The Helicobacter pylori bacterium was discovered by Robin Warren and Barry Marshall in Australia in 1983. In order to prove that Helicobacter pylori cause chronic gastritis or gastric ulcer, Dr. Marshall himself drank cultured Helicobacter pylori, which led him to contract acute gastritis. This finding won Warren and Marshall the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2005.

IARC (International Agency for Research on Cancer), a part of the World Health Organization, recognized Helicobacter pylori as a Group 1 carcinogen (“definite carcinogen”) by conducting an epidemiological survey in 1994. Moreover, in 1998 doctors in Japan reported that gastric cancer appeared in Meriones unguiculatus infected with Helicobacter pylori 1.5 years earlier, making the bacteria and gastric cancer link stronger.

Dr. Uemura and his colleagues examined a group of 1,526 patients to see if they were infected by Helicobacter pylori. These patients were given endoscopy exams from 1990 to 1993 due to having gastric ulcers and so on. In the group, 280 patients were not infected, while 1,246 were. Dr. Uemura and his team conducted a follow-up survey on these patients for seven or eight years. Thirty-six (2.9%) of the 1,246 Helicobacter pylori infected patients were found to have gastric cancer, while none of the 280 patients not infected by Helicobacter pylori had gastric cancer. In 2001 they published the results in an article in the American medicine magazine, “The New England Journal of Medicine”, and received international praise.

Another significant finding from Uemura’s work is that 253 test subjects from the group that was infected by Helicobacter pylori were treated and then cleared of the bacteria. These patients did not contract gastric cancer for the next 4 to 8 years. This shows that gastric cancer can be prevented by treating for Helicobacter pylori. Critical studies are now being advanced because of this discovery.

Not all gastric cancers are developed by Helicobacter pylori. Patients who are not infected with Helicobacter pylori rarely get gastric cancers. Roughly 99% of gastric cancers are related to Helicobacter pylori.

The Kiire Base was originally constructed in the former Kiire-cho, Ibusuki-gun, Kagoshima Prefecture as an oil stock site for the former Nippon Oil Corporation and began operating in September, 1969. It had the stockpile capacity of 1.2 million KL which later increased to 3.3 million KL with the first stage of the construction completed in December, 1972. When the second stage of the construction was completed, the oil stockpile capacity increased to 7.2 million KL which was close to that of the present one.  It was in April, 1994 that the capacity became the present 7.35 million KL.

The Kiire Base, with the outer circumference of 5.5 km and with the ground area of 1,925,000㎡,(which is equivalent to about 40 times the size of the Tokyo Dome), has 24 crude oil tanks for the 160,000KL-class, 30 tanks for the 100,000KL-class and 3 tanks for the 50,000KL-class、thus, 57 tanks in total. A huge crude oil tanker of the 300,000-ton class can dock here as well. About 80% of the large-sized tankers that come from abroad, come to Japan via the Kiire Base. At present, this base receives about 30 kinds of crude oil from 11 different countries, where some crude oil is blended to meet Japanese oil refinery demand.

All oil companies are obligated to stock the equivalency of 70 days of domestic oil consumption, based on the Petroleum Stockpiling Law enacted in 1975. This law was amended in 2001 and entitled the Sekiyu no Bichiku no Kakuho nadoni kansuru Horitsu: a law regarding such issues as securing oil stock. In fact, 160 days of oil consumption is always reserved, which includes an amount of 90 days of national reserves.

The oil stock capacity of 7.35 million KL of the Kiire Base is equivalent to the oil consumption for 2 weeks in Japan. Currently, the crude oil reserves of the Kiire Base hold 2.5 million KL by government stockpiling, and approximately 2.7 million KL of reserves is owned by the Nippon Oil Corporation Group companies, which reserve as much as 5.2 million KL.

In April 2004, Thomson Scientific Co. in the United States announced the world rankings of research institutions by judging the number of theses which they cited. For three years in a row, first place was awarded to Tokyo University for Physics and Tohoku University for Materials Science. Theses published in the 11-year period from 1993 to 2003 were considered. Kyoto University for Chemistry was in second place, while Tokyo University for Biology and Biochemistry took fifth place. For the 10-year period, twenty-four institutions in Japan ranked in the top 1%.

Many research institutions made use of this ranking in their organizational strategy. Max Planck institutions in Germany amalgamated institutions of their subsidiaries under the name of “Max Planck Society”. As a result, these institutions ranked in the top 1% in the world, in 21 out of 22 fields of “Essential Science Indicators”. Regarding these results, Thomson Scientific Co. comments every year: In three fields, Chemistry, Materials Science and Physics, Max Planck institutions have been ranked No.1 since 2005. However, this is a result of Max Planck Society having united all the names of more than 80 research institutions which belong to that Society. Tohoku University for Materials Science and Tokyo University for Physics should not be ranked any lower, given that they have consistently been in first place (until 2004).

Materials Science academic papers of Tohoku University and Physics papers from Tokyo University were virtually number one in the world, although the schools’ performances were ranked second in the world in 2005 and 2006. They were unbeaten until Max Planck Society was created.

In 2005 Kyoto University for Chemistry came in 3rd place, while Tokyo University for Biology and Biochemistry was in fifth place. In 2006 Kyoto University for Chemistry was in 3rd place. Overall, the number of citations tends to increase with the number of theses, and academic dispatching to the world from top Japanese research institutions is becoming more active.

