Current State of Affairs in Japanese Science
Geography:
- land=377,835km sq.
- Archipelago with 6,852 islands
- Natural resources: negligible coal, oil, iron, fish and minerals (has to import most resources)
- ¼ of land is mountainous (highest is Mt. Fuji (12,388 ft)
- Four principal islands: Hokkaido, Hoshnu, Shikoku, and Kyushu
- Japanese Alps (marked by Hida, Kiso and Akaishi are in central Japan
- Rivers provide a great source of hydroelectric power
- Cool in the north, subtropical in the south
- Rainy with high humidity
- June=rainy season
- August-early September=typhoon season
- 10% of world’s active volcanoes are in Japan, rarely are eruptions serious
Energy
- World’s leading importer of fossil fuels (exhaustible and renewable)
- Acid rain comes from pollution of the air from power plants
- Water pollution affects the use of renewable water resources
- Belief in teaching hard work and moral values
- Aim to develop students who properly fit into Japanese culure
- Entrance exams throughout system, rigorous
- Students rank near the top in math internationally
- Mandatory free schooling from grades 1-9 (most are public)
- 94% of students go onto complete grades 10-12 (private school is popular)
- Educational system highly centralized, organized by Ministry of Education
- Teaching is a highly esteemed profession, and are well paid
- Junior high school (grades 7-9) has up to 38 students per class
- Modern schools considered to fulfill these roles “
1. Transmitting cognitive knowledge;
2. Socializing and acculturating;
3. Selecting and differentiating young people;
4. Legitimating what they teach.”
- Consumer electronics industry is world’s largest electronics manufacturers with companies such : sony, pentax(optics), casio, mitsubitshi, Panasonic, canon, Epson(computer printers), Toshiba, Nikon, Nintendo
- Electronics industry is leading contributor to GDP
- Japanese electronics are being challenged by other countries in “productivity, financial performance, and brand value”
- Automotive industry: Honda, Toyota (largest automobile manufacturer based on sales), Nissan, mazda, Mitsubishi, Subaru, isuzu, Yamaha
- Considered world’s third largest auto market
- Biggest car producer in 2008 (9.916 million vehicles)
- 95% of motor vehicles made by domestic companies
- Leads the world in robotics
- Shinkansen train lines is a network of high-speed railway lines (1,528mi long network (2,459km))
- World’s busiest high-speed line
- Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) runs the Hayabusa, which has the ability to fly to and retrieve meteorite samples for research
- Annual research funding is over $1mil
- Japanese technology regulated by the Ministry of International Technology and Industry (MITI)
- Technology is more focused on improving individual lives than improving defense
http://web-japan.org/trends/science/
http://web.mit.edu/murj/www/v11/v11-Features/v11-f1.pdf
http://www.thomaswhite.com/explore-the-world/Postcard/2009/tokyo-motor-show.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automotive_industry_in_Japan
https://www-935.ibm.com/services/us/index.wss/ibvstudy/gbs/a1027400?cntxt=a1005266/
http://countrystudies.us/japan/77.htm
http://www.env.go.jp/en/
http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Asia-and-Oceania/Japan-ENVIRONMENT.html
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