High-speed rail in Japan

Transports

There is the luxury of high-speed rail travel in Japan. The first bullet train, the shinkansen, was introduced after the end of the Second World War. Now the shinkansen network that operated by Japan Railways connects Japanese cities through almost 1,550 miles of road.

The early trains could drive with speed of 130 mph but the lastest version, the N70 series that was opened service in 2007 could drive with speed of 186 mph. The new E5 series will introduce in 2011. It can drive with 199 mph that possible to travel form Tokyo to Amori about 419 miles away in three hours.

More than 150 million people each year use the bullet train service between Tokyo and Osaka while Japan airlines(JAL) fly 3.9 million people from Tokyo to Osaka in the same time.

Japan plans to introduce the next generation of bullet trains in 2025. A service will connect Tokyo and Nagoya in around 40 minutes. It uses maglev train system called magnetic levitation which are faster than conventional trains.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/aug/05/high-speed-rail-japan

high 69.3% want gov't to take more economic steps

Business

From annual poll, it showed 69.3 percent of people want the government to take further economic measures and 25.5 percent want the government to bring back financial status that it is the highest rate on record.

But the largest group at 69.6 percent called for medical, pension and other social security measures. Ranking after economic steps were called for measures to deal with the graying of society at 56.5 percent and labor issues at 49.4 percent.

Some 26.7 percent also said their lives are worse than last year, the against 4.0 percent who said they are better, and 68.8 percent who replied same answer.

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/business/news/20100808p2g00m0bu009000c.html
Photo credit : http://jan.ocregister.com/2010/01/21/poll-who-thinks-california-economy-is-bad/29691/

Toyota's Japan hybrid sales top one million

Business

Toyota’s hybrid vehicle sales had topped in July. It was bought one million mark in Japan and 2.68 million in worldwide of the vehicles.

Toyota is the leader in hybrid cars that use two power sources. It is gasoline engine and another source. The first hybrid car in the world that Toyota produced was Prius in 1997. Currently, Toyota produced eight passenger hybrid models to sell overseas.

Sales of hybrids have been sold quickly in recent years because of high gasoline prices and increasing public awareness of global warming.

Last year, Toyota recalled 437,000 Prius and other hybrid vehicles to repair a flaw in the breaking system worldwide that it made Toyota Dishonorable. However, the Prius remained the top car in sales in Japan.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jMHs0PYmaS7AbNNaoImRAlkNsFsA

Photo credit: http://www.itechnews.net/tag/car/

Strange texts for learning English

Education

The Japanese’s main problem in learning English is the terrible textbooks. “Eigo Note” and “Shogakusei no Eigo” are the textbooks for fifth and sixth graders that are full mistakes

The CDs for those two books are bad accents in English because it is translated by Japanese, so this is highly unnatural pronunciation in contemporary English. This does not help children learn or get used to correct pronunciation.

We should get rid of the government textbooks and get books written by native-speaking Engliah teachers who have a perfect grip of correct vocabulary, expressions and grammar. ”Nakama” and “Genki” are a good example japanese-language textbooks that were wriiten by Japanese professors working in the United States.

English is a global language. The mature will get a good job if they know how to use English effectively. Then children should learn English by perfect textbooks.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/rc20100711a8.html

Photo credit : http://www.tofugu.com/2008/02/28/japanese-textbook-review-genki-i/

2 Japanese students win gold medals

Education

Two Japaneses students won gold medals . There were 517 participants from 96 nations and areas in 51 st International Mathematical Olympiad for high school.

The two Japanese students were Shutaro Inoue and Akio Kishikawa. It was the second gold medal for Kishikawa. In addition, three other Japanese students, Genki shimizu, Takuma Kitamura and Hiroki Koshiyama also won silver medals.

In last year, five Japanese won gold medals and one Japanese won a bronze in the competition that held in Germany. I think Japanese students is intelligent, and I would like to congrat with them too for winning the gold medals.

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D9GTEJ281&show_article=1

Photo credit :http://www.tufsd.org/shms/news.html

Let's Smooch! iPhone application to be launched

Science and technology

The smooch Japan KK producer, who is the pioneer of market in Japan, announced that it will launch new iPhone application called Let’s Smooch! on July 23. Let’s Smooch will cut edge technology when you use it available on iPhone.

You can access to update information on Smooch such as latest promotion, location and drink. Let’s smooch also incorporates the world’s first stamp card for using bump technology which can be updated only at the Smooch store.

If you download the application, you can take advantage of special promotion. In addition, if you download the application, you will receive a point card that is pre-loaded with 9 points. It means when the next time you buy a Smooch, you will be given the right to another one free.

The application can be downloaded free at http://itunes.apple.com/jp/app/lets-smooch/id379447495?mt=8.

http://www.japantoday.com/category/technology/view/lets-smooch-iphone-application-to-be-launched

Japanese baby-bot to shed light on human learning

Science and technology

Lastweek, Japanese researchers have created and developed infant robot for better understanding how to human grows up.

The infant robot name Noby that it is derived from “nine-month-old baby” word. It can action like real infant. It has 600 sensors through its body to feel touch. Moreover, it has cameras and microphones for vision and hearing, and it is connected between computer and its body.

Noby is 71 centimeters tall and weighs 7.9 kilograms that it is very similar to a nine-month-old baby. It has soft skin like baby, and it has many joints that can move well.

This project is cooperation between Tokyo University professor, Yasuo Kuniyoshi and The National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology. They are using it to examine theories of human development.

It is set by computer software which the researchers can analyze its result about how it reacts to human actions and its surroundings, and compare it with the behaviour of real children.

I agree with the infant robot because it makes researchers know more about function of baby's body that will help learning human development.

http://www.physorg.com/news195797609.html