<References>
THOMSON SALUTES JAPAN’S CONTRIBUTION TO GLOBAL RESEARCH

As the Turkish envoy was returning to Turkey, it collided with rocks off the coast of Wakayama Prefecture during a typhoon. It was a tragedy. 587 lives including the special envoys were lost and only 69 people escaped from death. The inhabitants of the Ooshima Island saved them and supplied them with chickens that the Ooshima inhabitants had stocked for emergencies (e.g., earthquake, fire, flood, etc.).

Both governmental agents and Japanese searched for dead bodies and their belongings and salvaged the sunken ship. The survivors were sent back to Turkey with the warships, “Kongou” and “Hiei”, with the Emperor Meiji’s instructions. Memorial monuments were built in Kashinozaki (Japan) and in Turkey through donations.

The belongings left by the deceased, including a music score composed specifically in memory of the deceased by the Japanese, are on display in Naval Museum in Istanbul even today.

When he passed away at the age of 78 in 1998, the news conveyed great appreciation for him. Those who met him expressed their respects. Some comments included: “Meeting with him was equivalent to meeting with the Pope for me. His influence on a rainstorm science is immeasurable.”  “Perhaps, out of all the people I have met, Fujita is the most uniquely talented. I feel honored to have worked with him.” “He always reached his objective before his competitors. A lot of people got lost halfway through their research; however, Fujita’s report made things clear for them.”

Everyone praised his efficiency and wonderful personality. He took the time to explain his research earnestly and clearly to high school students. He was a good leader and was pleasant and energetic. Though he was not good at doing business, he had genuine originality and creativity to cover such weaknesses. Tetsuya Fujita was well respected.

For a period of time, core alumni members from Northern Kyushu, mainly his old school mates and his pupils of Meiji Vocational School (Kyushu Institute of Technology), took charge of Fujita’s facility, which took up 30 rooms on one floor at Chicago University. They are currently planning on calling the New Kitakyushu Airport “Fujita” for short and to have Fujita Tetsuya Memorial Hall in the airport.

The first nationwide literacy test was conducted by GHQ in 1948 during the Occupation period. It tested about 20,000 Japanese men and woman between the ages of 15 and 64 throughout the country. It was found that the rate of literacy was higher than the world and American standards.

The test result was cited as proof that the level of literacy of the majority of prewar Japanese was high, and it dismissed the Occupation policy which claimed for the script reform (Romanization).

He was born in the Yamane family in Masuda City, Shimane Prefecture, in 1873 and adopted the Hata family when he was 14. He went on to the Third Senior School Medical Faculty (now renamed Medical School, Okayama University) because the Hata family produced a long line of doctors. After graduation, he entered the Institute of Infectious Disease in 1898 (established by Doctor Kitasato) and worked on the research of bacteriology for ten years.

He then went to study in Germany in 1907, moved to the National Institute for experimental Therapeutics in Frankfurt in 1909, and was involved in the research of drugs for syphilis therapy under the guidance of Paul Ehrlich.

Hata took charge of the animal experiments, and confirmed that 606 medicines made of arsenic were effective against syphilis in June of the same year. The research results were presented in the academic society the next year, and the medicine that had been named arsphenamine No.606 came to be used as a treatment for syphilis.

There had been no effective treatment for syphilis. However, treatment became possible for the first time through the development of arsphenamine.  Arsphenamine had played a central role in the treatment of syphilis, but after World WarⅡantibiotics replaced it because antibiotics are an organic arsenic compound with toxicity.

Moreover, it is particularly worth nothing that arsphenamin is the first synthetic chemical in the world.

It was sold as a medical supply, “Neuquinon” (medicine for congestive heart failure), for the first time in 1974. Although it was widespread in the United States as an antioxidant supplement from early on, it was approved for sale as a food product in 2001. It became a smash hit in Japan from its inception.
Japan is the only CoQ10 producing country with five companies responsible for production: Kaneka (world share about 70%) and Nisshin Pharma, Asahi Kasei Pharma, Kyowa Hakko Kogyo Co., LTD, and Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company INC.

Kimura was born in Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture in 1924. He studied botany in Kyoto University’s science department and, after studying in the U.S., entered the National Institute of Genetics and was engaged in genetic research.

It was believed that the evolution of genes at the molecular level was by natural selection, as told by Darwin’s theory of evolution. That is, variation caused by mutation would allow species to continue surviving, while those that did not adapt by changing would not survive. However, when Kimura investigated the variation of protein amino acid sequence caused by natural selection, he came to the conclusion that there was no link with natural selection. Thus, he introduced the neutral theory of molecular evolution in 1968. In his opinion, the evolution of a gene is not only based on natural selection, but also happens by a neutral mutation that spreads by chance, irregardless of whether it is advantageous or not.

Since this theory disputed contents of Darwin’s theory of evolution, which at the time was hugely accepted, it generated disagreement and received criticism from many scholars around the world.

However, after the base sequence of DNA was investigated, it revealed that genetic variation happens for particular reasons/functions, but there were also mutations with no identifiable purposes. If Darwin’s theory is correct, variation arises to perform functions. But due to the fact that this was not always the case, Kimura’s neutral theory was accepted as an established theory.

