#Japanese News

[onigiriforears]

AI: Friend or Foe? | Vocab

Hi friends! I've been trying to broaden my horizons by reading Japanese news articles about topics I wouldn't typically read or talk about in Japanese as an attempt to learn new words.

Today, I read Hiragana Times' article entitled "Are robots enemies or friends of humans?" It was a brief article that mentioned how in the West we view A.I. and robots as a sign of impending dystopia and we have media like the Terminator and the Matrix that show us at odds with A.I., while Japan views them as friends/helpers and have media like Astro Boy and Doraemon that depict them as being helpful. Do you think this is true? I find that a lot of nuance is lacking from the article, but I wonder if this is because the magazine is intended for Japanese-learning foreigners, so they may cut down on things in order to make the translations appear less intimidating. One of the cool things about Hiragana Times is that it's entirely bilingual!

Here are some of the vocab words I picked up:

人工知能 [じんこうちのう] artifical intelligence (A.I.)

搭載 [とうさい] being equipped with

親しむ [したしむ] to be intimate with; to befriend

受け入れる [うけいれる] to accept; to receive; to agree

一方 [いっぽう] on the one hand; on the other hand; meanwhile

欧米 [おうべい] the West; Europe and America

象徴 [しょうちょう] symbol (of something abstract); (symbolic) representation

見なす [みなす] to regard (as); to consider (to be); to deem; to look upon (as)

業務 [ぎょうむ] task; actions; affairs; duties

効率化 [こうりつか] making efficient; optimization

貢献 [こうけん] contribution (furthering a goal or cause); services (to a cause)

懸念 [けねん] worry; fear; anxiety; concern

根強い [ねづよい] firmly rooted; deep-seated

[tan1-7jhing1932an]

[everlastingrandom]

ID: And associated press article header that reads,” Japan raises the age of consent to 16 from 13, which as among the world’s lowest.”

Full article here. God, I hope this gets genuine assholes to shut the fuck up about age of consent. Parliament has also heavily redefined the definition of rape and reformed laws regarding additional sex crimes.

[deborahdeshoftim5779]

Good news for fans of the Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints. Andreas Marks has released a new book featuring unprecedented access to all of Utagawa Hiroshige's (1797-1858) One Hundred Famous Views of Edo.

Fans of European art, especially of the Impressionists, would do well to learn about Japan's legendary ukiyo-e (pictures of the floating and transient world) woodblock prints, as the likes of Monet and Van Gogh were profoundly influenced by Utagawa Hiroshige and Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849).

A movement devoted to Japanese art and culture flourished in Europe, called japonisme. This was fitting, since the woodblock print was always designed for mass consumption.

[head-post]

Japan launched world’s first wooden satellite into space

Japanese engineers launched the world’s first wooden satellite called LignoSat into space on Tuesday.

The miniature object was developed by scientists from Kyoto University and Sumitomo Forestry. It will be delivered to the International Space Station (ISS) and then placed in orbit at an altitude of about 400 kilometres above earth.

The name LignoSat comes from the Latin word lignum, which means “wood.” The palm-sized satellite is made of honoka, a special variety of magnolia wood traditionally used in Japan to create sword sheaths. This wood was chosen for a reason: according to the results of a ten-month experiment on the ISS, honoka wood proved to be the most suitable for space conditions.

The satellite was assembled without glue and screws using traditional Japanese technology. On board the LignoSat are sensors that will record how the wood reacts to space conditions. The satellite will encounter drastic temperature changes from -100 to 100 °C every 45 minutes as it moves from shadow to sunlight. Scientists also want to test wood’s ability to reduce the effects of space radiation on semiconductors, which could open up new prospects for space data centres. The Onglaisat satellite was launched into space on Tuesday from Cape Canaveral, Florida, US, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, Taiwan’s space agency said.

In space, wood proves to be a more reliable material than on Earth. There is no water or oxygen there to cause the material to rot or catch fire. Moreover, wood can be a valuable resource for building bases on other planets.

In addition, satellites made of wood would help reduce the amount of space debris. When a satellite completes its mission, it would simply burn up in the atmosphere, leaving no polluting particles behind, as happens with metal satellites, which produce aluminium oxide on re-entry.

Astronaut and university employee Takao Doi said:

If we can prove that our first wooden satellite works, we will offer it to Ilon Musk’s SpaceX.

Read more HERE

[workersolidarity]

[A map showing the locations of all the U.S. Military bases peppered across the Japanese islands. U.S. Occupation of Japan, officially from 1945-1952 never really ended for the Japanese people]

🇯🇵🇺🇲 🚨 OKINAWA REJECTS HIGH COURT ORDER TO FACILITATE U.S. MILITARY BASE RELOCATION PLAN

The Japanese Okinawa Prefectural government rejected a High Court order Monday to approve and facilitate a revised plan for the relocation of a key United States Military Base located on the island district.

Okinawa Prefecture will file an appeal to the Supreme Court of Japan, according to Kyodo News, citing a government official.

Okinawa's Prefectural Governor, Denny Tamaki issued a statement declaring the ruling had "various problems," making it "difficult" for him to approve the modified plan, when, he says, many residents of Okinawa are strongly against the planned relocation of the Futenma U.S. Military Base.

Japan's central government is expected to approve the changes via proxy as early as Thursday, while Japan's Ministry of Defense said it will begin ground improvement work in mid-January.

