iPhone app helps you predict which seat will become vacant on the train

 A new iPhone app called Densha de Suwaru (sitting down on the train) by Velc helps you make a database of strangers you commute with regularly.  For every passenger you create a list of features, such as which stations they ride between, at what days and times and on which line, along with gender, age, and other identifying details.  The app allows you to make a cartoon-like image of each of your fellow passengers.

The more data you add, the better you will become at predicting which seated passenger will be the next to leave the train.

In Japan, particularly in Tokyo, where it is not uncommon for people to spend 2 hours or more commuting by train every day, finding a seat is an important concern.  In 2005, a book about how to find seats on packed trains became a best-seller book.

The app can be purchased at the iTunes store, but it is unclear whether it is available in languages other than Japanese.

High school boys death battle

Made using over 2500 still photographs for a school project.

Washington Times condemns Pearl Harbor Tea Ceremony

Sen Genshitsu offers tea to Pearl Harbor victims.

In an "Analysis/Opinion" piece titled "Crashing the Party at Pearl Harbor" in right-wing "propaganda sheet" The Washington Times on Friday, former editor Wesley Pruden condemns a historic tea ceremony conducted by Dr. Sen Genshitsu, who served in the Japanese naval air force during World War II, (though not at Pearl Harbor), the 15th generation grand master of the  Urasenke school, as "political correctness run amok" and "misplaced sentiment."

In a short piece throbbing with ignorance and barely disguised racism, Pruden writes:

"The grand tea master of something called the Urasenke School of Tea in Japan brewed up a pot of ceremonial green tea and presented two bowls of it to the ghosts of the 1,177 men whose names are engraved in marble above their ship as 'the gallant men here entombed and their shipmates who gave their lives in action on December 7, 1941.' Genshitsu Sen XV, now 88, was a Japanese airman during World War II, though not at Pearl, and said his tea ceremony was a gesture of respect toward the dead, an attempt to make sure sacrifice was not forgotten, as well as a few words of ritual blah blah about world peace, mutual understanding, reconciliation and all that good stuff. Gov. Neil Abercrombie of Hawaii went all starry-eyed and applied more goo-goo in response . . . The governor thinks the tea pots even hold a lesson for 'other people and countries warring with as much enmity and mutual misunderstanding as we once experienced ourselves.' Maybe it does, though to expect such an example to make friends of radical Muslims in the Middle East is to expect a lot from a little tea and sympathy."

The Urasenke school, which dates to the 16th century, is the largest school of traditional Japanese tea ceremony on Earth.  The current grand master is the 16th hereditary head of the school, which has branches all over the world, and also runs two accredited universities. 

In Japanese tea ceremony, tea is not "brewed" in a pot, as Pruden would have learned had he bothered to do 30 seconds of research; instead, it is prepared ceremonially by whisking powdered tea and water, in this case in a ceremony over a millennium and a half old, specifically for honouring the dead.  "Ceremonial tea-sipping at the USS Arizona" (had it actually taken place; sources indicate that it did not: bowls of tea were presented to the dead and for world peace) is not, therefore, "akin to crashing the funeral, as Pruden writes; instead, it is performing a memorial.  Not one the painfully parochial Pruden bothered to try to understand, evidently, but no less appropriate, symbolic, and heartfelt for it.

Pruden then goes compare the ceremony to Ronald Reagan's remarks about "another old foe now friendly, sort of," invoking that president's remarks about German soldiers:

"The SS troopers were human, perhaps, but [Reagan] was more than a few inches over the top to mourn storm troopers. They were the crushers working for the 'vicious ideology,' not the crushees [sic] . . . The Japanese tea master said his ceremony was meant to 'heal,' invoking the favorite soothing syrup of the therapeutic age, and no doubt it was. (Cue applause.) But some wounds can't be healed by a pot of tea, hot or iced. A tea party aboard the remains of the USS Arizona, however well-meant, is sentiment misplaced, and a little bit creepy. To think otherwise demeans the sacrifice of the men at the bottom of Pearl Harbor."