In 1992, Kimura was awarded the Darwin Medal from The Royal Society in Darwin’s birth country, Britain, where he was exposed to criticism at the beginning. It was the first time it was awarded to a Japanese person, and is still the only. The Darwin Medal is a highly-regarded prize, which The Royal Society awards to a biologist who attains outstanding achievements, and is given only once every two years. It is equal to the Nobel Prize. Obtaining such success in Darwin’s mother country speaks of the greatness in Kimura’s achievements.

The researchers named published the most Hot Papers in the latest two-year period (2004-2006). Thomson Scientific identifies a published work as a Hot Paper if it has been cited in scientific journals more times than papers of similar type and age and has been ranked in top 0.1%. Researchers are ranked by the number of Hot Papers they have published. Those who make significant contribution to modern scientific thought are recognized as the hottest researchers,.

Seven papers authored by Professor AKIRA have been named ‘Hot Papers’. Among these, the most cited was published in the February 2006 issue of the journal “Cell.” It has been cited 29 times during the period reviewed.

His research subjects are biological defense mechanisms, signaling pathways of cytokines, and function analysis of biological molecules using knockout mice. Much attention has been focused on these findings, which are expected to provide a clue to treatment of emerging and reemerging infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, allergenic diseases, and immunotherapy of cancers.

AKIRA showed that “innate immunity”, which was considered an earlier and primitive system, controls the whole immune system including “acquired immunity,” an essential immune system in vertebrate animals. This Copernican-type discovery resolves a mechanism of allergy and rheumatism and solves a mystery in organic evolution, contributing to the development of a new immunotherapy for cancer.

In the 2004-2005 period, with 10 researchers named to the list, Japan was second only to the United States with seven researchers.

Japanese “Hottest” Researchers with number of Hot Papers are listed below;
1. AKIRA Shizuo of Osaka University (Immunology) 11
2. Tamura Norio of Niigata University (Physics) 8
3. Watanabe Yasushi of Tokyo Institute of Technology (Physics) 7
4. Masashi Hazumi of KEK, Japan (Physics) 6
5. Toru Iijima of Nagoya University (Physics) 6
6. Nobuhiko Katayama of KEK, Japan (Physics) 6
7. Takeshi Okabe of Nagoya University (Physics) 6

“Our annual roundup of the hottest research celebrates those scientists making a significant impact,” said Christopher King, editor of Science Watch. “Having authored multiple Hot Papers is an achievement of the highest level, as it truly demonstrates their impact on modern scientific thought.”

According to press release by Thomson Scientific in April 2004, Tokyo University and Tohoku University ranked first in the world in the total number of citations of papers published in physics and materials science, respectively, for the third consecutive year.
Kyoko University ranked 2nd in chemistry and the University of Tokyo ranked 5th in biology & biochemistry. The Essential Science Indicators database of Thomson Scientific revealed that 24 Japanese institutions ranked in top 1% of highly cited papers during 10-year period.

In 2005 and 2006, Germany’s Max Planck Society takes the lead in the fields of chemistry, materials science and physics. Tohoku University places 2nd in materials science and The University of Tokyo also wins 2nd in physics.
Tohoku University and The University of Tokyo had taken the lead in each field in the previous years. Thomson Scientific stated that the fall from first place did not mean a decline in research performance at the Japanese Universities. In Germany, the work of more than 80 institutes and research bodies has been aggregated under the umbrella organization of the Max Planck Society. When the standings are viewed on the basis of independent institutes, Tohoku and Tokyo Universities retain the top ranking.

As of November 2005, Hattori had already assumed the costs of eyesight loss prevention surgery for more than 100 Vietnamese people. He leads a double life. He regularly returns to Japan to work as a temporary doctor to raise funds. While staying in Vietnam, Hattori has no days off, and he gives high priority to medical examinations and treatment activities in different localities during weekends.

Hattori says about the importance of his activities in Vietnam: “The patients thank him saying that they were treated by a ‘ Japanese’ doctor, not by a doctor named Hattori. I can’t be irresponsible nor can I leave anything half done. So I always do my best. I am always prepared to work with a Japanese flag on my shoulders.”

Tadashi Hattori was born in Osaka in 1964, and while he was in high school, his father died of stomach cancer. The heartless words of the doctor, who was in charge of his father, made him to decide to become “a doctor who understands the pain of his patients”. He entered the medical department of Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine and was inspired by Shigeru Kinoshita, the professor of ophthalmology, and he decided to study ophthalmology.

There were many self-centered doctors in the university, and the medical care provided there was not what he was seeking. He left the university, and acquired the achievements in several private hospitals in different places.
As a result, he managed to master the most refined surgical techniques in the field of vitreous body and retinal surgery known in Japan.

In October 2007, Hattori met a Vietnamese doctor at a clinical ophthalmology symposium in the Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine. The doctor told him that, “In our country, there are many people who cannot even have surgery to prevent them from becoming blind”, asking him if he could give treatments and educate doctors in Vietnam. He went there in April 2004.

Hattori was just bewildered by the shortage of medical necessities and staff behavior when he started in his new post in Vietnam. Since medical facilities were not sufficient, he purchased some of the newest medical equipment in Japan with his own money, which he had been saving as a deposit for an apartment he wanted to buy, and brought it to Vietnam.