The current situation began on Wednesday when the Naha-branch of the Fakuoka High Court ordered Tamaki to approve the central government's revised design changes as part of the relocation plan for the Futenma Air Force Base.

The controversial project aims to relocate the U.S. Air Force Base in Ginowan to the Henoko coastal area in Nago, also on the island of Okinawa.

Previously, Tamaki had told the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva that the heavy concentration of U.S. Military Bases in Okinawa threatens peace in the region, noting that the Japanese government is forcibly filling in previous coastline to build the infrastructure for the Military base, and that they do so over the negative opinions of local residents.

The Governor has also expressed concerns over the excessive levels of toxic substances detected in the waters around U.S. Military Bases in the area.

The island of Okinawa hosts 70 percent of all the U.S. military bases in Japan while accounting for only 0.6 percent of the country's total land area. More than 70 percent of local residents opposed the U.S. military base construction on the Henoko landfill, showed a 2019 Okinawa Prefecture voting results.

Via@XinhuaNewsAgency

#source

@WorkerSolidarityNews

[redsamuraiii]

Catzilla Menace made it to News Headlines in Japan by 日本旅遊粉絲報

[lucifernevergoesaway]

[morinonioi]

NHK ニュース

「NHK News Web」から覚えておきたい語彙をシェアしたいと思います。 だます - to deceive 詐欺 - scam, cheating 被害 - damage, injury, harm 通知 - notification 応答する - to reply, answer ５月以降 - since May 世帯 - family 録音 - audio 通話の内容 - details of conversation 解析する - to analyse 疑い - doubt 特殊(special)詐欺対策サービス 固定電話 - fixed-line telephone 本腰 - serious effort 深刻な状況 - serious problem

[tk-tokku]

Tumblr's paid verification badges, I started with a parody and it increased my revenue.

日本の記事でTumblrが紹介されていました。

Tumblr was introduced in Japanese news.

[kensatou]

i'll let phie-san say it:

[tan1-7jhing1932an]

[thekitsunetwork]

Truck-Kun's Impact Hurts Transportation Industry, Says Manager

The transportation manager in Shizuoka, Japan, criticizes the frequent portrayal of trucks in media as causing negative perceptions and fears, and urges for a more balanced and positive depiction of the transportation industry.

Isekai, a popular anime subgenre, introduced fans to some of the most notorious villains of all time, often leading to high body counts, Truck-kun. The appearance of Truck-kun typically sets the stage for the events that viewers eagerly anticipate: the plot. However, a transportation manager in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, has voiced some strong opinions about the portrayal of truck in…

[head-post]

79th anniversary of Hiroshima deadly bombing: Not a word about US

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida emphasised in a speech on Tuesday that the suffering experienced in Hiroshima and Nagasaki “must never happen again,” but did not mention which country carried out the deadly bombing 79 years ago.

Kishida said in his speech at the commemorative ceremony:

It is our country’s mission as the only nation to have suffered atomic bombings in war to steadily continue our efforts toward realizing a world without nuclear weapons. The calamities that struck Hiroshima and Nagasaki 79 years ago and the suffering endured by the people must not repeated.

Kishida also said deepening divisions in the international community over arms control measures, as well as nuclear threats from Russia, have created an “increasingly difficult” environment around nuclear disarmament. Adding that Japan would move forward with “realistic and practical initiatives” as part of a global effort building support for nuclear disarmament, he claimed:

But no matter how difficult the journey toward a world without nuclear weapons may be, we cannot afford to halt our progress.

Noting that the number of nuclear weapons could soon increase for the first time since the peak of the Cold War, Kishida emphasised the urgency of nuclear disarmament and pledged to continue to promote the long-stalled Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty, which prohibits the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons.

Read more HERE

[workersolidarity]

🇯🇵 🚨 JAPANESE HIGH COURT ORDERS OKINAWA GOVERNOR TO APPROVE U.S. MILITARY BASE DESIGN CHANGES

BREAKING: OKINAWA| A Japanese High Court has ordered the Governor of Okinawa, Denny Tamaki, to approve design changes to a U.S. Military Base being relocated on the island on Wednesday.

According to reports, the Naha branch of the Fukuoka High Court ruled in favor of the central government in a lawsuit filed in October to force the Governor to approve design changes to the relocation effort of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma air base, which is being moved from Ginowan to the Henoko coastal area in Nago, which is also in Okinawa.

Tamaki will have three business days to approve the project changes before the land, infrastructure, transport, and tourism minister will be authorized to approve the changes itself.

Tamaki still has the right to appeal the decision to Japan's Supreme Court, however the project will not be blocked while the decision is being appealed.

Earlier in September, Tamaki told United Nations Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva that the concentration of U.S. Military bases in Okinawa threatens peace, and noted that the central government is forcibly filling in previous coastline sea areas to build the new base, regardless of the opinions of local residents.

The Governor has also expressed concern about the excessive levels of toxic chemicals detected in the waters around U.S. Military bases in Japan.

The island of Okinawa hosts 70 percent of all the U.S. military bases in Japan while accounting for only 0.6 percent of the country's total land area. More than 70 percent of local residents opposed the U.S. military base construction on the Henoko landfill, showed a 2019 Okinawa Prefecture voting results.

#source

@WorkerSolidarityNews