well known by the name "gennai", however. he first studied medicinal herbs in osaka, with toda kyokuzan, before moving to edo in 1757. there, he studied with tamura ransui, and wrote a number of books, some on scientific or nature topics, some satirical novels, in the kokkeibon and dangibon genres. in his scientific experiments, he prospected for various ores, wove asbestos, calculated temperatures, and worked with static electricity. gen
1729_births 1779_deaths 18th-century_Japanese_physicians Japanese_essayists Japanese_inventors Japanese_people_convicted_of_murder Japanese_people_who_died_in_prison_custody Japanese_scientists Japanese_writers_of_the_Edo_period People_convicted_of_murder_by_Japan Prisoners_who_died_in_Japanese_detention