Hattori was unable to complete all planned surgeries. Doctors, nurses and other personnel had a habit of taking a two-hour siesta at noon, so there was no one in the staff room before surgery time. They cleaned up slowly and took it easy while finishing work by 4 o’clock in the afternoon. That was their way, and surgery appointments were cancelled without a second thought, even if the patients were already waiting for their surgery. The local staff complained to him when they had to learn something new or when their workload increased.

Hattori asked the staff “If the patients were your parents, what would you do?” He tried to persuade them, and eventually made them understand the situation. The passion of Hattori, who was doing free surgeries and took medical treatment very seriously, gradually changed their attitudes.

Tomiya Mano, director of Tane Memorial Eye Hospital (Osaka, Nishi-ku) where Hattori, who went on knight-errantry in hospitals in various places in Japan, worked for two years from 1994, said, “Think that a patient is your family”. Since then this word has been Hattori’s principle. Hattori said that Mano taught him that a doctor should have not only the skills but also the heart. He learned much more. Even during surgery, Mano took the scalpel away from Hattori and other inexperienced doctors saying “I can’t stand watching your performance. Leave it to me.” And he also said, “Do you think that the patient wants a doctor like you to continue surgery, even if he is a family member or a close relative? Think well.” Hattori was mortified and when he was pointed out that his left hand was not working at all during surgery, he practiced using chopsticks with his left hand. He went to work earlier than any other doctor in the morning, and in this way he learned his lesson over and over. Such efforts improved his skills. (Quote from Yomiuri Shimbun, December 20th, 2006)

About one year and a half after Hattori went to Vietnam, Japanese newspapers reported about his activities. The Embassy of Japan in Vietnam learned about them. Thanks to this, Norio Hattori, the  Ambassador of Japan to Vietnam encouraged the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan to provide medical facilities to National Institute of Ophthalmology and the Hai Phong Eye Center in Vietnam where Hattori has various activities including providing medical treatment. This led to Japan providing funds for Official Development Assistance.

July 4th, 2004, Yoriko Kawaguchi, Minister for Foreign Affairs, went to Vietnam for informal talks and she visited the National Institute of Ophthalmology where she expressed her admiration of Hattori and her gratitude for his selfless devotion.

July 13th, 2005, Hattori received an appreciation letter from Nobutaka Machimura, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, praising his meritorious deeds not only in improving healthcare technology but also for his efforts towards mutual understanding at a grass-roots level between Japan and Vietnam and for the promotion of friendly relations.

Although the training of medical personnel and its work ethics have improved, and the number of excellent Vietnamese doctors who trained with Hattori has increased, the environment in which they can use their skills is limited. Due to the shortage of medical materials, Hattori has purchased them at his own expense.

Hattori has a dream: In order to increase the possibility for people to get surgery from experienced surgeons, he wants a hospital with training facilities to educate doctors with skills and heart in Vietnam. And in the near future, in cooperation with Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and others he intends to extend the medical network from Vietnam around the globe, a network with a heart that considers patients its first priority. Now he is striving to make this come true.

Mt. Fuji is a typical stratovolcano* (Konide) with an elevation of 3776 meters. Among the world’s individual peaks, the stratovolcano Mt.Fuji is extraordinary for its size.

The present formation of Mt. Fuji is roughly divided into four stages.
　
1. The first stage, Sen-komitake: the oldest part of the volcano, formed hundreds of thousands of years ago, during the Pleistocene epoch.
2. The second stage, Komitake: a volcanic formation, formed after Sen-Komitake two million to a hundred thousand years ago. Volcanic activity then ceased for tens of thousands of years. 
3. The third stage, Ko-Fuji (Old Fuji): formed from volcanic ash from erupions between 80,000 to 15,000 years ago. This ash accumulated over Komitake Fuji to something less than 3,000 meters above sea level.  
4. The fourth stage, Shin-Fuji (New-Fuji): This period of activity dates from the eighth to the tenth century. The final Shin-Fuji eruption that covered Ko-Fuji occurred on November 23, 1707 in the Edo period. It is known as the Houei Blast.

Mt. Fuji was born 100,000 years ago, and has kept growing with every eruption. 11,000 years ago the crater at the summit moved to west to its present position. Subsequently, large amounts of lava flowed from near the top of the mountain until 8000 years ago; part of it reached as far as the mouth of the River Fuji and Mishima city. It did not, however, flow as far as the east side of Gotenba City or Koyama town at all. Mt. Fuji was once a twin peak volcano with both an older extinct summit to the east and a newer summit to the west which frequently erupted.

However, the old peak at the east side collapsed 2900 years ago. Today’s Gotenba City today is built on the earth and sand from that collapse. Evidence has proved that 90 percent or more of that earth and sand is rock from the old eastern peak.

Mt. Fuji has been regarded as a deity of “calming the country” and as a national treasure since ancient times. It has had a significant influence not only on the Japanese mind but also on the reverence for mountains in the Japanese soul. This combination of the kami?or the spirits that inhabit physical objects, including mountains?and the Buddha mind is the foundation of the fusion of Shintoism and Buddhism found only in Japan.

The Asama belief in worshipping Mt. Fuji from afar to appease the wrath of its eruptions arose at the beginning of the Heian period. By at the end of the Heian, these beliefs included climbing Mt. Fuji for ascetic practices.    

