Archive for March, 2009

Empire State Building lit up in Japanese colors

To honor Japan’s victory at the World Baseball Classic:

However, as the Japanese TV news report notes, very few Americans know or care about the World Baseball Classic. Less than 3% of Americans watched it on TV, and a random pedestrian they interviewed didn’t know the meaning of the acronym “WBC.”

• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
• Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)

Momo-chan: The original genius chimpanzee

Long before Pan-kun became a star on Shimura Zoo, there was another famous performing chimp on Japanese TV: Momo-chan. A chimp from the Nasu World Monkey Park, Momo-chan was raised like a human child by animal trainer Atsushi Miyazawa and appeared regularly on the TBS program Amazing Animals (Doubutsu Kisoutengai)　until about 5 years ago.

The final episode of Amazing Animals will air next Sunday night, so the last few episodes of the show have been highlighting some of its greatest moments. The previous episode had a special section about Momo-chan. Here’s a clip showing Miyazawa raising her and teaching her some really neat tricks:

And a clip of Miyazawa instructing her not to eat a cake (when she realizes that Miyazawa is not physically present, she ignores the image on the TV):

Momo-chan is given some tools to retrieve fruit from the bottom of a plastic container:

And she figures out how to pick up an eel:

As the years went by, Momo-chan grew larger and she was retired from her performing career. Miyazawa realized that as soon as she reached adulthood and began menstruating, it would be incredibly hard to control her and she would have to wear a collar or some other kind of restraint. He couldn’t bear the thought of forcing her to wear a collar, so her shows were stopped and she now lives a life similar to normal zoo Chimpanzees.

Miyazawa left Nasu World Monkey Park and moved to Cuddly Dominion in Kumamoto Prefecture, where he began training a baby chimpanzee named Pan-kun and a bulldog named James. Pan-kun appeared a few times on “Amazing Animals,” but was eventually added to the regular cast of NTV’s Shimura Zoo.

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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
• Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)

Apocalypse Meow trailer

The trailer for the new CG anime series Apocalypse Meow (“Cat Shit One”), which shows us the horrors of war by having cute animals kill each other:

[via Patrick Macias' blog]

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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
• Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)

Man officially recognized as victim of both Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings

A 93-year-old man who has been fighting for years to have himself officially listed as a double A-bomb victim ID has achieved his goal:

“As far as we know, it is the first time that a dual exposure to atomic bombings has been entered into an A-bomb survivor’s ID,” said officials of the prefectural and municipal governments of both Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has not confirmed the existence of a dual hibakusha.

According to the Nagasaki Municipal Government, Yamaguchi was three kilometers from Ground Zero in Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, while on a business trip as an engineer for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works. He sustained heavy burns on the left side of his upper body.

On the following day, he was exposed to residual radiation when he passed through an area within two kilometers of Ground Zero in order to catch a train to evacuate the city.

He returned to the city of Nagasaki on Aug. 8, only a day before he was again exposed to the atomic bombing at about three kilometers away from Ground Zero. On Aug. 13, he entered near Ground Zero to search his relatives and was exposed to residual radiation. His dual exposure to both atomic bombings was newly verified by accounts of another atomic bomb survivor.

The new status, however, will not entitle him to more aid benefits than he had previously received as a non-dual hibakusha.

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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
• Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)

WBC Champagne Shower

Team Japan celebrates their triumph at the World Baseball Classic:

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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
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Housing in Japan – Renovation

Many houses built in Japan are only meant to last a single generation. It is quite common for people to tear down houses built only a few decades earlier to rebuild new houses on the spot or sell empty plots of land rather than try to find buyers for used homes. Often this is because the houses are not built well-enough to stand up to years of use, especially if owners don’t make great efforts to maintain them.

Recent years seem to have seen an increase in the number of renovated/renewed old homes being re-sold, and companies have been quick to point out the “Eco” qualities of such a practice . Here is a commercial airing on Japanese TV in which Sekisui House promotes “Ever-Loop” renovated homes:

The man in the commercial is telling the girl about how it is common to see lots of old buildings in Europe. This is because the owners take care of homes and keep them in a condition that can be passed on to new owners. The girl agrees, noting that it is just like the way fine musical instruments and works of art are treasured so that future owners and enjoy them.

After a narrator explains the amazing concept of re-using homes after renovating them , the girl says that we (the Japanese) should also start doing this kind of thing with old homes.

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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
• Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)