Pruden is known for his racism.  On November 17, 2009, he published an opinion piece titled "Obama bows, the nation cringes," in which he railed about what he claimed were President Obama's breaches of etiquette committed on his tour of Asia, such as bowing to Emperor Akihito of Japan.  Since Obama was "sired by a Kenyan father, born to a mother attracted to men of the Third World and reared by grandparents in Hawaii," Pruden wrote, he "has no natural instinct or blood impulse for what [America] is about."

Japanese company pulls ads featuring blue-eyed, big-nosed foreigners

Photo via Japan Probe

Japanese distiller Choya has pulled a TV advertisement for its Kokuto Umeshu in which a Japanese woman "transforms" into a foreigner by growing a giant nose.  After the ad was featured on Japan Probe some readers of the blog complained.

Those who complained in English received a letter stating:

"The product in the commercial is Kokuto Umeshu, a major characteristic of which is its smooth and velvety texture, or 'torori' in Japanese. To communicate this to the public, we had the idea of making a play on words of calling someone who likes this 'torori' a 'tororisuki (torori lover)', and suggesting that you will gain like-minded . . . (friends) by drinking the product. Because of the sound of the word 'tororisuki', we introduced the word as a foreign character, and thought up the story of three female Japanese friends drinking Kokuto Umeshu and becoming 'tororisuki friends', and therefore foreigners, themselves. The first two characters do transform into 'tororisuki', but in the performance of the commercial, the third character failed to turn into a tororisuki. Instead, her theatrically oversized 'blue eyes' and 'eminent nose' illustrate that she has not been able to become a tororisuki. In other words, the theatrical 'blue eyes' and 'eminent nose' represent that she has failed to turn into a tororisuki and are not an attempt to portray an actual foreigner. It is certainly not a case of making fun of any particular country, race or person.

Watch the original video below:


Racism by peakfloods

Japan Times: court translators often lack necessary skills

Lindsay Hawker

The Japan Times reports that many errors by a court interpreter were observed in the trial of Tatsuya Ishihashi for the murder of Briton Lindsay Hawker, whose body was found buried in a bathtub full of sand on her killer's balcony in 2007.

Under Japanese law, when a defendant or witness does not speak Japanese, the court is required to hire an interpreter proficient in the language used by the parties involved.  In this case, an interpreter was hired for the benefit of the Hawker family, not just to translate their testimony but to translate the entire proceedings.


When Hawker's mother Julia was questioned about the impact of her daughter's death on the family, she said she had been unable to take a bath for two years; the court interpreter translated the phrase as "I cannot take back the two years."  Later, a prosecutor asked how coverage of the case has influenced British perceptions of Japan.  She testified that many now feel "Japan was a less safe place to come," which was translated as "Japan was the most unsafe place to come."

Because the translator was not being officially monitored most of her mistakes were not corrected, except when Motoyama Naoki, a professor emeritus of Chiba University who testified for the defense,  asked the court if he could make a correction in the translation: "I'm not a specialist of fertilizer as the interpreter said. I specialize in pesticides."

A request had been made to the court to appoint two interpreters, which is now becoming the norm in lay judge trials when defendants are non-Japanese, but only one was appointed.  There is no professional title or qualification for Japanese court interpreters, and their skills vary widely.  According to Japanese research, errors such as differences in nuance can influence the decisions of lay judges, resulting in sentencing differences of up to two to three years.

Ichihashi Tatsuya sentenced to life in prison

Ichihashi Tatsuya, was sentenced today in Chiba court for the rape and murder of Lindsay Hawker (pictured) in 2007.  Judge Hotta Shinya called his crimes selfish and heinous.