During the Kamakura period climbing the mountain became popular among a class of spiritual practitioners and by the Muromachi period, even ordinary believers could climb the mountain.

In the Edo period, Fuji clubs were popular everywhere and mountain climbers flourished. Mountain climbing by women was allowed in the Meiji period, and Fuji was bustling with sightseeing climbers.

Moreover, Mt. Fuji has had a multi-sided influence on Japanese peoples’ consciousness, while it has had a deep relationship with the Japanese sense of beauty. It has had a close relationship with artistic activities and has been the subject of poetry, paintings, and novels and photography. Mt. Fuji has played an important role in the creation of Japanese culture and continues to this day to create an impression in the minds of people.

Mt. Fuji continues its erosion and rebuilding, while people admire the beauty the mountain today. We should not forget, however, that the shape of the beautiful Mt. Fuji is just a phase of the continually changing flux of nature. 

･The Mt. Fuji primeval forest: It was designated as a natural monument on February 24, 1926.
･The Fuji air hole: It was designated as a natural monument on December 17, 1929.
･Mt. Fuji: It was designated as a special place of scenic beauty on November 22, 1952 
(An exceptional site is designated as a “Special Place of Scenic Beauty.”)

*Stratovolcano: a typical geographical feature that produced when magma deep in the earth’s crust erupts onto the surface or seabed.

Yokohama Marine Tower is a symbol of Yokohama and stands in Yamashita Park. The tower took 13 months to build, and was modeled after a lighthouse in order to show the character of Yokohama. It functions as a lighthouse. It is 106 meters high and is recorded as the tallest lighthouse in the world. There is a 100 meter high observation deck where visitors can see the city and port.
On December 25, 2006, the Tower was closed because of financial difficulties. Yokohama City took possession and repaired the Tower, as well as looked for a company to manage it. List Co., Ltd. received the priority negotiation rights and will reopen the Tower in 2009 in time for the 150th anniversary of the opening of the Yokohama port.

Address: 15 Yamashita-Cho Naka-Ku Yokohama-Shi Kanagawa-Ken
Location: A 1-minute walk from the Motomachi-Chukagai Station, Minatomirai Line, Yokohama Minatomirai Railway
A 12-minute walk from the Ishikawa-Cho Station or Kannai Station, Negishi Line, East Japan Railway
At the Marine-Tower-Mae bus stop, Yokohama City Bus

She passed the audition for the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, and after the trial period she became the first Japanese female principal violist of the BPO in February 2001. Not only is she active in playing with the BPO, which is physically and mentally exhausting, but also plays solo and chamber music. These are necessary for growth as a musician. Her sincere attitude and concentration towards music and her performances are highly appreciated. Expectations for her future are very high.
Shimizu stated: “The charm of a viola is its deep tone. A viola is a laborious instrument and it takes time to become a skilled violist. I am interested in playing viola because of its difficulties.”
In an interview, she asserted: “… I want to value the time when I am not playing the viola as well. It is very important for me to spend time with my family. I think that growth as a human being makes music more rich.
<Quoted from “Tokyo Philharmonic concert calendar”>
[Profile]
She was born in Osaka and raised in Tsukuba City.
She began to learn violin at an early age.
She advanced to graduate school at TOHO GAKUEN SCHOOL OF MUSIC and studied viola under Nobuo Okada.
She moved to Germany after graduation and studied under Nobuko Imai at the Detmold University of Music.
Ms. Shimizu won first place at The ARD International Music Competition in Munich in 1997. This is where she gained popularity and this was the first time in 21 years that someone had won playing viola.
She passed the audition of the BPO, and after the trial period, she became the first Japanese female principal violist of the BPO in February 2001.
She continues her performances as the principal violist of the BPO and also actively performs with different orchestras as a soloist.
She was broadcasted in a program called “Jonetsu-Tairiku”of Mainichi Broadcasting System in January 2006 where she became highly admired.
She played with Kioi Sinfonietta in July 2007. In February 2008, she will be playing with the Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra.
[Memo]
A viola is a stringed instrument played with a bow (i.e. a violin, a viola, a cello, a contrabass). The sound of a violin is high and the viola is in the middle. A viola is a little larger than a violin but their structures are the same. The tone of a viola is gentle and deep. 
Famous viola pieces include:”Sinfonia Concertante in E flat for Violin and Viola” (Mozart),”Harold in Italy”(Berlioz), “Sonata for Viola and Piano” (Brahms), “Sonata for Viola Solo” (Hindemith), and “Viola Concerto” (Bartok).

Being on top of Mt. Everest had been his dream-come-true. He said, “No matter how old you are, you can sill hold on to your dreams. You have to continue to make an effort to turn your dreams into reality. I learned that if you keep heart and take one small step after another, you can stand on top of the world.”

Yuichiro Miura (三浦 雄一郎) was born in Aomori, Japan, on Oct. 12, 1932. After graduating from University of Hokkaido he became the first Japanese professional skier to participate international competitions. In 1964 he participated in the Italian Kilometer Lanciad, at which he made a new world record of 172.084kph.

YMiura has made many world records and kept pushing the envelope as an adventure skier. In 1966 he became the first to ski down Mount Fuji with a parachute brake. He also became the first to ski down Popocatepetl (1968), Towers of Paine (1969).

