Archive for July, 2009

Cool Biz is hurting Japan’s economy

Economist Takashi Kadokura has investigated Japan’s “Cool Biz” idea and found that forcing employees to work in hot offices reduces their productivity:

“We couldn’t concentrate on our work,” said Kadokura, 37, then an economist for Dai-ichi Life Research Institute in Tokyo. “The air conditioning was set at 28 degrees (82 degrees Fahrenheit) and we weren’t allowed to change it.”

The experience led Kadokura to question the Japanese government’s “Cool Biz” policy, which recommends companies set air conditioners at 28 degrees to reduce carbon emissions. Kadokura says sweaty offices lead to lower productivity, and estimates the policy reduced economic growth in 2008 by 653 billion yen ($6.9 billion) or 0.13 percent of Japan’s gross domestic product of 497.4 trillion yen.

A classic link for those who are new to the whole Cool Biz thing: The Prisoner’s Dilemma of Cool Biz.

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

That bread and red bean headed freak’s got character(s)

A Japan Times article reports that Anpanman, the superhero with a head made of bread and sweet red bean paste ubiquitous in Japan, has made it into the Guiness Book of World Records.  The record: most characters in an animated series.  Apparently, as of March 1,768 different characters have appeared in the long-running cartoon.

[Image courtesy of http://cinematicroom.com"]

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Contributor Bio: I am a doctoral student of environmental anthropology currently living and conducting research in a mountain village in Nagano. In my research I explore modernity as it is expressed in a rural mountain community. Specifically I look at national management structures, as well as social discourses, related to forests and probe the impacts these have on local human communities. I have lived and worked in Japan for 5 years. My interests also include Buddhism, literature, music, and mountaineering. Read more at my personal blog: In the Pines.
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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
• Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)

Ken Tanaka is a Robot

Got this in my in-box this morning:

I was asked to make a video using my Flip Ultra HD Video for a possible art museum show in California. All the video installations have to be made using this tiny, cell-phone sized camera. This was my first time trying to make a short film instead of a vlog, an it was very fun to make it. My budget was $0. The short is called I am robot ( 僕はロボットだ) and it’s about me and a robot. It also stars my friends Raideen and Great Mazinga. Do you like Robots?

I hope you will check it out,
Your pal,
Ken

Yes, Ken, I like robots.

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Contributor Bio: Claytonian blogs about Japan, language, and news at The Hopeless Romantic, and vlogs on YouTube as well.
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• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)
• Kirainet.com – A geek in Japan (Subscribe)

Homeless Nikkei Brazilians in Japan

Back in January I posted about a homeless Brazilian who had been featured on Japanese TV. The economic depression has continued and apparently the number of homeless foreigners is increasing. Most of them are South Americans of Japanese ancestry (nikkei-jin) who had been in the country performing manual labor while on special Nikkei visas. Few of them speak Japanese, so it is very difficult for them to find new jobs.

Here’s a partially translated news report from several weeks ago about how some homeless foreigners are managing to survive during these tough times:

Part 1

Part 2

The report features penniless foreigners who choose to accept the Japanese government’s offer of paying them to leave the country, as well as a foreigner who is determined to stay in Japan and find work (with the help of government-sponsored Japanese lessons).

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

Moon men look a lot like white people

A commercial for an air freshener starring Kaguya Hime:

In the original tale, Kaguya Hime is a princess from the moon and moon men eventually make her return home. In this commercial, moon men instead offer air freshener to save Kaguya Hime from a smelly situation.

[via Danny Choo]

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

Japanese sports car vs bullet train

The Top Gear guys hold a race between Nissan’s GT-R sports car and Japan’s public transportation system:

Part 1

Part 2

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