Archive for April, 2011

No More Rodeo Monkey in Japan

Bad news, everyone! The monkey and wild boar team that became world-famous last year for their “rodeo” act will no longer be riding together:

The monkey and boar are still friends, but the Fukuchiyama Zoo has decided that the boar is now too large to be allowed to run around freely inside the zoo. It’s safe to let a baby wild boar run around among visitors, but now that the boar has grown up, it could be dangerous.

Here are a couple videos from last year, showing the pair at the height of their popularity:

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Earthquake & Tsunami Survivors Receive Free Eyeglasses

A short Japanese TV news report about the free distribution of eyeglasses at evacuation shelters in Tohoku:

When one thinks of relief supplies, one usually thinks of food, drinks, blankets, and clothing. Few people would expect that eyeglasses would be in demand. However, there are apparently a lot of people at evacuation centers in Tohoku who have been living for weeks without much-needed eyeglasses.

When the tsunami struck on March 11th, people had only minutes to evacuate their homes and get to the safety of high ground. Some people didn’t have time to fetch their eyeglasses. Other people were wearing their eyeglasses, but lost them in the effort to escape from the onrushing water. People who wore contact lenses lost their supply of replacements and solution when the tsunami destroyed their homes.

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• Dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)

Donald Keene Will Become Japanese Citizen

88-year-old Japanologist Donald Keene recently told the Japanese press that he has decided to become a Japanese citizen and live the rest of his life in Japan.

In interviews with N-H-K and Kyodo, Keene confirmed that he plans to naturalize and become a Japanese citizen. He said that the March 11th earthquake has not lessened his desire to live in Japan, a country that he truly loves.

In the N-H-K interview, he criticized companies that had relocated staff to foreign countries and baseball players who had fled following the earthquake. Keene believes that this is an important time to show one’s faith in the Japanese country and its people.

In 2008, the Emperor of Japan conferred the Order of Culture on Keene in recognition of the scholar’s great contributions to the study of Japanese culture.

• Akihabara News – Gadgetry from Japan (Subscribe)
• Dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)

200 Demron Anti-Radiation Suits Donated to Japan

A Japanese reporter tries on a Demron anti-radiation suit:

Radiation Shield Technologies is donating about 200 of its Demron suits to Japan:

More than 200 full-body nuclear radiation protection suits manufactured in Medley have been donated to aid power plant workers and rescue teams in Japan, and the company, Radiation Shield Technologies, is working full-time to keep up with orders from companies in Japan.

The suits are in high demand because of their unique material, called Demron, invented by Coral Gables anesthesiologist and pain-management specialist Dr. Ronald DeMeo. The radiation-blocking material offers protection against multiple threats, including infrared radiation, extreme heat, nuclear fallout, biological and chemical agents.

DeMeo decided to donate the suits after watching TV and noticing that some Japanese workers lacked adequate protective clothing.

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• Dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)

Ready-made Formula Milk From Finland Sent to Japanese Earthquake Survivors

FTV reports on how a group of Japanese mothers in Finland collected boxes of ready-made formula milk and shipped them to evacuation shelters in Tohoku:

It seems that ready-made liquid formula milk is not widely sold in Japan. The group of Japanese mothers in Finland realized that it could be very helpful to mothers in Tohoku who were living in evacuation shelters.

They gathered together friends and took to the streets of Finland and collected donations. Twitter was also used to solicit online donations and seek out recipients for the formula milk. The group made its own Japanese translations of the instruction labels for the formula. They also included notes of encouragement in their shipments.

So far, they’ve been able to send over 2,000 milk cartons to evacuation shelters in Miyagi and Fukushima.

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• Dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)

Parrot Mimics Earthquake Alert

There have been over 1,000 aftershocks since the March 11th earthquake. Japan’s early warning system has successfully detected many of the aftershocks before they arrive, triggering alerts on television and on mobile phones.

Here’s a pet parrot that has heard a lot of earthquake warning sounds coming from mobile phones:

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• Dannychoo.com – Your portal to Japan (Subscribe)