YMiura eventually became the first man to ski the highest peaks in seven continents in 1985, best known for the feat to ski down Mount Everest in 1970. It was documented in the Oscar-winning film “The Man Who Skied Down Everest” (1976).

Miura’s accomplishments have been a huge inspiration to people of all ages in the world. Although his world record as the oldest to climb Mt. Everest was broken by another 71-year-old Japanese climber on May 29, 2007, Miura plans to summit Qomolangma (Mt. Everest) once again from China in 2008.

“Have faith in yourself (when you face death.) The fear gets you nowhere. You don’t care if you live or die when your hearts beats are running over 100. Most of the fears you have will just go away when you climb a mountain.”

In 1964 he became the first Japanese sever to compete in Kilometer Lanciad Italy. He set the world skiing record of 172.084kph.
In 1966 he skied down Mt. Fuji, using parachute as stopping device.
In 1966, Mt. Kossciiusko, the highest peak in Australia.
In 1967, Mt. Mackinley, the highest peak in North America.
In 1968, Mt. Popocatepetoro in Mexico.
In 1969, Towers of Paine.
In 1970 he skied down Mt. Everest from South col (8000m), made world record skiing down from the highest point on the earth (Guinness World Record Registered)
In 1981 he skied down Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa, together with his father Keizo (77), who made the eldest record, and his son Gota (11), who made the youngest record for climbing.
In 1983, Mt. Vinson Massif, the highest peak in Antarctica.
In 1985, Mt. Elbrus, Russia, the highest peak in Europe.
In 1985, Mt. Aconcagua, the highest peak in South America.

In 2002 he summited Cho Oyu together with his son Gota.
In 2003 he became the oldest to summit Mt. Everest.

Mako was born in Kobe, Japan, on December 10, 1933. He was the son of the noted children’s book author and illustrator Taro Yashima. At age15, Mako moved to the United States to join his parents who had emigrated there earlier. He became a naturalized US citizen in 1956.

After his service in the U.S. military, he embarked on a career in film and theater. He studied at the Pasadena Community Playhouse and made his first screen appearance in 1959.

Mako fought to get Asian actors better roles in Hollywood. Frustrated by the stereotyped and caricatured roles offered to himself and other Asian Americans, he co-founded an Asian-American theater company, the East/West Players, with six other actors in 1965, where he trained many Asian American actors and playwrights.

Over his 40-year career, Mako appeared in over 80 movies. His performance in movies and theater put him as a serious Asian-American actor in Hollywood. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1966′s The Sand Pebbles, and for a Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical for the 1976 musical Pacific Overtures.

Mako also appeared in the 1982 film Conan the Barbarian with Arnold Schwarzenegger, and in the 1977 film Seven years in Tibet. He played Admiral Yamamoto in the 2001 film Pearl Harbor and the 1999 Japanese film Owls’ Castle directed by Masahiro Shinoda. In 2005, he had a cameo role in Memoirs of Geisha.

Mako has a motion picture star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7095 Hollywood Blvd.

Mako Iwamatsu died of esophageal cancer at his home on July 21, 2006. He was 72. “He is reversed as sort of the godfather of Asian American theater,” cited Tim Dang, artistic director of East/West Players in a tribute to Mako.

In 1998, another “MEGASTAR”, a lens-type planetarium, opened to the public in London. It projected 1.7 million stars. That record has, of course, been broken.

In 2005, “HOMESTAR” was developed in cooperation with SEGA TOYS for the first time in the world, and uses a domestic optical system. It can project 10,000 stars (of which 8,600 are invisible to the naked eye) up to 6.5 times their size.

Its diameter is 8.3m and, being a one-piece mirror, is the largest in the world; so big, in fact, that it takes 7 years to polish. Subaru’s average margin of error is 12mm. Its accuracy is so good that it can be used to see a ball at the top of Mt. Fuji from the center of Tokyo. Subaru has 261 actuators on the back side of the reflector to control movement.

In recognition of his distinguished services, Takashima was the first civilian admitted to the presence of the Emperor Meiji, who deigned to give him three sets of silver cups. Although in 1877 (Meiji 10) he retired from the business world in his mid-forties, he contributed 10,000 yen for naval defense appropriation and was awarded the Fourth-Class Order.

Furthermore, he founded Aichi Cement Corporation (愛知セメント工業), assumed the presidency of Hokkaido Colliery and Railway Co.Ltd. (北海道炭鉱鉄道), ran the development and settlement enterprise in Ishikari and Tokachi, and successively held the post as president of Tokyo Street Railway (東京市街電気鉄道).

He devoted his time to studying divination under the pseudonym of “Donsho.”  In 1886 English and Chinese translations of “Takashima Divination” were published and consequently the Takashima Divination was established. It was said that the government officials never failed to consult him about important politics, such as the diplomatic policy regarding Korea. His eldest daughter married Hirobumi Ito’s eldest son. Later in his life, he predicted the Sino-Japanese War and the Russo-Japanese War.  He also foresaw Hirobumi Ito’s assassination and the assassin’s name, of which he advised Ito.

In 1914, he died at the age of 83, as he predicted in a memorial tablet.