Hawker's family, who had flown to Japan from England to attend the sentencing, were satisfied.  Her father Bill said

"We've waited a long time for today. We've waited four and a half years to get justice for Lindsay and we have achieved that today, we are very pleased. Lindsay loved Japan and you have not let her down. Thank you"

Ichihashi testified that first saw Hawker at Gyotoku Station in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture, a few days before the murder.  He followed her to Nishifunabashi Station and then to her apartment, and asked for a private English conversation lesson.  After a lesson at a cafe, the two went to his apartment, where he raped her.

Hawker's parents both took the witness stand to ask the court to hand down the death penalty and to express disgust at Ichihashi's book Until the Arrest, was published earlier this year.  They told the court that they have spent their savings and pension funds to bring Ichihashi to justice.  Ichihashi has offered the family the ¥9.1 million he has made from royalties from his book.  The family have refused.

Ichihashi's lawyers have indicated that he will not appeal the verdict.

Sen Genshitsu donates $30,000 to Pearl Harbor memorial

Dr. Sen Genshitsu, 15th generation grand master of the Urasenke school of Japanese Tea Ceremony (pictured second from left), has donated $30,000: $5,000 for the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association Aloha Chapter and $25,000 to Pacific West Regional Director Christine Lenertz of the National Park Service for the continued upkeep and maintenance of the USS Arizona Memorial.

On Tuesday, Sen, a former member of the Japanese naval airforce, performed a Japanese Tea Ceremony at the USS Arizona Memorial to honor the deceased of the USS Arizona and all Americans who lost their lives and to pray for world peace (see our reports here and here).

Hawker family arrive in Japan for verdict

Lindsay Hawker

The family of British teacher Lindsay Hawker, who was murdered in Japan by Ichihashi Tatsuya, has returned to Japan for her killer's sentencing.  Hawker, 22, was murdered in 2007.

Hawker's father Bill arrived in Japan with her mother Julia and sisters Lisa and Louise.  Mr. Hawker said: "We expect to get the judgment we are hoping for."

Ichihashi, 32, admitted killing Hawker at the start of his trial, but said her death was unintentional: the defence claimed that he accidentally suffocated Hakwer in an attempt to stop her from crying out for help while raping her after convincing her to join him at his apartment following a private English lesson.  When her body was discovered Ichihashi fled, evading police for more than two years despite a nationwide manhunt.

The crime is eligible for the death penalty.  A verdict and sentence is expected on Thursday.

Historic Japanese Tea Ceremony at USS Arizona memorial

As we reported on Monday, a historic Japanese Tea Ceremony was held yesterday at Pearl Harbor, at the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial.

Fifteenth generation Grand Master, Sen Genshitsu, former head of the Urasenke School of Tea, perform the ceremony in honour of those who died in the Japanese attack 70 years ago. About 150 dignitaries and Pearl Harbor survivors attended, including current Hawaii Governor Neil Abercrombie; former Governors George Ariyoshi, John Waihee and Ben Cayetano; Pearl Harbor survivors Ray Emory, Sterling Cale and Alfred Rodrigues; Consul General of Japan Yoshihiko Kamo; and Admiral Patrick Walsh, Commander of the US Pacific Fleet.

Dr. Sen prepared two bowls of tea, the first as a tribute to those who died at Pearl Harbor, and the second for world peace.

Sterling Cale, 89, said the ceremony filled him with joy:

"They had the tea ceremony on the Arizona to honor the men who are still there - those 900-plus men are the heroes of World War II and Dec. 7. Having it there was a good deal. I liked that," said Cale, who was a hospital corpsman assigned to the shipyard dispensary at the time of the attack.

The Urasenke school's Hawaii chapter was established 60 years ago.

See more photos here.

Japan Meteorological Agency institutes Hot Weather Warning System

The Japan Meteorological Agency began issuing "Extreme High Temperature Forecasts and Warnings" last week to prevent people from suffering heat stroke due to turning off their air conditioners as part of the "save energy movement."  The alerts will cover all of Japan except Hokkaido and Okinawa.

