Replies to post #73503 on Kraig Biocraft Laboratories Inc (KBLB)

[igotthemojo]

"Actually worms and eggs are the same thing in thins case"

well that's odd because I wouldnt think worms and eggs are the same in any case...they are not exactly interchangeable...

"the yield rate of viable silk cocoons"

seems to me you have to have an egg that turns into a worm that spins a cocoon before you can talk about yield rate of viable silk cocoons...

you can talk about viable rates of egg or worms or cocoons...if it eggs then im gonna assume we are talking about eggs..if worms then worms..if cocoons then cocoons...

I don't see how one can speak of viable rates of cocoons and assume anyone will understand he really means eggs??..

you could be right but when I read that statement it tells me that 70% of the cocoons were crap and thrown away...

[first mike]

Silk production economics.

...is that from 100 cocoons we get 30 good ones and that is not the case. If the worm can get to the point of spinning they will make a viable cocoon.

I believe that you are correct in this, that almost all of the 70% losses were in the hatching and the first one or two instars. (that is what is common in the current silk industry.)

One of the things that makes this economically less significant to the total production cost is that 90% of the production costs (food and space) are consumed in the last week of growth before spinning, the last ~12% of the production cycle.
Therefore any early egg / worm losses are costed at only about 10% of their relative numbers.
ie. 70% early numeric losses = only 7% loss in cost vs. product.

Mike L.

The biggest advantage of the new more than doubled survival percentages is not in reduced production costs but in increased expansion rates.