Tamae Watanabe was born in Yamanashi Prefecture in 1938. At the age of 27, in her first ascent, she climbed the Japan North Alps with a work colleague. At 38 she joined the front ranks of the world’s alpinists when she reached the summit of Mt. McKinley, North America’s highest peak. She was a late bloomer among alpinists, but in a splendid achievement, she conquered five 8,000 meter mountains including Mont Blanc, Mt. Kilimanjaro and Aconcagua.

Watanabe calls herself a commonplace middle-aged lady. Actually it was only just before leaving for Mt. Everest that she recognized she was the oldest woman alpinist in the world. On this mountain, the wind is filled with powdery snow to a height of 500 meters and great chunks of ice, the size of buildings, collapse around you. Another alpinist, climbing about the same time, was killed in a fall. Watanabe faced the danger of Everest and returned.

Behind her records there is a history of both physical and spiritual endurance. This strength was bred into her character by the rigors of her poor farming upbringing. Her father grew ill when she was a junior high school student, so she helped her family with the farming, pulled a cart and carried a night-soil bucket on her shoulder every day. After finishing her work in the evening, she bicycled 6 kilometers to attend high school part time.

When she retired as the head manager of the prefectural high school, she returned to her hometown in Yamanashi Prefecture, and became a guide to natural history at Fuji. In the mountain climbing school there, she shares the stories of her favorite climbing adventures. And she still climbs, taking up the challenge of mountains.

Rejection has always been an issue in transplantation. When tissues, cells or organs are introduced to another species, they are recognized by the recipient’s body as being foreign and attacked by the immune system. In xenotransplantation, the distant evolutionary relationship between any two species can lead to hyperacute rejection.

To reduce the risk of rejection, a genetically modified source animal was used in this experimental transplant. They had produced a “aGal-knokout” genetically modified cow clone without aGal antigen which would trigger an immunological response in monkies and humans.

The cloned cow was born in December and did not survive for long. Kidneys were taken out after it died and were transplanted to the monkey. After the operation, the monkey showed no sign of hyperacute rejection and was able to urinate, which proved that kidneys functioned normally. The recipient monkey died the next day, of causes unrelated to rejection.

The content: “His family name was I and personal name was Manari. The name of his country is Japan. He came to all the way to Tang by order of Japan. He was incomparably polite and studied hard constantly.

He served the Imperial Court as a government official. But he died of unexpected illness at age 36 in January 734 (Kaigen 22). Emperor Xuan Zong (reigned 712-756) mourned the early death of this unusual talent, held a grand funeral and gave him the exalted official rank of Keeper of the Emperor’s Wardrobe.

“His dead body was buried in this ground but his soul must return to his homeland.” The ship on which Nakamaro Abe-no was trying to return home was damaged several times during the voyage. On hearing of this accident, Li Bo in his grief wrote this famous dirge.

In the latter half of the 7th century, the Emperor Tenmu codified laws named Kiyomihararyo and changed the name of the country to “Nippon” from “Wa (or Yamato)” and at the same time adopted the title “Emperor” instead of “Great King.”

However, he was told that this vaccine had no effect on yellow fever in Africa, so in 1927(Showa 2) he went to Africa to investigate. Six months later on May 21st, 1928(Showa 3), Noguchi died from yellow fever in the Republic of Ghana at 51 years old. Newspapers around the world reported his death. Noguchi’s funeral was held in grand scale at the Rockefeller Institute. He was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in New York City in June.

Noguchi was born in Fukushima Prefecture in 1876(Meiji 9). At the age of two, he fell in a sunken hearth and burnt his left hand. He was operated on, which led to his interest in the field of medicine. With the warm support of those around him, Noguchi overcame a variety of difficulties and received a license from the National Examination for Medical Practitioners. He was the youngest to receive one at that time, as he was only twenty years old. Since he thought that he had a handicap with his bad hand, Noguchi started his career as an assistant at a laboratory where an authority on infectious diseases, Shibasaburo Kitasato, worked.

Noguchi was dispatched to China after he discovered plague bacillus. In 1900(Meiji 33), he achieved his long-cherished dream of studying in the US to expand his research on basic medical science. To this end, Noguchi joined the University of Pennsylvania as an assistant.  He later went abroad to study at National Serum Institute in Denmark. Upon completion of his studies in Denmark, Noguchi returned to the US, where he was welcomed as an assistant at the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research.

Noguchi’s academic activities were well received. He announced his achievements in research in many papers and contributed heavily to the development of medicine.
His research and clinics inscribed greatly into the history of medicine.
 
In Japan in July, 2006(Heisei 18) a decision to create the Hideyo Noguchi Africa Prize (野口英世アフリカ賞) was given. This international prize, equivalent to the Nobel Prize, will be given to people who contribute cures to infections and diseases, human prosperity and world peace through medical research and services in Africa. Arrangements are now being made for awarding the prize for the first time in 2008(Heisei 20).

During the Japanese colonial period, Goto Shinpei was in charge of civil affairs at the Taiwan Governor’s Office between 1898 and 1906, during the rule of the fourth governor, Kodama Gentaro（児玉 源太郎）. He launched many innovative projects which would lead the way to Taiwanese economic independence from Japan.

Goto was against the colonial exploitation of Taiwan. He believed that Taiwan could not be completely integrated into Japan, and the colonial government should not enforce Japanese laws in ruling Taiwanese. He conducted extensive research of Taiwanese customs, land and people. Based on the findings, he revised the laws and enacted new ones.