The JMA also advises taking water and salt frequently, screening direct sunlight, and monitoring indoor temperatures.

Grand master to perform Japanese Tea Ceremony in honour of Pearl Harbor victims

Implements for Tea Ceremony on display in Poland.

Honolulu—in a historic event, Sen Genshitsu, grand master of the Urasenke school of Japanese Tea Ceremony, will perform a tea ceremony at the USS Arizona memorial in Pearl Harbor tomorrow.  The event is to honor Americans who died when Japan attacked Hawaii on Dec. 7, 1941.

Two Pearl Harbor survivors are expected, along with the commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, Admiral Patrick Walsh. Kamo Yoshihiko, the Japanese Consul General in Honolulu, will also attend.

The 88 year-old Sen, who served in the Japanese naval air force during World War II, is the 15th generation grand master of Urasenke, which dates to the 1600s. His son is the current head of the school, which is the largest of the three best-known schools of traditional tea ceremony.  Sen lived in Hawaii in 1952, and has studied and taught at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

"Japs," Pearl Harbor trend on Twitter following Japan football win

Seventy years after Pearl Harbor the Women's World Cup Final has sparked racist outbursts from Americans.  As we reported last week, American football fans were posting Facebook status updates supporting calling on team USA to get revenge for Pearl Harbor or drop bombs on Japan, or referring to tsunamis.  With Nadeshiko's win yesterday, Americans have also taken their racism to Twitter, creating numerous trending topics including "Japs" and "Pearl Harbor":

"USA drops bombs on Japan like Pearl Harbor"--TheLoneKnight21

"Getting ready to nuke the dirty Japs just like Hiroshima!!!"--Elletdino

"USA women should beat the Japs today based strictly on karma #pearlharbor"--KurtStadelman

"#USA about to tsunami the japs in the world cup. Too soon?"--johgaldi10

On a positive note, once these topics began trending many Twitter users pointed out how racist and inappropriate they are.

The importance of cursive

by EraPhernalia Vintage

As cursive handwriting is increasingly being dropped from school curricula, Danielle Magnuson reports that writing by hand stimulates the brain in a way that keyboarding does not.


As Magunson points out, someone who never learns to write cursive will also never learn to read it:

"The neglected art has already created a generation of schoolchildren, from third graders on up through high schoolers, to whom cursive is a foreign alphabet."

She points out that it is "wildly practical" to avoid turning handwritten documents into "indecipherable codes.

Meanwhile, in some countries handwriting is still considered enormously important.  In Japan, for example, children take fully six years of calligraphy lessons as part of the public school curriculum using a traditional brush and ink.  Although this may have something to do with the writing system (it is virtually impossible to read Chinese characters written quickly by hand unless you also have experience of writing them and understand the forms they take on as they become increasingly cursive), it may also reflect the importance that writing by hand has in the culture: while email and texting are firmly established, most Japanese still consider that personal letters are ideally written by hand.

Tokyo/Glow

Written and directed by Jonathan Bensimon and produced by Jonas Bell Pasht, Tokyo/Glow follows the nighttime journey of an illuminated man from a crosswalk sign as he embarks on an adventure through the streets of Tokyo. Shot on location throughout Tokyo using thousands of individual digital stills, the short film features original music by indie rock band Kidstreet, who recently signed with Nettwerk Records and will be releasing their debut album worldwide in 2010.

Tokyo/Glow HD from Nathan Johnston on Vimeo.

American football fans call for Pearl Harbor revenge

American football fans posting Facebook status updates supporting their team in the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup championship match between the US and Japan are calling on team USA to get revenge for Pearl Harbor or drop bombs on Japan, or referring to tsunamis.

See more at Japan Probe.

World's youngest sake expert

Ten year-old Niikura Akane, who evaluates sake on smell rather than taste, has passed the Sake Service Institute of Japan's test.