The research also revealed that there was vast arable land. He accomplished the land reform by introducing a modern land ownership system.

Goto phased Japanese systems and capitalism into Taiwanese society. He embarked on many projects of infrastructure development: He worked on the expansion of Keelung and Kaohsiung harbors to improve sea traffic, and the construction of railways and highways to build the transportation network. He launched projects to build modern buildings all over Taiwan. He constructed a sewage system in Taipei earlier than in Tokyo.

Along with his dedications to infrastructural projects, Goto worked hard to foster the sugar industry, which would benefit the Taiwanese economy. By 1905, during his tenure, Taiwan became financially independent.

Goto Shinpei has been an admired political leader in Taiwanese society. Japan owes the friendly relations with Taiwan to his accomplishments.

The National Cancer Center’s Digestive Organs Endoscope Doctor, Takuji Gotoda, (with more than 500 operations in 1995 alone) and the Cancer Institute Hospital and the Shizuoka Cancer Center Endoscope Department’s Director Hiroyuki Ono are the leading ESD authorities in the world.

The maximum speed of “Ereca” using Lithium-ion battery power is 370km per hour. It is a five-passenger, eight-wheel-drive car, and motors are encased in each wheel. It is 5.1m in total length, 1.9m in width and about 800 h.p. Fuel consumption is 24km/l in 10.15 running mode.

It is twice or more as good as a passenger car in the same class. It will go 300 km on one battery charge. It can be fully charged in about 5 hours using the power supply at home.

Mount Shirane is a part of Joshin’etsu Kogen National Park. Yugama’s surface is an impressive emerald green, so it is popular amongst tourists. The emerald green color because of the influence of the iron ion melting in the lake water and of sulfur and many minerals floating in it. However, if one actually samples water from the lake and holds it to the light, you can’t see its color.

Mount Shirane is an active volcano in the Nasu Volcanic Zone. Eruption records, first recorded in 1805(the year of Bunka 2), indicate that Yugama erupted quite often, including in 1805.

In addition to Yugama, there are Mizugama and Karagama at the peak. In the year of Showa 7, two sulfur miners were killed by eruption rock debris. Seven were injured and volcanic mud also flowed. All over Mount Shirane was famous for the production of sulfur but now the mining has closed. In this area there are many famous hot-spring resorts, Kusatsu, Manza and so on.

Kokichi was born in Yatsuhama, Gojima-Gun, Bizen-Koku (present day Yatsuhama, Tamano-shi, Okayama Prefecture) in 1757. His father suddenly passed away when he was 7 years old, and Kokichi was made to work in an umbrella shop in his neighborhood. After that, he moved to live in a picture frame shop in Okayama. He mastered his technique there and made a handmade flying device.

One night in the summer of 1785, Kokichi equipped himself with his flying device and jumped from the handrail of the Kyo-Bridge of the Asahi River in Okayama. Witnesses said that he flew 40-50m and fell. This incident caused a great disturbance, so he was exiled from the domain of Okayama.

Kokichi moved to Shizuoka and spent the rest of his life there.
Unfortunately the detailed flight record of Otto Lilienthal hasn’t survived.

1,500,000 yen was appropriated for construction but it ended up costing 9 million yen (presently 40 billion yen) over 4 years
The hotel gained publicity since it had withstood The Great Kanto Earthquake, which happened on opening day, without big damages.

It was used as an evacuation area for earthquake victims. The hotel made efforts to rebuild after the earthquake by providing food supplies, providing foreign embassies with special facilities as well as using its lobby for newspaper publishing companies.

In the summer of 1949, Tatsuro Uji, a surgeon in the hospital which is a part of the University of Tokyo, visited Olympus Optical Co. Ltd. The purpose of his visit was to make a request for the development of a device able to take photographs inside the stomach. At that time, there were two methods of diagnosing stomach ailments: by X-ray and by gastroscope. X-rays however, weren’t able to examine the state of the stomach wall and it was not possible to take a photograph of the stomach with the gastroscope. As well, the gastroscope carried the risk of damaging the esophagus.

Mutsuo Sugiura, chief engineer at Olympus received the request and worked with his subordinate Shoji Fukami on the development of a device which could take photographs.

Sugiura came from Shizuoka Prefecture. After learning photography in Tokyo, he went to work for the manufacturer Takachiho Seisakusyo in 1938. Before then, he had carried out research and development of such things as cameras and microscopes.

The biggest challenge was that the inside of the stomach had no source of light. It was  necessary to solve this problem and initially, progress was difficult. But Sugiura believed that, “a photograph can exist as long as there are light, a lens and film.” The research continued. The following year, 1950, the first gastrocamera in the world was completed. It was introduced in November at the Japan Surgical Society with the name “Gastrocamera.”

As a result of this invention, it became possible to make a direct diagnosis of the stomach, contributing greatly to the early detection and treatment of stomach cancer and stomach ulcers. The technology has been applied to the development of both the fiberscope and videoscope.

In 1990, Sugiura was posthumously awarded the Eiji Yoshikawa Cultural Prize together with Uji and Fukami for “exceptional results in the early detection and treatment of stomach cancer and stomach ulcers and for his work which contributed greatly to the development of medicine in the world.” He had passed away in 1986 at the age of 68.